Operating Manual

Qualification Standards for General Schedule Positions

GENERAL POLICIES AND INSTRUCTIONS

Part E.3.(d) - E.3.(g)

(d) Crediting experience--Creditable experience is experience of the type (general or specialized), level, and amount specified in the appropriate standard. Applicants are considered to have satisfied the requirement for 1 year of experience through completion of either 12 months or 52 weeks of creditable work experience, whichever comes first. Similarly, a requirement for 6 months of experience can be met by an applicant with 26 weeks of experience, and a requirement for 3 months of experience can be met by an applicant with 13 weeks of experience. Regardless of the method used to determine the amount of qualifying experience, agencies should again note that the qualification standards in this Manual describe minimum requirements only. Therefore, they should ensure that the quality of an applicant's experience clearly demonstrates the KSA's necessary to perform the work of the position to be filled.

• If the standard distinguishes between general and specialized experience, general experience cannot be credited as specialized experience. However, specialized experience can be credited as general experience.

• Applicants who meet the experience requirements for a higher grade level in a given series also meet the experience requirements for lower grades in the same series.

• Salary or military rank alone should not be used to determine the level of an applicant's experience. Experience for which the applicant received little or no pay is given the same credit as comparable paid experience.

• Federal employees are assumed to have gained experience by performing duties and responsibilities appropriate for their official series and grade level as described in their position description. However, experience that would not normally be part of the employee's position is creditable when documented by satisfactory evidence (e.g., a memorandum from the manager or personnel officer, SF-52, or other documentation). Similarly, experience gained in the Federal service under a misassignment or improper appointment is given the same credit as experience under a proper appointment if the applicant submits satisfactory evidence to substantiate his/her claim.

• An employee whose position is upgraded as a result of a reclassification is considered to meet the qualification requirements of the upgraded position, since he or she has been performing the higher-graded work. However, employees must meet any licensure or certification requirements, as well as any minimum educational requirements or the provisions on p.II-15, E.4.(g).

• Appropriate experience gained while on detail or in "mixed-grade" or "mixed-series" positions is creditable when satisfactorily documented. Credit is given for the percentage of time that the applicant spent on the qualifying duties. Also see paragraph (l) on crediting experience gained on detail, and E.10. on crediting supervisory experience.

(e) Crediting one-grade interval or wage grade experience--Technician, paraprofessional, and substantive clerical support experience may be qualifying for two-grade interval positions, and wage grade experience may be qualifying for General Schedule positions, if the experience demonstrated the KSA's required to perform the work successfully. This is true for either lateral or promotion actions.

The basic requirements for type and level of experience and/or education apply to all applicants, whether their experience has been in the same occupation as the position being filled or in related support or wage grade occupations. Work experience that included both qualifying and nonqualifying duties is credited based on the percentage of time spent on the creditable experience.

Applicants with specialized experience can have that experience credited towards meeting the basic requirements for professional occupations that permit qualification on the basis of experience as well as education. Such experience may be creditable not only for meeting the basic requirements, but also for positions at GS-7 and above if it is comparable to that which would have been gained in a two-grade interval professional series and clearly demonstrates that the applicant has the necessary background to perform satisfactorily the duties of the position to be filled.

Since two-grade interval positions may differ significantly in the nature of the work (e.g., greater independence, responsibility, and judgment), it is important that applicants be evaluated on the variety and progressive nature of their work assignments and on any applicable training or course work completed.

(f) Determining normal work week/work year-- Credit is given based on the normal work week and work year for the particular type of employment. Experience that involved less than the normal work week or work year is credited based on the relation it bears to the norm. Work weeks/work years are credited as follows:

• In most occupations, the normal full-time work week is 35-40 hours and the normal work year is 12 months. Employees are not expected to work during scheduled days off, holidays, or normal vacation periods.

• In occupations where the normal work year is less than the calendar year, e.g., teaching, an applicant who works the prevailing work year should be credited with a full year of required experience unless the applicable standard specifies otherwise. An applicant who receives a full year's credit for less than 12 months of actual work cannot gain additional credit for doing more of the same work in the remaining months (e.g., for teaching in summer school). However, credit can be given for any applicable experience gained in a different type of work, but no more than 1 year of experience can be credited for any 12-month period.

• Part-time work is prorated in crediting experience. For example, an employee working 20 hours per week for a 12-month period should be credited with 6 months of experience. Creditable experience should generally be determined on the basis of hours in a pay status (excluding overtime) rather than scheduled hours in order to recognize the service of part-time employees who frequently are required to work additional straight-time hours.

  Applicants who have the same amount of experience should generally receive the same credit. For example, a seasonal employee who worked full time for 9 months a year and a part-time employee who worked 30 hours a week for a year would receive the same credit. However, as stated in paragraph (d), agencies should ensure that the quality of an applicant's experience clearly demonstrates the KSA's necessary to perform the work of the position to be filled. Agencies should be careful in totaling small segments of time worked to ensure that they materially add to a person's qualifications, e.g., that substantive knowledge or skills have been gained.

• Employees who entered military duty or who sustained compensable injuries on the job while serving under a career or career-conditional appointment will receive credit for experience on a different basis. See 5 CFR 353, Restoration to Duty From Military Service or Compensable Injury. (Also see paragraph (k) on Military experience, that follows, to determine how to credit military leave as experience.)

Instances may occur where applicants worked significantly less than their scheduled hours. For example, applicants may have been employed normally on a full-time, part-time, or seasonal basis, but took extended leave. In such instances, it would be reasonable to evaluate any significant consecutive period of leave (e.g., 35 work days or more in a year) to deter-mine whether it effectively reduces the applicant's qualifications for a position.

(g) Concurrent experience in more than one position--Concurrent experience can be credited as follows:

• General experience--Credit may be given for general experience gained concurrently in more than one position depending on its applicability. If the experience meets the requirements of the standard, credit should be given for the time, excluding overtime, worked in each position. However, credit can be given for only 1 year of experience for any 12-month period. For example, a person who worked full time in each of two clerical positions for over 6 months during a 12-month period, performing duties comparable to the GS-3 level, can only be credited with a year of general clerical experience.

• Specialized Experience--Concurrent, straight-time experience in a second position can be credited towards meeting specialized experience requirements only if it contributes significantly to the applicant's possession of the specific KSA's required for the position to be filled. However, credit may be given for only 1 year of qualifying experience for any 12-month period.

Qualifications Standards Main