Digest of Significant Classification Decisions and Opinions, No.
28, April 2002       


United States
Office of Personnel Management


Office of Merit Systems Oversight and Effectiveness
Digest of Significant Classification Decisions and Opinions
April 2002
Article No. 28-08


Standards: Introduction to the Electronic Equipment and
		Maintenance Family 2600

	  Administrative Work in the Information Technology 
		Group, GS-2200 (May 2001)

Factor: 	N/A

Issue: 	Distinguishing between Federal Wage System (FWS) 
		and General Schedule (GS) Positions


   Identification of the Classification Issue

The appellant's job was classified as Electronics Mechanic, WG-
2604-11. He believed that his position was covered by the
Information Technology (IT) Management Series, GS-2210, and
should be evaluated using the Job Family Standard (JFS) for
Administrative Work in the IT Group, GS-2200.

     Resolution

The appellant supported networking hardware that used proprietary
Internet operating systems (IOS's) and operating systems (OS's)
that used different languages and command line interfaces
(CLI's). He said that he used CLI's to analyze, diagnose, test,
configure, and verify IOS/OS functionality and claimed that he
analyzed and configured networking systems into local area
networks (LAN's). He simulated operations, verifying that
interfaces functioned and that the IOS could support any other
interface that might be added. He claimed that he used GS-2210
skills to gain entrance to system software to perform his work
and to restore root privileges.

The appellant's rationale relied on extracts from the definitions
of network services and systems administration of IT Management,
GS-2210, work in the JFS for Administrative Work in the IT Group,
GS-2200. OPM found that GS-2210 network analysis, definition,
and configuration involves making decisions on such matters as
what networks will be fielded and supported, including the
hardware to purchase and the system software used to operate the
hardware, as well as determining if networks are achieving their
performance objectives. It does not cover the appellant's
connecting and testing hardware to assure that components
communicate with one another, loading the correct version of
operating software, and downloading and installing the most
recent commercial off-the-shelf software release from the Web.

OPM found that the appellant's primary and paramount duties
flowed from the mission and function of the organization in which
he worked. Those duties entailed the fielding, upgrading,
integration, and repair of computer and peripheral equipment in a
depot level repair production environment. The work required
trade knowledge of electronics principles and practices in
determining whether computer and peripheral equipment operating
problems are hardware and/or software based and required trades
skill and knowledge to make repairs, including replacing drives
and other components. OPM sustained the agency's allocation to
the FWS.

    "Back to the Basics"

FWS 2600 Family mechanics and GS employees may possess and use
similar knowledge to some degree. However, the distinction lies
in the manner in which knowledge is applied. Work in the 2600
Family requires the ability to understand and use IT equipment
and software to test and troubleshoot equipment that is
increasingly IT-based, including knowledge of proprietary
software to install LAN's. Other 2600 Family positions use this
knowledge to initially upload systems and upload changes to
equipment operations software, including weapons and comparable
systems. They also use well documented and defined programming
routines to set and adjust equipment operating parameters.
However, the overall nature and purpose of the work is to
install, maintain and repair equipment which is excluded from the
General Schedule.

Link to C-2604-00-01