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| Volume Number 3 - Issue Number 6 - September 7, 2005 |
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Kathryn K. Troutman, Federal Career Corner™ Subscribe to this free Federal Career Corner™ newsletter for the latest news, information, and search strategies for obtaining Federal Jobs, Internships, & Career Ladder Positions! Hello Federal Jobseekers, The Federal Career Corner newsletter is back! Since April, and the last edition of The Federal Career Corner, I've been busy presenting training programs, traveling to conferences, and writing the Resume Place's newest book, the Military to Federal Career Guide. It's almost done - goes to press today! It will be available for shipping on Sept. 30th, and I will autograph the first 50 books sold. Order yours TODAY! Now, I finally have time to write another newsletter. Thank you for e-mailing about where the newsletter is ... and how you miss the newsletter ... and that you appreciate all the great Federal job search insight the Resume Place offers! Today's issue of The Federal Career Corner discusses a question from a client about negotiating for a Federal job. There are several resources available and we strongly encourage you to review these websites when applying and negotiating for a Federal job. Thanks for reading our newsletter. Please feel free to forward it to friends, family, and coworkers! - Kathryn Troutman, Federal Career Corner Newsletter Publisher QUESTION: The salary range for the position is from $43,000 to $50,000. I currently make $44,000. Can I negotiate for the higher salary range? How? What factors go into the agency's decision? THE FEDERAL CAREER COACH ANSWER: YES, you can negotiate certain financial benefits with the Human Resources Specialist who is handling your recruitment. Each government job has a salary range and grade or pay bands. So there is a range that the HR Specialist and Supervisor may have in mind to offer you -- depending on your years of experience, specialized experience, and critical skills ... and the agency's budget. If the salary range is $43,000 to $50,000, you should have NO PROBLEM getting what you're currently making, $44,000, or even $48,000 for this job. I personally think that a person should strive for a minimum of a 10% increase for a new position. GOVERNMENT PAY SCALE INFO.: People are interested in Federal jobs because of the outstanding benefits, retirement package, and job flexibility. There is nothing like a dependable paycheck to pay the monthly bills! Here is the General Schedule (GS) Pay Scale page from www.usajobs.gov: http://www.opm.gov/oca/05tables/html/gs.asp Also look at the Locality Pay Scales for your state here: http://www.opm.gov/oca/05tables/indexGS.asp If you are offered a job as a GS-9, the first "step" in the Grade 9, according to the GS Pay Scale at the web address above, is: $37,390. The GS-9, Step 10 is: $48,604. So, you see, there is about a range you could possibly work with. Ask For A Higher Step Within Grade You do have the ability to negotiate your "step" within your Grade 9 level. You can request a Step 8, Step 10, or any step you choose, based upon one or more of the following reasons:
OTHER NEGOTIATING REQUESTS: Request for Tuition Reimbursement for Student Loans Some agencies can pay up to $500 per month toward student loans. You can read about the government policy for hiring incentives and Tuition Reimbursement here: Student Loan Repayment Program Questions and Answers Bill Pushes Loans, Tuition Reimbursement Federal Register Report: http://www.opm.gov/fedregis/2001/66-02789-a.pdf U.S. Code: http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/5/5379.html Critical Hiring Need or Severe Shortage Recruitment Bonus Incentive Some agencies may pay a Recruitment Bonus Incentive for Critical Skills or Severe Shortage positions. Each agency is different and some may have critical job shortages. The agency could pay up to 25% of the annual salary. You can read the definitions of Critical Hiring Need or Severe Shortage at: http://www.opm.gov/deu/Handbook_2003/DEOH-Section-6.asp#_Shortage_of_Eligible http://www.opm.gov/fedregis/1999/64r71633.txt Request for Relocation Allowance If the vacancy announcement does not state that they will NOT pay for relocation, then you can ask if they will pay for relocation costs. If the announcement says that they WILL NOT pay for relocation, then you could not negotiate this point. Back to Top THE GOVERNMENT NEEDS YOU - ANOTHER RATIONALE! Do not forget that the government needs you. Here are a few articles about the Human Capital Crisis in government. They need you almost more than you need them right now! ABOUT FEDERAL HIRING AND WHY THEY NEED YOU http://www.mspb.gov/studies/newhires.pdf http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d04797.pdf http://www.govexec.com/features/0204/0204s2.htm BE CONFIDENT Be confident that you are highly-skilled, ready to commit, and dedicated to public service. When you ask for your higher step, Tuition Reimbursement, or other request, you should be confident that they WANT TO HIRE YOU. They have selected you and they DON’T WANT TO START THE HIRING PROCESS OVER! Back to Top NEGOTIATING IS NEGOTIATING There is no guarantee for any agreement on your requests. This is pure negotiation, but if you have justifiable reasons and expertise for the job, you should be able to settle on agreeable terms. You do not know about the budget the office has for hiring this position, so there could be unknown financial considerations for the agency. Maybe you could look up their budget on the agency website to get a picture of the growth (or reduction) of their budget. Good luck with your negotiating! Please write to me if you have any recommendations or success stories for negotiating with Federal Human Resources Specialists or Supervisors! DO YOU HAVE NEGOTIATION STRATEGIES AND SUCCESS STORIES? Share them with us. Write kathryn@resume-place.com with your experiences. Back to Top NEED HELP NEGOTIATING? The Resume Place can assist you with every step in the Federal job search process from researching and applying to interviewing and negotiating. For more information, go to: www.resume-place.com. MAKING A CAREER CHANGE? Federal Career Consultation - Strategies, Federal Job Education, and Expert Answers to your Job Search Questions. Consultation with a Federal job expert: $175. Back to Top HOT TOPICS I have been VERY busy during these past four months, and my travels and trainings have provided me with ideas for great newsletter topics. What you can look forward to in upcoming newsletters:
Last week I was teaching my 19th Federal Job Search Trainer Certification class to 13 Veteran's Representatives at Araphoe Douglass Works in Denver, CO. When we started our class, I asked them what they hoped to learn. Here's what they said: "I'd like to learn how to help my veterans actually get hired! They are so frustrated with applying for jobs that they know they are qualified for, and they don’t get selected for interviews, much less get hired." These 13 Certified Federal Job Search Trainers (CFJSTs) will be training veterans throughout the state of Colorado ... and improving their track record of success in landing Federal jobs! Here's a photo of our new CFJSTs (scroll down to Class 18)! INTERESTED IN BECOMING A CERTIFIED FEDERAL JOB SEARCH TRAINER? Enroll in our next CERTIFIED FEDERAL JOB SEARCH TRAINER CLASS and help your customers with Federal Job Search! Space still available in our Sept. 21, 22, 23 class! Sign up here: CFJST Certification I have spent many weeks training Defense Finance & Accounting Service (DFAS) Vendor Pay Accounting Technicians. I'm sure you have heard that DFAS is restructuring and reducing 33 offices down to three. I traveled to 20 of the sites teaching the Accounting Technicians how to write the best possible Accounting Technician Resumix known to anyone! They are applying for new positions as Accounting Technicians in one of the three growing sites, with other agencies, or with outside organizations. It was great traveling to Norfolk, VA; San Diego, CA; St. Louis, MO; Orlando, FL; Oahu, HI (the best location of all); Limestone, MA; San Antonio, TX; Lexington, KY; Charleston, SC; Omaha, NE; Columbus, OH; and Indianapolis, IN. What a tour! In our classes, we discussed the importance of accomplishments to stand out and get an interview! Oh yes, we learned about keywords, but the most important element was the accomplishments. Before I started the training, the supervisors shared that they were having trouble determining the best qualified candidates. What makes a candidate best qualified? The supervisors are looking for skills that stand out - customer service, problem-solving, productivity, and the ability to learn new e-gov accounting systems - and candidates who are able to describe those skills through strong accomplishment statements. Good luck to DFAS employees through this huge reorganization! Recently, I was invited to speak at the Southeast Federal Recruitment Conference in Ft. Lauderdale, FL where I spoke to university career counselors and Federal Human Resources Specialists about "Ten Steps to a Federal Job" for Students. The career counselors were seeking ways to encourage students to apply for Federal jobs and internships. Many students are NOT considering government positions because of the complex hiring processes and forms ... but the career counselors are finding ways to present Federal jobs, internships, and the benefits of Federal employment to students. As an exhibitor at the Eastern Association of College Educators in White Plains, NY, I learned that college counselors are eager to learn about Federal jobs and negotiate for student loan reimbursement and recruitment incentives (for critical positions). At the Association of Job Search Trainers Conference in Orlando, FL, hundreds of Military Transition Counselors and Spouse Employment Counselors gathered to learn the latest techniques in training and advising military personnel in job search strategies, interview skills, and assessment techniques. I'm more convinced than ever that the Federal resume is the most important document a person can write for their career (Federal career, that is). The resume, as one DFAS supervisor says, could be your APPLICATION, your EXAMINATION, and in some cases, your INTERVIEW. Every time I critique and assess a resume, I realize how important it is that the applicant FOCUS the resume toward the announcement duties and specialized skills. THINK LIKE HR. THINK LIKE THE SUPERVISOR. What do they want to read? What skills are required? Put yourself in their shoes. Back to Top ABOUT THE AUTHOR  Kathryn Troutman is the President of The Resume Place, Inc., Federal Career Trainer, and a Federal Career Coach. Kathryn trains and coaches jobseekers in Federal job search, interviewing, and negotiation strategies. She is available for one-on-one coaching sessions to develop a successful Federal job search strategy. The Resume Place writing and coaching team can create an outstanding Federal application for your next job search. Back to Top THE MAILING LIST Sign up now. Please refer our free bi-monthly Federal Career Corner newsletter to your colleagues and friends. You may unsubscribe at anytime. Keep us up-to-date with your email to receive the most recent newsletters! CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE FEDERAL CAREER CORNER NEWSLETTER Please write to us with websites, success stories, job search tips, article ideas, and questions that we can use in the Federal Career Corner Newsletter. Send your ideas to the Editor. Back to Top Published by: The Resume Place, Inc., 89 Mellor Avenue, Baltimore, MD 21228 Kathryn Troutman, Publisher and President; Telephone: (888) 480 8265; Hours: M-F, 9-5:30, Eastern Time. www.resume-place.com – Federal Resume Writing and Publishing www.tenstepsforstudents.org – Student Federal Job Information
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