Chief, Labor Relations Branch

Summary

The Office of the Assistant Secretary for Administration and Management (OASAM) provides the infrastructure and support that enables the U.S. Department of Labor to perform its mission. OASAM provides leadership and support for information technology, human resources management, procurement, business operations, safety and health, space management, civil rights, emergency management, security, budget, and performance.

Duties

• There is one vacancy available. The position may be located in any of the following cities: Washington, DC; Atlanta, GA; Boston, MA; New York City, NY; Chicago, IL; Dallas, TX; Philadelphia, PA; or San Francisco, CA. For detailed office locations, please visit: DOL offices. DELMR develops and administers a comprehensive employee and labor relations program under Title 5. The Labor Relations Branch Chief serves as the Department's senior authority on labor relations, overseeing collective bargaining, contract administration, and the arbitration program, including strategy and risk assessment for complex cases. The role represents the Department in negotiations and third-party proceedings, advises leadership, and supervises Branch staff. Major duties include but are not limited to the following: Lead subordinates in preparing and presenting arbitration cases arising under applicable collective bargaining agreements. Conduct enterprise-level litigation risk assessments in matters arising under Department collective bargaining agreement such as grievances, arbitration cases, unfair labor practice charges, third party adjudications, and related matters. Serve as an expert witness in arbitration, MSPB, FLRA, EEO, administrative, and negotiated grievance proceedings. Develop and recommend new or revised Department policy, standards, procedures and guidelines as a result of grievances, arbitrations, unfair labor practice cases, MSPB cases, research, review of an existing program, changes in OPM laws or regulations, or current developments in employee and labor-management relations. Provide authoritative oral and written advice to requests for technical assistance from DOL supervisors, managers, and leadership regarding day-to-day contract administration and labor relation matters. Ensure uniform interpretation and application of collective bargaining agreements and labor- management relations policies and practices throughout the Department. Determine the statutory or contractual obligation of the Department to communicate, consult, and/or negotiate with the DOL bargaining units regarding conditions of employment on variety of issues pertaining to federal personnel and labor-management relations. Represent the Department in mid-term and term negotiations, including presentation to mediators, the Federal Services Impasse Panel, and the Federal Labor Relations Authority. Draft variety of memoranda, advocacy briefs/ responses, and decision papers concerning a variety of complex, controversial issues in the field of labor relations. Exercise managerial and supervisory authority for subordinate supervisors and staff.

Qualifications

For GS-201-15: Applicants must have 52 weeks of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level, GS-14, in the Federal Service. Specialized Experience is the experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSA's) to perform the duties of the position successfully, and that is typically in or related to the position to be filled. To be creditable, specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the next lower grade level. Applicants must meet ALL of the following examples of specialized experience to qualify for this GS-201-15: Experience applying labor and employment laws, precedent, and practices sufficient to provide high-level support for Department and agency-wide labor-management programs and initiatives, including representation, advocacy, advisory services, and dispute resolution. Experience representing and advising senior Department or agency management officials on personnel issues underlying negotiations, grievance processes, and third-party hearings. Experience interpreting and applying relevant laws, regulations, policies, legal precedents, and other governing authorities to analyze Department or agency-level labor relations matters, including unfair labor practice issues, and develop legally supportable recommendations and courses of action. Experience developing and implementing litigation and hearing strategies, including case theories, witness preparation, advocacy strategies, and risk mitigation.

Education

There is no substitute of education for specialized experience to qualify for this position.

How to apply

Persons who are deaf, hard of hearing, blind, or have speech disabilities, please dial 711 to access telecommunications relay services. You must complete the initial online application, including submission of the required documentation specified in the Required Documents section. Your application and ALL required supplemental documents MUST be received by 11:59 pm Eastern Time on the vacancy closing date to receive consideration. Important-Save your information before the 30 minute system timeout! For help: USAJOBS Help Center. STEP 1-Create USAJOBS Account on www.usajobs.gov, including Resume and Saved Documents. For each employment period, include start/end month & year and note full-time or part-time (if part-time, include # of hours worked per week) otherwise, your application may be considered incomplete. NOTE: In alignment with the Presidential Memorandum titled Merit Hiring Plan, dated May 29, 2025, applicants may only submit a resume limited to two (2) pages. Only the résumé uploaded under the 'Resume" document type in USAJOBS will be reviewed. If the resume submitted exceeds two (2) pages, the application will be deemed ineligible for further consideration. STEP 2-Complete the 1st part of the application process (USAJOBS). Once you have identified a job on USAJOBS that you wish to apply for, click on the job title and then the Apply button. For questions, contact the Agency Contact at the bottom of the announcement. Proceed through the steps noted at the top of the USAJOBS page. You will be able to select a resume and documents from your USAJOBS Account that you can submit as a package as part of your DOL application. In the final step, once you have certified your application, click the Continue to agency site button. STEP 3-Complete the 2nd part of the application process (DOL). On the Department of Labor (DOL) page, create a DOL Account if you have not already and click Apply to this vacancy. Continue through the progress steps at the top of the DOL page. The 2nd progress step is where you answer the vacancy-specific questions. The 3rd progress step Documents is where you submit the required documents (only if applicable to you) specified in the Required Documents section of this vacancy. STEP 4-On the Review and Submit step, verify each section of your application is complete and correct. In order to submit your application, you must have a check mark next to each section listed. If there is an X, return to the appropriate section and follow the prompts. When it is ready for submission, certify your application and click the Submit Application button. STEP 5-Edit Application as needed by 11:59 pm Eastern Time of Closing Date by returning to USAJOBS, clicking the vacancy, then Update Application. If you are required to complete any USA Hire Assessments, you will be notified after submitting your application. The notification will be provided in your application submission screen and via email. The notification will include your unique assessment access link to the USA Hire system and the completion deadline. Additionally, in USAJOBS you can click "Track this application" to return to your assessment completion notice. Access USA Hire using your unique assessment link. Access is granted through your USAJOBS login credentials. Review all instructions prior to beginning your assessments. You will have the opportunity to request a testing accommodation before beginning the assessments should you have a disability covered under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended. Set aside about 2 hours to take the USA Hire Assessments; however, most applicants complete the assessments in less time. If you need to stop the assessments and continue later, you can re-use your unique assessment link. Your responses to the USA Hire Assessments will be reused for one year (in most cases) from the date you complete an assessment. If future applications you submit require completion of the same assessments, your responses will be automatically reused. Visit the USA Hire Applicant Resource Center for practice assessments and assessment preparation resources at https://support-usahire.opm.gov/hc/en-us. To update your application and supporting documentation: During the announcement open period, return to your USAJOBS account, find your application record, and click Edit my application. This option will no longer be available once the announcement has closed. To view the announcement status or your application status: Visit https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/howto/application/status/. Your application status page is where you can view your application status, USA Hire assessment completion status, and review your notifications sent by the hiring agency regarding your application. It is your responsibility to ensure your responses and appropriate documentation is submitted prior to the closing date. For more detailed information: click here to view the U.S. Department of Labor, How to Apply website.