Embassy of the United States

Vacancy Announcement

OPEN TO:                All interested candidates
POSITION:              Purchasing Agent, FSN-6, FP-08*
OPENING DATE:      February 26, 2009
CLOSING DATE:      March 11, 2009
WORK HOURS:        Full time; 40 hours/week
SALARY:                  *Not-Ordinarily Resident Position grade: FP-08 (is confirmed by Washington)
*Ordinarily Resident: $12,658 p.a. (Starting salary: BR + Allowances)(Position Grade: FSN-6)

NOTE:

-  All ordinary resident applicants must have the required work and/or residency permits to be eligible for consideration.  Please submit a copy of these permits with your application.

The U.S. Embassy in San Salvador is seeking one (1) individual for the position of Purchasing Agent in the General Services Office, Procurement Section.

BASIC FUNCTION OF THE POSITION

Incumbent will be involved with the small purchase procedures.  The incumbent in this capacity will perform “off-the-shelf” purchasing work, under the guidance of the Procurement Supervisor, and will provide administrative support to Mission personnel.  Items purchased “off-the-shelf” include hardware, office supplies, construction supplies, maintenance supplies, tools and any item needed for routine maintenance and repair for Government-owed (GO)  and short term leased property.  When support is needed, incumbent will also procure a variety of commodities and services for State and serviced agencies by purchase order action, or by ordering from agency headquarters, General Service Administration (GSA), or from companies with which established contract exists.

A copy of the complete position description listing all duties and responsibilities is available in the Human Resources Office.  Contact Ext. 2225.

QUALIFICATIONS REQUIRED

NOTE: All applicants must address each selection criterion detailed below with specific and comprehensive information supporting each item.

1. EDUCATION:  Completion of secondary school is required.

2. EXPERIENCE:  Two years of experience in the purchasing field or related clerical work, of which at least one year should be in the procurement/purchasing field.

3. LANGUAGE: 
English:  Level III (good working level) Speaking/Reading is required.
Spanish: Level IV (fluent) Speaking/Reading is required.
This will be tested

4. OTHER CRITERIA:  Must have a good knowledge of local market practices and of the capability of local vendors.

5. OTHER SKILLS:  Computer knowledge is required in Microsoft Office 2007 and XP programs.

6. INTERPERSONAL SKILLS:  Negotiation techniques and ability to analyze price quotations.

PROCESS:

When fully qualified, US Citizen Eligible Family Members (USEFMs) and US Veterans are given preference.  Therefore, it is essential that the candidate specifically address the required qualifications above in the application.

ADDITIONAL SELECTION CRITERIA:

1.  Management will consider nepotism/conflict of interest, budget, and residency status in determining successful candidacy. 

2.  Current employees serving a probationary period are not eligible to apply.

3.  Current Ordinarily Resident employees with an Overall Summary Rating of Needs Improvement or Unsatisfactory on their most recent Employee Performance Report are not eligible to apply.

4.  Currently employed US Citizen EFMs who hold a Family Member Appointment (FMA) are ineligible to apply for advertised positions within the first 90 calendar days of their employment.

5. Currently employed NORs hired under a Personal Services Agreement (PSA) are ineligible to apply for advertised positions within the first 90 calendar days of their employment unless currently hired into a position with a When Actually Employed (WAE) work schedule.

TO APPLY

Interested applicants for this position must submit the following or the application will not be considered:

1. Application for Federal Employment SF-171 or OF-612;  or

2. A current resume or curriculum vitae that provides the same information as an OF-612; plus

3.  Candidates who claim U.S. Veterans preference must provide a copy of their Form DD-214 with their application.

4. Any other documentation (e.g. essays, certificates, awards, copies of degrees earned) that addresses the qualification requirements of the positions as listed above.

SUBMIT APPLICATION TO
 
Human Resources Office
American Embassy San Salvador
Fax number: (501) 2155 or
HRO e-mail: HRO, San Salvador

Due to the volume of responses, individual acknowledgements regarding receipt of applications cannot be made.  Only those applicants who are invited  for an interview will be notified regarding the status of their applications

DEFINITION

1. US Citizen Eligible Family Member (USEFM) - For purposes of receiving a preference in hiring for a qualified position, an EFM who meets the following criteria:

• US Citizen; and,
• EFM (see above) at least 18 years old; and,
• Listed on the travel orders of a direct-hire Foreign, Civil, or uniformed service member assigned to or stationed abroad with a USG agency that is under COM authority, or at an office of the American Institute in Taiwan; and either:

1. Resides at the sponsoring employee's or uniformed service member's post of assignment abroad or at an office of the American Institute in Taiwan; or
2. Resides at an Involuntary Separate Maintenance Allowance (ISMA) location authorized under 3 FAM 3232.2

• Spouse;
• Child, who is unmarried and under 21 years of age or, regardless of age, is incapable of self-support.  The term shall include, in addition to natural offspring, stepchildren and adopted children and those under legal guardianship of the employee or the spouse when such children are expected to be under such legal guardianship until they reach 21 years of age and when dependent upon and normally residing with the guardian;
• Parent (including stepparents and legally adoptive parents) of the employee or of the spouse, when such parent is at least 51 percent dependent on the employee for support;
• Sister or brother (including stepsisters and stepbrothers, or adoptive sisters or brothers) of the employee, or of the spouse, when such sibling is at least 51 percent dependent on the employee for support, unmarried, and under 21 years of age, or regardless of age, incapable of self-support.

• Not an EFM; and,
• Not on the travel orders of the sponsoring employee; and,
• Has been officially declared by the sponsoring USG employee to the COM as part of his/her household.

• Is not a citizen of the host country; and,
• Does not ordinarily reside (OR, see below) in the host country; and,
• Is not subject to host country employment and tax laws; and,
• Has a US Social Security Number (SSN). 

• Is locally resident; and,
• Has legal, permanent resident status within the host country; and,
• Is subject to host country employment and tax laws.