Auditor
Summary
The Auditor position provides direct support and assistance to other auditors/investigators/managers and conducts research on policy, program, and case related issues and questions, and gathers and evaluates data relevant to specific cases. Auditor's plan, conduct, and coordinate civil/criminal investigations/audits to ensure maximum compliance with the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) and criminal provisions of the U.S. Code as they relate to employee benefit plans.
Major duties include but are not limited to:
GS-511-09:
Plans, conducts, and coordinates civil and criminal investigations or reviews of small single or multi-employer plans or service providers.
Researches and reviews a variety of background materials, plan reports, case files or previous audits/investigations, and other information related to the entity being reviewed, as well as applicable policies, regulations, and guidelines.
Initiates contacts and holds discussions with plan officials, their financial and legal representatives, and banking, insurance company, securities and investment firm, and real estate company, and other fiduciary and service provider representatives.
Examines records, plan and service provider operations, financial and accounting systems and operations, reports, and other data necessary to assess the appropriateness or inappropriateness of specific issues or transactions being audited.
Develops complete audit/investigative reports or, as a team member, portions of larger reports.
Participates in meetings and conferences with plan officials and their legal and financial representatives.
GS-511-07:
Under the direction of experienced auditor/investigator, conducts research and analysis or issues and questions related to civil and criminal investigations/audits and financial examinations of employee benefit plans, service providers and other financial entities.
Develops background information from plan reports, financial data, official documents, system reports, etc.
Meets with a variety of people to schedule investigative/audit steps and to obtain factual information.
Reviews and summarizes financial data, reports, and documents related to transactions under investigation.
Secures signed statements and documentary evidence for inclusion in final reports or case records.
Drafts portions of reports of investigation/audit findings for use in final reports prepared by senior staff.
Requirements
Conditions of Employment
Must be at least 16 years old and a U.S. Citizen.Appointment to this position may require a background investigation.Requires a probationary period if the requirement has not been met.Requires a valid drivers license.Applicants must meet all legal and regulatory requirements. Reference the "Required Documents" section for additional requirements.
Notification Concerning COVID-19 Vaccinations. As required by Executive Order 14043, Federal executive branch employees are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 regardless of the employee's duty location or work arrangement (e.g., telework, remote work, etc.), subject to such exceptions as required by law. If selected, you will be required to be vaccinated against COVID-19 and to submit documentation of proof of vaccination or to be in the process of requesting an exception to the vaccination requirement before appointment or onboarding with the agency. The agency will provide additional information regarding which forms of documentation can be accepted and how you can request to be considered for a legally required exception from this requirement.
Currently, implementation and enforcement of Executive Order 14043 has been suspended pursuant to an injunction pending further litigation.
Qualifications
Applicants must meet the Basic Requirement listed below:
Basic Requirements for Auditors
- Degree: accounting, auditing; or a degree including auditing courses in a related field such as business administration, finance, or public administration that included or was supplemented by 24 semester hours in accounting. The 24 hours may include up to 6 hours of credit in business law.
OR
- Combination of education and experience: at least 4 years of experience in accounting, or an equivalent combination of accounting experience, college-level education, and training that provided professional accounting knowledge. The applicant's background must also include one of the following:
- Twenty-four semester hours in accounting or auditing courses of appropriate type and quality. This can include up to 6 hours of business law;
- A certificate as Certified Public Accountant or a Certified Internal Auditor, obtained through written examination; or
- Completion of the requirements for a degree that included substantial course work in accounting or auditing, e.g., 15 semester hours, but that does not fully satisfy the 24-semester-hour requirement of paragraph A, provided that (a) the applicant has successfully worked at the full-performance level in accounting, auditing, or a related field, e.g., valuation engineering or financial institution examining; (b) a panel of at least two higher level professional accountants or auditors has determined that the applicant has demonstrated a good knowledge of accounting and of related and underlying fields that equals in breadth, depth, currency, and level of advancement that which is normally associated with successful completion of the 4-year course of study described in paragraph A; and (c) except for literal nonconformance to the requirement of 24 semester hours in accounting, the applicant's education, training, and experience fully meet the specified requirements.
In addition to meeting the basic requirement above, applicants must also have 1 year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level in the Federal Service or meet the education requirement listed below or have an equivalent combination of education and experience.
Specialized experience is experience in or directly related to the position to be filled and which has equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position.
For the GS-7 level, Applicants must possess 1 year of specialized experience at a level of difficulty and responsibility equivalent to the GS-05 grade level in the Federal Service.
Examples of specialized experience include:
-Experience that provided knowledge of laws, policies, and regulations.
-Knowledge of auditing principles and techniques.
-Experience in research principles and techniques and the ability to gather and compile data.
-Experience analyzing data to assess, provide hypothesis, formulate theories, etc.
-Experience reviewing reports, documents, etc. looking for similarities, differences, trends, etc.
-Experience in identifying and analyzing problems.
OR
1 year of graduate level education in a related field of study that demonstrated the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work;
OR
Superior academic achievement (S.A.A); information regarding S.A.A can be found in OPM’s General Schedule Qualification Policies.
For the GS-9 level, Applicants must possess 1 year of specialized experience at a level of difficulty and responsibility equivalent to the GS-07 in the Federal Service.
Examples of specialized experience include:
-Experience that provided knowledge of laws, policies, regulations, and precedents affecting private sector ERISA covered employee benefit plans.
-Experience participating in investigative projects, audits, involving ERISA covered employee benefit plans.
-Knowledge of investigative and auditing principles and techniques.
-Experience in researching and reviewing ERISA specific reporting and disclosure documents, and other ERISA related court case filings.
-Experience in identifying, analyzing, and solving problems, determining accuracy and relevancy of information and generate alternatives.
OR
2 years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a master's degree or master's or equivalent graduate degree; in a related field of study that demonstrated the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work.
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 course work requirements for this position. Click Evaluation of Foreign Education for more information.
Additional Information
This job is not 100% telework; employees will be required to report to their office one or more days per week.
Persons who are deaf, hard of hearing, blind, or have speech disabilities, please dial 711 to access telecommunications relay services.
The mission of the Department of Labor (DOL) is to protect the welfare of workers and job seekers, improve working conditions, expand high quality employment opportunities, and assure work-related benefits and rights for all workers. As such, the Department is committed to fostering a workplace and workforce that promote equal employment opportunity, reflect the diversity of the people we seek to serve, and model a culture of respect, equity, inclusion, and accessibility where every employee feels heard, supported, and empowered.
Refer to these links for more information: GENERAL INFORMATION, REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION, ADDITIONAL DOCUMENTATION, FORMER FEDERAL EMPLOYEES
Position Telework eligibility is determined by management based on position duties during the recruitment process. Employee participation in telework on a routine or situational basis is determined by management primarily based on business needs. Employees participating in telework are subject to the terms and conditions of the Department of Labor’s Telework Program.
This position is inside the Bargaining Unit. Additional selections may be made using this announcement if more vacancies are approved to fill.
How You Will Be Evaluated
You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.
If you meet the minimum qualifications, you will be evaluated against the evaluation factors below and will be placed into a category based on your vacancy question responses.
Category A - Meets the basic qualification requirements for the vacancy and has successful experience in the same or similar job that has demonstrated superior proficiency in applying the critical competencies required by this position to work of increased levels of difficulty and complexity.
Category B - Meets the basic qualification requirements for the vacancy and demonstrates satisfactory proficiency in the critical competencies by this position.
Category C - Meets the specialized experience described in the minimum qualifications requirements section of this announcement and demonstrates proficiency in the basic competencies.
Evaluation Factors (Competencies) - All qualified applicants will be evaluated on the following key competencies:
Compliance Inspection/Auditing: Knowledge of the guidelines, regulations, and procedures associated with compliance/auditing inquiries.
Application of Employee Benefit Plan Law: Knowledge and application of the laws, regulations, court proceedings, precedents, interpretations, and exemptions governing the employee benefit plan community.
Critical Thinking/Problem Solving: Identifies and analyzes problems; determines accuracy and relevance of information; uses sound judgement to generates and evaluates alternatives, and to make recommendations.
Writing: Recognizes or uses correct English grammar, punctuation, and spelling; communicates information in a succinct and organized manner; produces written information.
Interpersonal Skills: Shows understanding, friendliness, courtesy, tact, empathy, concern, and politeness to others; develops and maintains effective relationships with others; may include effectively dealing with individuals who are difficult, hostile, or distressed.
Technology Application: Uses machine, tools, instruments, or equipment effectively; uses computers and computer applications to analyze and communicate information in the appropriate format.
The information you provide may be verified by a review of your work experience and/or education, by checking references and through other means (ex. interview). Your resume MUST provide sufficient information to substantiate your responses to the vacancy questions. If not, the Office of Human Resources (OHR) may amend your responses to more accurately reflect the level of competency indicated by the content of your resume. Your evaluation may also include a review by a Human Resources Specialist or panel and may include other assessments (ex. interview, panel review, written test, writing sample, etc.) Referrals will be made in accordance with applicable reemployment priority and/or veterans’ preference requirements.
INFORMATION FOR ICTAP/CTAP ELIGIBLE(S) ONLY: If you are eligible for special priority selection under ICTAP/CTAP, you must be well-qualified for the position to receive consideration. ICTAP/CTAP eligible(s) who are placed into Category B or higher will be considered "well-qualified." Be sure to review DOL Account Eligibility Questions #24 to reflect that you are applying as an ICTAP or CTAP eligible and submit supporting documentation.
Click Application of Veterans Preference for Category Rating Jobs for more information.
You may preview questions for this vacancy.
How to Apply
To apply for this position, you must complete the initial online application, including submission of the required documentation specified in the "Required Documents" section.
Follow the steps below to apply. Your application and ALL required supplemental documents MUST be received by 11:59 pm Eastern Time (ET) on the vacancy closing date to receive consideration. Paper applications and supplemental documents submitted in any other manner without prior approval from the vacancy contact will not be considered. Click here for information on Reasonable Accommodations.
SAVE your information before the 30 MINUTE TIMEOUT! For help, go to USAJOBS Help Center.
STEP 1 - Create USAJOBS Account on www.usajobs.gov, including Resume and Saved Documents Your resume must provide sufficient information to substantiate your responses to the self-assessment vacancy questions. If not, HR may amend your responses to more accurately reflect the competency indicated by resume content. 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.
STEP 2 - Complete the 1st part of the application process (USAJOBS) Once you have identified a job on USAJOBS that you wish to apply for, click on the title and click the "Apply" button. For questions about the vacancy, contact the Agency Contact at the bottom of the announcement. Click “Start Application” and proceed through the 5 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 DOL application. At Step 5, click “Continue to Agency Site”.
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 7 progress steps indicated by circles at the top of the DOL page. The 3rd progress step is where you answer the vacancy specific questions. The 4th progress step "Documents" is where you submit required documents (only if applicable to you) specified in the "Required Documents" section of this vacancy. If you submit a document using the same document title, the 2nd submission will OVERWRITE the 1st submission.
STEP 4 – On the “Review and Submit” step, click “Submit Application” The last “Confirmation” step will turn green noting that your application was submitted successfully.
STEP 5 - Edit Application as needed by 11:59 pm ET of Closing Date by returning to USAJOBS, clicking the vacancy, then “Update Application”.