Legal Careers
Supervisory Attorney Advisor (Employee Labor Relations), GS-0905-15
Falls Church, VA 22041 - United States
The OGC provides legal advice on a wide variety of matters involving EOIR and its employees in the performance of their official duties. The Employee/Labor Relations (ELR) Unit of OGC advises agency managers on labor and employment matters, defends EOIR in all phases of litigation, monitors investigations conducted by the Office of Professional Responsibility in the DOJ, and defends against unfair labor practices charges.
Duties include but are not limited to the following:
- Directs the work of attorneys engaged in complex and sensitive cases before Administrative Judges of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), Merit Systems Protection Board, (MSPB), Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA), and the Federal Service Impasses Panel (FSIP) that could establish agency and DOJ-wide precedents.
- Provides legal advice and assistance on the interpretation and implementation of anti-discrimination laws, rules and regulations including the Civil Rights Act, Age Discrimination in Employment Act, Rehabilitation Act, Americans with Disabilities Act, and the Equal Pay Act.
- Serves as the principal EOIR point of contact for the U.S. Attorney Offices, other DOJ offices and government agencies on legal matters affecting the ELR program and provides guidance and assistance on these issues.
- Provides oral and written advice and technical legal guidance to key EOIR officials at Headquarters and to offices in the field. Advises on all aspects of federal employment law and federal labor-management relations, including adverse actions, performance management, equal employment opportunity issues and labor relations matters.
- Provides technical and administrative supervision for the attorneys and professional staff within the ELR Unit.
In order to qualify for the Attorney Advisor (Employee Labor Relations) position, you must meet the following minimum qualifications:
Required Experience:
For GS-15:
Applicants must have four (4) full years (48 months) of post J.D. or LL.B. professional legal experience.
Qualifying professional legal experience includes: (1) Developing case strategy, tactics, and presenting the Agency's position in litigation before the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Merit Systems Protection Board, Federal Labor Relations Authority, and/or Federal Service Impasses Panel, from initial complaint or charge until conclusion of the administrative process; (2) providing oral and written legal guidance on a broad range of federal employment law and/or federal labor-management relations matters including adverse actions, performance management, equal employment opportunity issues and/or labor-management relations to management officials; and (3) conducting settlement negotiations, coordinating with management officials on terms of settlement, and advising when adverse litigation decisions should be appealed.
NOTE: Qualifying experience is calculated only after receipt of J.D. or LL.B.
Applicants must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of the announcement.
If selected, this detail will not result in a promotion. The selectee’s current grade and pay will remain unchanged.
Applicants should familiarize themselves and comply with the relevant rules of professional conduct regarding any possible conflicts of interest in connection with their applications. In particular, please notify this Office if you currently represent clients or adjudicate matters in which this Office is involved and/or you have a family member who is representing clients or adjudicating matters in which this Office is involved so that we can evaluate any potential conflicts of interest or disqualification issues that may need to be addressed under those circumstances.
Application Process:
Interested candidates must provide the following to be considered for this detail:
- Cover Letter
- Current Resume
- Most recent SF-50 (reflecting your current grade and series)
Submit all required documents above to the following email box by the closing date of this announcement: EOIR.HR_Application_Review@usdoj.gov.
Please reference vacancy announcement number EOIR-25-0011 in your cover letter and the subject line of the email.
Department Policies
The United States government does not discriminate in employment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy, national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, membership in an employee organization, retaliation, parental status, military service or other non-merit factor. To learn more, please visit the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
This agency provides reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities where appropriate. If you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process, please notify the agency. Determinations on requests for reasonable accommodation will be made on a case-by-case basis.
The Department encourages qualified applicants with disabilities, including individuals with targeted/severe disabilities to apply in response to posted vacancy announcements. Qualified applicants with targeted/severe disabilities may be eligible for direct hire, non-competitive appointment under Schedule A (5 C.F.R. § 213.3102(u)) hiring authority. Individuals with disabilities are encouraged to contact one of the Department’s Disability Points of Contact (DPOC) to express an interest in being considered for a position. See list of DPOCs.
Unless otherwise required by law, the Fair Chance to Compete for Jobs Act prohibits employees of the U.S. Department of Justice or a federal contractor acting on its behalf from inquiring about an applicant's criminal history record, either in writing or orally, before that individual receives a conditional offer of employment. Applicants who believe they have been subjected to a violation of the Fair Chance to Compete for Jobs Act, may submit a written complaint within 30 days of the date of the alleged non-compliance directly to the hiring office using the contact information listed in the announcement.
It is the policy of the Department to achieve a drug-free workplace and persons selected for employment will be required to pass a drug test which screens for illegal drug use prior to final appointment. Employment is also contingent upon the completion and satisfactory adjudication of a background investigation. Congress generally prohibits agencies from employing non-citizens within the United States, except for a few narrow exceptions as set forth in the annual Appropriations Act (see, https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/working-in-government/non-citizens/). Pursuant to DOJ component policies, only U.S. citizens are eligible for employment with the Executive Office for Immigration Review, U.S. Trustee’s Offices, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Unless otherwise indicated in a particular job advertisement, qualifying non-U.S. citizens meeting immigration and appropriations law criteria may apply for employment with other DOJ organizations. However, please be advised that the appointment of non-U.S. citizens is extremely rare; such appointments would be possible only if necessary to accomplish the Department's mission and would be subject to strict security requirements. Applicants who hold dual citizenship in the U.S. and another country will be considered on a case-by-case basis. All DOJ employees are subject to a residency requirement. Candidates must have lived in the United States for at least three of the past five years. The three-year period is cumulative, not necessarily consecutive. Federal or military employees, or dependents of federal or military employees serving overseas, are excepted from this requirement. This is a Department security requirement which is waived only for extreme circumstances and handled on a case-by-case basis.
There is no formal rating system for applying veterans' preference to attorney appointments in the excepted service; however, the Department of Justice considers veterans' preference eligibility as a positive factor in attorney hiring. Applicants eligible for veterans' preference must include that information in their cover letter or resume and attach supporting documentation (e.g., the DD 214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty and other supporting documentation) to their submissions. Although the "point" system is not used, per se, applicants eligible to claim 10-point preference must submit Standard Form (SF) 15, Application for 10-Point Veteran Preference, and submit the supporting documentation required for the specific type of preference claimed (visit the OPM website, www.opm.gov/forms/pdf_fill/SF15.pdf for a copy of SF 15, which lists the types of 10-point preferences and the required supporting document(s). Applicants should note that SF 15 requires supporting documentation associated with service- connected disabilities or receipt of nonservice-connected disability pensions to be dated 1991 or later except in the case of service members submitting official statements or retirement orders from a branch of the Armed Forces showing that their retirement was due to a permanent service-connected disability or that they were transferred to the permanent disability retired list (the statement or retirement orders must indicate that the disability is 10% or more).
Assistant United States Attorneys must reside in the district to which appointed or within 25 miles thereof. See 28 U.S.C. 545 for district specific information.
This and other vacancy announcements can be found under Attorney Vacancies and Volunteer Legal Internships. The Department of Justice cannot control further dissemination and/or posting of information contained in this vacancy announcement. Such posting and/or dissemination is not an endorsement by the Department of the organization or group disseminating and/or posting the information.