Summary

As an International Relations Officer within the Office of Trade and Labor Affairs (OTLA), the incumbent will maintain current understanding of international issues, initiatives, programs (trade, economic policy, development finance, international development, livelihood policies, etc.) including the international labor standards relevant to ILAB's mission.

Duties

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Duties include, but are not limited to the following:

• Executes technical assistance, engagement, remediation strategies, and plans to advance ILAB's mission within the international community. This would include the identification of problems, research and analysis, determining recommendations, designing strategies and plans, and implementing recommended interventions or solutions, etc. Participates in the negotiation of policies and agreements, including by formulating negotiating objectives, positions, strategies and tactics with U.S. government and international partners.
• Participates in the negotiation of policies, strategies, agreements, etc. that impact agency policy positions. Uses evaluation findings and recommendations to make appropriate adjustments to plans and ensure achievement of the intended objectives of the agency's mission.
• Represents ILAB in international, interagency, and intra-agency working groups, committees, international meetings, conferences, etc. in the capacity of DOL or ILAB spokesperson to present and clarify DOL/U.S. policy related to the mission.
• Systematically evaluates the performance of technical assistance, engagement, remediation, negotiating, and other strategies and plans, and uses evaluation findings and recommendations to make appropriate adjustments. Ensures that key evaluation and audit findings, results of performance monitoring data analysis, and other lessons, findings, and outcomes are shared with relevant stakeholders and are applied to ILAB's work, as applicable.
• Serves as a liaison for the agency while coordinating with other U. S. Federal and State government officials and with representatives of international agencies to develop strategies and work plans to implement and affect the delivery of the technical assistance cooperation program and negotiates with key stakeholders to arrive at agreements that meet mission goals.
• Develops and prepares in-depth analyses of assigned issues, initiatives, or programs at national, regional, and global levels to provide inputs for reports and other research, as well as for the development of policies and programs.
• Principle duties include the development of documentation, including project plans, internal processes, communication plans, research and analysis strategies, etc. Assures the development and technical adequacy of reports, directives, memorandums of understanding, design memoranda, program criteria, cooperative agreements, and contracts necessary for the various aspects of the program.
• Drafts and provides written feedback on documents, as assigned, and regularly prepares written communication for and on behalf of senior executive ILAB and DOL staff. Provides training and technical guidance on methods, concepts, tools, usage, etc. to internal, external, and international audiences on mission-based activities (e.g., research, legal and policy analysis, assessments, and special studies).

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

• Must be a U.S. Citizen.
• Must be at least 16 years old.
• Candidate required to obtain the necessary security/investigation level.
• Requires a probationary period if the requirement has not been met.
• Subject to pre-employment and random drug tests.

Qualifications

In order to qualify, you must first meet the education and/or experience requirements described below. Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community; student; social). You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Your resume must clearly describe your relevant experience; if qualifying based on education, your transcripts will be required as part of your application. Additional information about transcripts is in this document. This position has a basic requirement that must be met in order to qualify further for the specialized experience.

• Degree: major or equivalent, or a combination of courses totaling at least 24 semester hours in international law and international relations, political science, economics, history, sociology, geography, social or cultural anthropology, law, statistics, or in the humanities; or 12 semester hours in one of the above disciplines and 12 semester hours in statistics/quantitative methods.

or

• Combination of education and experience: courses equivalent to a major, or a combination of related courses totaling at least 24 semester hours, in one or more of the social sciences, or in the humanities, as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education.

or

• Experience: four years of appropriate experience in one or more of the fields listed above in work associated with international organizations, problems, or other aspects of foreign affairs

In addition to meeting the basic requirement above, to qualify for this position, you must also meet the specialized experience listed below. GS-14: Your resume must demonstrate at least one year of specialized experience at or equivalent to the GS-13 grade level or pay band in the Federal service or equivalent experience. Your experience must demonstrate expert knowledge of international employment and labor issues in the private or public sector performing ALL of the following duties:

1. Reviewing proposed multilateral development bank loans in line with binding labor standards and formulating policy recommendations for the U.S. Department of Treasury about how the United States should vote; AND
2. Monitoring and analyzing foreign country labor rights, law and practice pertaining to trade or economic policy, trade agreement, development finance, and trade preference programs; AND
3. Building and maintaining relationships with domestic federal agencies, multilateral development bank and development finance stakeholders and with international unions and federations.

Education

Any applicant falsely claiming an academic degree from an accredited school will be subject to actions ranging from disqualification from federal employment to removal from federal service.

If your education was completed at a foreign college or university, you must show comparability to education received in accredited educational institutions in the United States and comparability to applicable minimum coursework requirements for this position. Click Evaluation of Foreign Education for more information.

Benefits

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A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

Review our benefits

Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.