United States

Office of Personnel Management

Office of Merit Systems Oversight and Effectiveness

Digest of Significant Classification Decisions and Opinions

June 1998

No. 21-01

Standard:	General Schedule Supervisory Guide (April 1998)

Factor:	Factor 3, Supervisory and Managerial Authority Exercised

Issue:	Coverage of Level 3-3a

Identification of the Classification Issue

This issue arose in an OPM oversight division as a result of a request for advice and assistance. The position directed a small staff conducting a program management function in an organization immediately below the agency level. The work entailed providing program guidance and oversight to operating programs at multiple field installations. The position did not exercise line authority over the lower echelon operating programs. The small staff work load directly supervised primarily performed program policy development work. The issue was whether the position supported Level 3-3a.

Resolution

The GSSG is used to evaluate the supervisory responsibilities of positions and managerial responsibilities that may accompany supervisory responsibilities. Covered positions must exercise both administrative and technical supervision over their subordinate workforce. Exclusion #3 further clarifies this basic coverage requirement in that positions meeting the coverage requirements and graded by using the GSSG may not have positions reporting to them and assigned to different chains of command credited in applying the GSSG, e.g., matrix management positions. This is in agreement with the basic position classification principle that work assignment responsibilities must be identified and credited to specific positions. Thus, supervisory responsibility for a position may not be credited to multiple positions.

The position was covered by the GSSG in that it exercised both administrative and technical supervision over a small staff and met the other two GSSG basic coverage requirements. Based on the supervisory and managerial authorities delegated and exercised, the position met Level 3-2. The position was engaged in some delegated functions and authorities typical of Level 3-3a, e.g., it was closely involved with high level program officials in the development of program goals and objectives. These functions, however, were program management functions. The position was not delegated line supervisory or managerial authority over the field operating units implementing the program goals and objectives. Because they were not in the position's direct chain of command, these "subordinate organizational units" did not reflect the exercise of direct managerial authority found at Level 3-3a. Thus, OPM found that the position was evaluated properly at Level 3-2.