Contract Specialist

Contract Specialist

Department: Department of Labor

Location(s): Washington, District of Columbia

Salary Range: $102415 - $133142 Per Year

Job Summary: This position is located in the Department of Labor's (DOL), Office of the Assistant Secretary for Administration and Management (OASAM), Office of the Senior Procurement Executive (OSPE). OSPE is responsible for the management and direction of DOL's acquisition system and mission; providing effective, ethical, and prudent business advice; and robust acquisition policies and services.

Major Duties:

• The GS-12 Contact Specialist is responsible for contracting actions within contracting divisions, actively engaged in all phases and activities related to the procurement process. Duties include, but are not limited to: Conduct initial planning by requirements definition, testing, prototype procurement, initial production, full production, spare and repair parts, construction, architecture, and engineering, information technology acquisition, software support, technical data, off-line product improvement, sustaining engineering, training equipment and materials. Conduct procurement planning by considering acquisition background and objectives including delivery requirements, tradeoffs, cost, and risks. Determine the method of procurement, method of source selection, and contract type. Establish milestones and schedules for each procurement. Research trends in supply/demand, production lead times, information technology, and factors that affect market prices. Consider special contracting methods such as incrementally funded long-term contracts and indefinite-quantity contracts. Select the type of contract to solicit, such as possible price competition; ability to establish a realistic price through the use of price analysis; ability to realistically estimate cost; type and complexity of the requirement; the urgency of the requirement; etc. Coordinate with appropriate personnel to exercise contract options, including preparation of preliminary notice by the Government to exercise an option; review and critique of the technical performance evaluation prepared by the program office; evaluation of the option price/estimated cost; preparation of the required determination and findings; and preparation of the contract. Other duties as assigned. This position is inside the bargaining unit. The position will be included in the Local 12, AFGE bargaining unit. This position has a full performance level of GS-13. Promotion to the GS-13 is not automatic nor guaranteed and requires additional qualifications. Applicants must meet additional educational and training requirements to be eligible for promotion to the GS-13 grade level. Below are the additional requirements for the GS-13 grade level. Completion of all mandatory training prescribed by the head of the agency for progression to GS-13 or higher-level contracting positions, including at least 4-years of experience in contracting or related positions. At least 1 year of that experience must have been specialized experience at or equivalent to work at the next lower level of the position, and must have provided the knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the work of the position. AND A 4-year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree, that included or was supplemented by at least 24 semester hours in any combination of the following fields: accounting, business, finance, law, contracts, purchasing, economics, industrial management, marketing, quantitative methods, or organization and management.

Qualifications: You must meet the Basic Education Requirements listed in the education portion of this announcement AND the Specialized Experience to qualify for the Contract Specialist position, as described below. Please read these requirements carefully. Applicants must have 52 weeks of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level in the Federal Service. Specialized Experience: In addition to the basic requirement, to qualify for this position you must have at least 52 weeks of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-11 which is the next lower grade level of the normal line of progression of this position in the Federal government. Specialized experience is experience that is related to the work of this position and has provided you with the competencies required for successful job performance. Qualifying specialized experience for the GS-12 Contract Specialist includes: Experience analyzing pre-award and post-award functions involving highly specialized acquisitions; Experience evaluating responses to solicitations for price reasonableness, compliance with terms and conditions, and adequacy of competition; Experience conducting acquisition planning and contract pre-award functions to include: determining method of procurement and contract type, documenting the acquisition strategy, and obtaining appropriate approvals; Experience administering contracts to include contract scope determinations, contract modifications, supplemental agreements, justifications, approval reviews/fair opportunity evaluations and claims disputes, and contract terminations; Experience interpreting and applying the Revolutionary Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Overhaul (RFO), relevant laws, regulations, policies, standards, or procedures to specific contracting issues.

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. Application and ALL required supplemental documents MUST be received by 11:59 pm Eastern on the vacancy closing date to receive consideration. Save your information before the 30 minute system timeout! For help, go to 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). Click on the job title and then click the Apply button. For questions about the vacancy, 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 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 training a testing accommodation before beginning the assessments should you have a disability covered under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended. Set aside at least 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, including 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. NOTE: It is your responsibility to ensure your responses and appropriate documentation is submitted prior to the closing date. For more detailed information on applying for positions with DOL click here to view the U.S. Department of Labor, How to Apply website.

Application Deadline: 2026-03-23