Police Officer

Description:

This position will serve as a Police Officer at the James J. Peters VA Medical Center in Bronx, NY. The Police Officer will perform a full range of police duties by following and executing rules, regulations, or procedures covering law and rules enforcement, physical and personal security operations, patrol duties, control desk duty, coordination with local courts, and/or crime prevention activities for the local jurisdiction.

Requirements:

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 04/03/2024.

Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement.

For a GS-06 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-05. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade.

Driver's License Requirement: Applicants must possess a valid, unrestricted State driver's license, have a safe driving record, and demonstrate that he or she is medically qualified to operate the appropriate motor vehicle safely. Applicants are required to pass agency Government Vehicle Drivers physical examination. NOTE: We cannot accept photographs, therefore; please do not submit a copy of your driver's license with your application package. If an interview is requested, you may be required to provide a copy of your valid state-issued driver's license.

Firearm Requirement: VA Police Officers are required to carry agency-approved firearms while on duty on VA property. Officers must achieve and maintain qualification/certification with the agency-approved firearms as condition of gaining and continuing employment as a Police Officer. Applicants must be able to possess firearms under the terms of the Gun Control Act of 1968, as amended (18 U.S.C. 922(g)(9).

You may qualify based on your experience as described below:
SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE
You must have at least one (1) full year of specialized experience equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-5) in the federal service that has given you the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities required to successfully perform the duties of a Police Officer. Specialized experience is experience that provided knowledge of a body of basic laws and regulations, law enforcement operations, practices, and techniques and involved responsibility for maintaining order and protecting life and property. Creditable specialized experience may have been gained in work on a police force; through service as a military police officer; in work providing visitor protection and law enforcement in parks, forests, or other natural resource or recreational environments; in performing criminal investigative duties; or in other work that provided the required knowledge and skills.

Experience as a security guard or corrections officer is generally NOT qualifying. Examples of qualifying specialized experience for this position include: Maintaining order to protect life and property; Taking initial complaints; Interviewing witnesses; Securing a crime scene and conducting limited searches; Responding to emergency situations; Making arrests and performing booking procedures; Gathering information and preparing reports; Conducting routine patrol, traffic control, and traffic accident investigations.

NOTE: You must provide detailed information of your experience performed. Information such as "I was a Patrolman", "I was a Police Officer for a number of years," or "I enforced Federal, State, county, and laws" is insufficient to determine your qualifications. Experience must be fully documented in your resume and must include job title, duties, month & year start/end dates AND hours worked per week.

- AND

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS FOR POLICE OFFICER POSITION:1. Applicants must possess a current, valid State driver's license, have a safe driving record, and demonstrate that he or she is medically qualified to operate the appropriate motor vehicle safely.

1. Applicants must possess a current, valid State driver's license, have a safe driving record, and demonstrate that he or she is medically qualified to operate the appropriate motor vehicle safely.

2. Applicants are required to successfully complete a comprehensive medical and psychological examination prior to entering on duty to determine fitness for duty as a Police Officer.

3. Applicants must undergo a background investigation, which may include the administration of a polygraph examination.

4. Applicants are required to undergo and successfully pass a pre-employment drug screening test and must submit to random drug testing after employment.

5. New VA Police Officers are required to attend an 8-week course at the VA Law Enforcement Training Center in Little Rock, Arkansas. Satisfactory completion of this course is a condition of continued employment.

6. VA Police Officers may be expected to continue irregular duty hours either at the Medical Center, local police offices, or at court especially during investigations of serious criminal incidents. This type of working schedule may negatively affect or burden family responsibilities.

7. VA Police Officers encounter people experiencing extreme poverty and personal hardship, such as separation from family who are difficult, hostile or distressed. Investigators also may witness drownings, vehicle accidents, and other tragedies. VA Police Officers are occasionally exposed to people who carry infectious diseases.
IMPORTANT NOTES: (1) As a condition of employment, must qualify to be issued a firearm and semi-annually with assigned firearm, annually with an expandable Straight Baton (MEB), maintain a valid State or Commonwealth Driver's License and pass annual physical and psychosocial assessment. Applicants must be able to possess firearms under the terms of the Gun Control Act of 1968, as amended (18 U.S.C. 922(g)(9).You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position:
Arrest Criminal Investigation First Response Interpersonal Skills Public Safety and Security Security
Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment.

Physical Requirements: PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS and WORK CONDITIONS The work requires, on a regular and recurring basis, considerable and strenuous physical exertion such as running, frequent climbing of multiple flights of stairs, and carrying items weighing over 50 pounds. It requires stamina, physical agility, dexterity, and the strength to pursue, apprehend or detain persons who are often uncooperative, assaultive, and/or armed. The work involves both moderate and high risks and possible endangerment of life or serious injury that requires the exercise of safety precautions and use of personal protective equipment The work is performed in settings in which there is regular and recurring exposure to moderate to severe discomforts and unpleasantness, such as high temperatures in confined spaces, high temperatures due to mandatory protective personal equipment, or adverse weather conditions during extended periods of traffic and patrol duties. The work involves moderate risk requiring exercise of safety precautions when working around hazardous materials such as toxic gases, explosives, infectious biological materials, and others that pose a moderate risk of exposure.

For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.