Individual Occupational Requirements for
GS-1980: Agricultural Commodity Grader (Grain)
Department of Agriculture
The text below is extracted verbatim from
Section IV-B of the Operating Manual for Qualification Standards
for General Schedule Positions (p.IV-B-260), but contains minor edits
to conform to web-page requirements.
Use these individual occupational requirements in conjunction with
the "Group Coverage Qualification Standard for
Administrative and Management Positions."
EDUCATION
Major study--any field that included 9 semester hours or the
equivalent in agriculture, botany, crop production, agronomy, product processing, food chemistry, technology, quality control, or other related subjects.
OR
EXPERIENCE
Experience that provided familiarity with the standard methods or practices related
to the product's processing, storage, transportation, quality control techniques, or marketing in terms of
the effects such factors have on product quality. This experience may have been gained in work such as:
- Agricultural production (farming, growing, or raising) that provided a knowledge of grading
and the quality factors related to grading of grain and/or grain products.
- Inspector for producers of grain/grain products, dealers, official or private inspection
agencies, transportation companies, or similar organizations that involved the application
of commercial or Federal quality standards.
- College teacher, researcher, or extension service worker involved with subjects related to
the factors and conditions affecting the quality of grain/grain products.
- Wholesale or retail buyer or salesperson work involving grain/grain products that required
a knowledge of grades, quality factors, and the effects of various processing, storage, and
transportation conditions on product quality.
- Employment in a food processing plant, warehouse, or similar facility that involved
administrative or technical responsibility related to quality factors in raw or finished
products, processing procedures, sanitation, or product storage conditions. Examples
include work as a quality control technician, food technologist, or production unit
supervisor. Sorting or packing work may be qualifying, provided it required technical
knowledge of product types and quality factors and was not limited to manual skill.
- Inspector of grain/grain products processing plants involving enforcement of Federal,
State, or local laws and regulations pertaining to raw or finished products, plant
sanitation, or packaging and labeling.
Experience that demonstrated all of the following:
- Knowledge of the official U.S. grade standards for grain and/or grain products.
- Knowledge of the specific elements of product processing, transportation, storage, or
conditions that affect the grain and/or grain products' grade, acceptability, and quality.
- Skill in applying the procedures, techniques, and methods required to determine the
grain/grain products' acceptability or grade, and skill in performing various types of
inspections.
- Skill in establishing, maintaining, and developing effective interpersonal relationships
with employees, operating supervisors, and managers of the grain/grain products processing
firms and facilities.
Positions at GS-9 and above require "hands on" grading and/or inspection experience of grain and/or grain
products.
TESTING PROVISIONS
For positions at GS-9, competency examinations in grading and weighing grains/grain products and work-related within-house tests may be required as directed by the Administrator of the Federal Grain Inspection
Service, under statutory authority of the U.S. Grain Standards Act of 1976 and as amended.
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