Supervisory Boiler Plant Operator

Supervisory Boiler Plant Operator

Department: Department of Veterans Affairs

Location(s): Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts

Salary Range: $44.45 - $51.86 Per Hour

Job Summary: This Boiler Plant Operator Supervisor position is in Facilities Management services at the VA Boston Healthcare System in Jamaica Plain, MA campus. This position is full-time at 40 hours per week.

Major Duties:

• Operates Heat Extractor System used to produce tempered water for boiler plant use and reclaimed heat for hospital's fresh air supply. Monitors and responds to the alarms generated by the Energy Management Computer System, which records all sensing devices and their operational status by means of monitoring the environment, equipment operation/breakdown, and signaling pending problems on a 24-hour basis throughout the entire facility. Oversees the operation of system which provides backup to the automatic transmission of fire alarms to the local area fire department plus additional real-time alarms of malfunctions of systems. Performs maintenance and periodic testing including record keeping for an emergency generator with automatic transfer switches, which provides immediate emergency power for critical medical care requirements and the boiler plant. Supervises boiler plant operators to include planning, scheduling, and changing work assignments as necessary to accomplish the work as effectively and efficiently as possible. Defines standards of quality and quantity to be met. Determines material, equipment, and maintenance needs and ensures they are requested in a timely manner to assure uninterrupted flow of critical operations. Coordinates the work of section with other sections as necessary. Provides information and advice to higher-level supervision on budget estimates by preparing budget worksheets. Oversees, analyzes, and maintains operational records of work production, prepares the boiler plant logs and equipment under control and compiles information for central office reports. Establishes deadlines and priorities based on methods and policies established by higher-level supervision and reviews work while in progress or after completion. Promotes the participation of subordinates in the achievement of all management goals. Plans and schedules all training of operating personnel. Drafts position descriptions, performance standards, and routine memorandums as well as specifications for recurring maintenance services. Schedules and approves leave requests, sets performance standards, conducts performance appraisals, counsels employees, resolves informal complaints and grievances, and initiates personnel actions as needed. Interviews and selects employees. Demonstrates familiarity with emergency and safety procedures in order to prevent damage to equipment or accidents to personnel. Operates and maintains high pressure boilers, firing methods and equipment, combustion control systems. Handles auxiliary equipment such as forced draft fans, feed water pumps, valves, regulators. Handles auxiliary equipment such as oil pumps, air compressors, feed water treatment meters, gauges, and recorders. Prevents damage to equipment or accidents to personnel. Demonstrates familiarity with safety procedures. Drafts routine memorandums. Drafts specifications for recurring maintenance services. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 6:00 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. Telework/Remote Work: Not Authorized Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description Title/PD#: Supervisory Boiler Plant Operator / PD523-00310-A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: May be authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not Required Notifications: This position is in the Competitive Service. Selectee required to serve one year supervisory/managerial probationary period. Current and former Federal employees may submit copies of their most recent SF-50, (Notice of Personnel Action). The SF-50 must identify the position title, series, grade, step, tenure and type of service (Competitive or Excepted). In some cases, more than one SF-50 may be required to show a higher grade previously held. This position is covered by a special rate. The incumbent may be required to travel to other VA Boston Healthcare System campuses and CBOC's. Incomplete applications will not be considered.

Qualifications: To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 03/05/2026. EXPERIENCE: A specific length of training and experience is not required, but you must show evidence of training or experience of sufficient scope and quality of your ability to do the work of this position. Evidence which demonstrates you possess the knowledge, skills, and ability to perform the duties of this position must be supported by detailed descriptions of such on your resume. Applicants will be rated in accordance with the OPM Federal Wage System Qualification Standards. SCREEN-OUT ELEMENT: Your qualifications will first be evaluated against the prescribed screen out element, which usually appears as question 1 in the on-line questionnaire. Those applicants who appear to possess at least the minimal acceptable qualification requirement are considered for further rating; those who do not are rated ineligible and are eliminated. The potential eligibles are then rated against the remainder of the Job Elements: Ability to Do the Work of the Position without More Than Normal Supervision Ability to Interpret Instructions, Specifications, etc. (Other Than Blueprint Reading) Ability to Lead or Supervise Dexterity and Safety Knowledge of Equipment Assembly, Installation, and Repair, etc. Operation of Job Family Specify Equipment, Machinery, etc. Technical Practices (Theoretical, Precise, Artistic) Use of Measuring Instruments 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; religions; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. Physical Requirements: Incumbent is subject to frequent standing, walking, kneeling, crawling, and climbing of ladders and scaffolds for inspections. Working Conditions: Incumbent works inside in constant high temperatures for the boilers. The incumbent is exposed to the danger of steam leaks, oil fumes and flue gases. Cuts, bruises, burns, and broken bones may result from accidents while working on equipment.

How to Apply: All applicants are encouraged to apply online. To apply for this position, you must complete the questionnaire and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on 03/05/2026 to receive consideration. To preview the questionnaire, click https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12884478. To begin, click Apply Online to create a USA JOBS account or log in to your existing account. Follow the prompts to select your USA JOBS resume and/or other supporting documents and complete the occupational questionnaire. Click Submit My Answers to submit your application package. NOTE: It is your responsibility to ensure your responses and appropriate documentation is submitted prior to the closing date. During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions. Beginning September 27, 2025, Federal agencies will only accept resumes up to two pages in length to comply with the Merit Hiring Plan. Resumes longer than two pages will result in ineligibility for further consideration for the position. USAJOBS will not allow you to upload or build resumes longer than two pages, and you will need to update the resumes in your profile before applying for a job. Resumes should include information relevant to the knowledge, skills, abilities, and competencies of the position to which you are applying. VA is unable to make assumptions about qualifications if not clearly listed. Resumes must be legible so they can be reviewed for eligibility, minimum qualifications and other position requirements listed in the job announcement. If initial application submission is updated and resubmitted with a new resume, only the most current resume will be reviewed for consideration. Your resume must be 5MB or less. We recommend saving and uploading your resume as a PDF to maintain formatting and number of pages. We also accept GIF, JPG, JPEG, PNG, RTF, TXT, PDF, ODT or Word (DOC or DOCX). We do not accept PDF portfolio files. We recommend using a sans-serif font size like Lato, if available. Other widely available options are Calibri, Helvetica, Arial, Verdana, Open San Source Sans Pro, Roboto or Noro Sans. Make your page margins 0.5 inches. Consider using 14-point size font for titles and 10-point for the main text in your resume. The resume builder can help you create a resume using these recommendations and uses the information in your USAJOBS profile to help you get started. Helpful Hints for Creating a Two-Page Resume: Prioritize most relevant and recent experience Use concise, results focused language Align language from the job announcement Focus on demonstrating skills and competencies Remove outdated or unrelated experience Use the USAJOBS resume builder Additional guidance on this new requirement and resume building tools can be found at: https://help.usajobs.gov/faq/application/documents/resume/page-limit https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/hiring-information/merit-hiring-plan-resources/applicant-guidance-on-the-two-page-resume-limit/ Special Employment Consideration: VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply, including those eligible for hiring under 5 CFR 213.3102(u), Schedule A, Appointment of persons with disabilities [i.e., intellectual disabilities, severe physical disabilities, or psychiatric disabilities], and/or Disabled veterans with a compensable service-connected disability of 30% or more. Contact the Agency Contact for information on how to apply under this appointment authority via the Selective Placement Coordinator. The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced Federal/VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be qualified, you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified (have a final rating of 85 or more) for this vacancy. Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/.

Application Deadline: 2026-03-05