Legal Administrative Specialist (Administrative Officer)

About the role

This position is located in the Department of Labor (DOL) Employees' Compensation Appeals Board (ECAB) and will report to the SL (Senior Level) Chair/Chief Judge. The position supports three Appellate Adjudicatory Boards: The Administrative Review Board (ARB), The Benefits Review Board (BRB), and Employees' Compensation Appeals Board (ECAB).

The three are hereinafter referred to as the "Boards". This position is outside the bargaining unit.

What you will do

• Legal Administrative Operations and Management Advisor The incumbent has delegated authority for managing matters with regard to legal office operations/administration, regulatory compliance, human resources, budget/finance, contracting and procurement, statistical analysis and reporting, information technology, FOIA requests, ethics reporting, property/facilities management and space allocation, case management, workplace safety, emergency response/continuation of operations, risk management/mitigation, and long-range strategic planning.
• Serves as the principal advisor, liaison, and/or technical representative at meetings and on task forces on behalf of the Adjudicatory Boards.
• The incumbent is charged with articulating and communicating the Boards' business requirements to senior-level agency leadership and executive stakeholders.
• Prepares detailed reports, statistical analysis, proposals, and briefings and proposes innovative solutions that serve as the basis for critical decision-making.
• Legal Administrative Business Process Reengineering Serves as the authority for continuous business process improvement and reengineering efforts for assigned legal administrative programs and operations with oversight for quality measuring and change management activities.
• Plans, designs, and conducts comprehensive studies and strategic assessments to support individual and joint business transformation initiatives.
• Implements surveys and develops study formats for use by others to evaluate and pinpoint issues and leverage efficiencies.
• Develops requirements and plans, mitigates risk, and leads change with staff coordination and synchronization.
• Formulates new or revised business policies, procedures, and processes for improving the administration of program operations.
• Human Capital/Administrative Support This position's line authority and scope of positions are administrative HR liaison only and do not retain Title 5 authority as that resides with the Office of Human Resources.
• Maintains liaison with OHR to coordinate and facilitate human resources actions from cradle to grave.
• Submits, tracks, and monitors operational HR actions through the DOL automated HR system.
• In tandem with Boards' leadership, the incumbent develops the Boards' retention strategies, attrition rates and trends, current and anticipated missions, and programs as well as provides leadership with respect to short- and long-term human capital planning objectives.
• Assesses the effectiveness of legal administrative management processes and systems, personnel, resources, and strategic planning initiatives in meeting established agency program goals, objectives, or accomplishments.
• Identifies new initiatives for tracking personnel resources, HR automated actions, capabilities, utilization, training, and performance management data.
• Strategic Planning/Policy Development Serves as the senior expert and primary consultant to the Boards' SL leadership on business processes, requirements, and issues with responsibility for analyzing functional requirements and integrating findings into long-term human capital investments, financial resources, space planning, and/or the Boards' business systems, operational capabilities, processes, policies, and procedures.
• Creates a vision of excellence through strategic planning for the legal tribunals in an environment of limited and decreasing resources.
• Formulates plans to meet program needs that form the basis for key decisions by the Boards' leadership.
• Establishes and maintains controls to ensure program plans, budget, and evaluations remain consistent with financial resources.
• Resources Management Provides comprehensive management of all budgetary resources by determining budgetary requirements, procuring funding, planning and managing budgets, planning and executing contracts, and executing budgets in support of legal administrative operations and other Board related programs.
• Prepares and manages the annual budget and financial plan of the tribunals based on their specific caseloads and adjudications.
• Directs the procurement of services and supplies needed to accomplish the Boards' missions.
• Coordinates with OASAM and other agencies as needed to address property management, facilities, and space utilization.
• Records Management Officer Oversees all activities in the Records Management Program and portfolio management decisions regarding cost, performance, and schedule in the respective organizations.
• Ensures compliance with FOIA and NARA requirements.
• Contracting Officer's Representative (COR) The employee may be required to be certified as Level I, Level II, or Level III in the contracting career field as defined in the Federal Acquisition Certification for Contracting (FAC-C).
• As the COR, the incumbent provides technical guidance to ensure that the scope and terms of the contract are met.
• Other Duties Performs other duties as assigned.

How you will be evaluated

Your evaluation will be based on how well you meet the qualifications outlined in this vacancy announcement, as demonstrated through your resume and supporting documentation. Click Application of Veterans Preference for more information.

You may preview application questions for this vacancy here: *** If you meet the minimum qualifications, you will be evaluated against the evaluation factors below and will be placed into a category based on your vacancy question responses.

Category A - Meets the basic qualification requirements for the vacancy and has successful experience in the same or similar job that has demonstrated superior proficiency in applying critical competencies required by this position to work of increased levels of difficulty and complexity.

Category B - Meets the basic qualification requirements for the vacancy and demonstrates satisfactory proficiency in the critical competencies required by this position. Category C - Meets the specialized experience described in the minimum qualification requirements section of this announcement and demonstrates proficiency in the basic competencies.

USA Hire You will be assessed on the following competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics): Attention to Detail Customer Service Decision Making Flexibility Influencing/Negotiating Integrity/Honesty Interpersonal Skills Learning Reasoning Self-Management Stress Tolerance Teamwork The information you provide may be verified by a review of your paid, unpaid, volunteer, as it demonstrates the competencies or skills required for the position to be filled.

Your evaluation may include an interview, reference checks, or other assessment conducted by HR specialists, subject matter experts, or panel members and may include other assessment tools (ex. interview, structured interview, written test, work sample, etc.).

INFORMATION FOR ICTAP/CTAP ELIGIBLE(S) ONLY: If you are eligible for special priority selection under ICTAP/CTAP, you must be well-qualified for the position to receive consideration. ICTAP/CTAP eligible(s) who are Category B or higher will be considered well-qualified.

Be sure to review the eligibility questions to reflect that you are applying as an ICTAP or CTAP eligible and submit supporting documentation.

Documents you must provide

• The following documents must be submitted by 11:59 p.m. (ET) on the vacancy closing date.
• Applicants must meet all legal and regulatory requirements.
• Resumes: Required and applicants must provide a resume either by creating one in USAJOBS or uploading one from your profile.
• To receive full consideration for relevant and specialized experience, please list the month, year, and number of work hours worked for the experience listed on your resume.
• We also suggest that you preview the vacancy questions and confirm that your resume supports your question responses.
• Veterans Documents (if applicable): To be considered as a 5-point (TP) preference eligible, you must submit a copy of your DD214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty.
• Your DD 214 must show the type of discharge and dates of active duty.
• To claim 10-point (CP/CPS, XP) preference, you must submit a copy of your DD214 and the proof of entitlement of this preference, which is normally an official statement, dated 1991 or later, from the Department of Veterans Affairs certifying to the present existence of the service-connected disability and indicating the percentage of your disability.
• In addition, a Standard Form (SF-15) should be included, but is not required.
• (For active-duty service members expecting honorable or general discharge or release within 120 days, click Tentative Preference for Active Duty).
• For more information, go to Feds Hire Vets - Veterans Preference.
• Displaced Employee Placement Documents: Only required if requesting priority consideration under CTAP or ICTAP eligibility.
• Cover Letters are not mandatory and will not be used to verify experience but may be submitted.
• Do not upload password-protected documents.
• Applicants selected for employment who are not current DOL employees will be required to provide proof of citizenship, and the E-Verify system will be used to confirm the employment eligibility of all new hires.
• As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you may be required to serve a 1-year probationary period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest.
• In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider: - your performance and conduct; - the needs and interests of the agency; - whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and - whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.
• Upon completion of your probationary period your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.
• NOTE: It is your responsibility to ensure your responses and appropriate documentation is submitted prior to the closing date.
• For more detailed information on applying for positions with DOL click here to view the U.S. Department of Labor, How to Apply website.
• NOTE: In alignment with the Presidential Memorandum titled Merit Hiring Plan, dated May 29, 2025, applicants may only submit a resume limited to two (2) pages.
• Only the résumé uploaded under the 'Resume" document type in USAJOBS will be reviewed.
• If the resume submitted exceeds two (2) pages, the application will be deemed ineligible for further consideration.

What to expect next

Once your complete application is received, we will conduct an evaluation of your qualifications and refer candidates for selection consideration. Candidates will be referred to the hiring manager for further consideration and possible interviews. You will be notified of the outcome.

A selection is expected to be made within 30 calendar days of the issuance date of the certificate. For instructions on how to check the status of your application, go to USAJOBS Help Guide. USAJOBS will no longer send status alert email notifications.

You can check your application status in the TAS by logging into USAJOBS and in the Applicant Dashboard, click the hiring agency Talent Acquisition System (TAS). If the TAS does not provide application tracking information, contact the agency's point of contact on the job announcement.

To verify that your application is complete, log into your USAJOBS account, select the Application Status link, and then select the more information link for this position. The Application page will display the status of your application, the documentation received and processed, and any correspondence the agency has sent related to this application.

Your uploaded documents may take several hours to clear the virus scan process. To return to an incomplete application, log into your USAJOBS account and click Update Application in the vacancy announcement.

You must re-select your resume and/or other documents from your USAJOBS account or your application will be incomplete.

Additional information

The mission of the Department of Labor (DOL) is to protect the welfare of workers and job seekers, improve working conditions, expand high-quality employment opportunities, and assure work-related benefits and rights for all workers.

Refer to these links for more information: GENERAL INFORMATION, REASONABLE ACCOMMODATIONS, ADDITIONAL DOCUMENTATION, FORMER FEDERAL EMPLOYEES As a condition of employment, all personnel must undergo a background investigation for access to DOL facilities, systems, information and/or classified materials before they can enter on duty: BACKGROUND INVESTIGATION Non-Supervisory Financial Disclosure: This position is subject to the confidential financial disclosure requirements of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (P.L.

95-521). Therefore, if selected, you will be required to complete a Confidential Financial Disclosure Report (OGE Form 450) to determine if a conflict or an appearance of a conflict exists between your financial interest(s) and your prospective position with DOL. This information will be required annually.

For more information, click Telework Position Information. This is not a remote work position. The selectee will report to an assigned DOL office location on a regular basis and is eligible for participation in telework as determined by management in accordance with DOL policy.

Based on agency needs, additional positions may be filled using this vacancy. The Department of Labor may use certain incentives and hiring flexibilities, currently offered by the Federal government to attract highly qualified candidates. Click for more information on Pay, Leave, and Workforce Flexibilities.

The Fair Chance Act (FCA) prohibits Federal agencies from requesting an applicant's criminal history information before the agency makes a conditional offer of employment.

If you believe a DOL employee has violated your rights under the FCA, you may file a complaint of the alleged violation following our agency's complaint process Guidelines for Reporting Violations of the Fair Chance Act. Note: The FCA does not apply to some positions specified under the Act, such as law enforcement or national security positions.

All Department of Labor employees are subject to the provisions of the Drug-Free Workplace Program under Executive Order 12564 and Public Law 100-71.

Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application.

Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis.

If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision.

You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments if you received the link after the close of the announcement.

To determine if you need a RA, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments.