The following sections discuss selection of employees for placement under the senior qualified and best qualified procedures.
- Senior Qualified Positions. Employee placement into positions filled through senior qualified procedures must be based on the following:
- The employee’s eligibility to bid.
- The employee’s seniority.
- The senior bidder’s qualifications in relationship to the requirements.
- The employee’s successful completion of required training, if any.
- Best Qualified Positions. Employee placement into positions filled through best qualified procedures must be based on:
- The employee’s eligibility to apply.
- The best qualifications among employees who have met the requirements.
- The employee’s successful completion of required training, if any.
Senior qualified bidders, having met the position requirements given on the qualification standard or job posting, are placed into the position, or into training for the position, in accordance with the appropriate collective bargaining agreement. Human resources personnel are responsible for ensuring that qualifications are evaluated for bids to all senior qualified positions (see 727.4, Timing and Sequence of Evaluation).
In many cases, there is no need to document the evaluation of the senior bidder’s qualifications. When such documentation is required, the evaluator must complete Form 1796–A, Qualifications Rating Sheet for Senior Qualified Positions.
Bidders for senior qualified positions submit bids in accordance with the provisions of the appropriate collective bargaining agreement — i.e., by telephone, computer, or in writing using Form 1717, Bid for Preferred Assignment. Following the close of the posting, the senior bidder’s qualifications should be evaluated through a review of the employee’s OPF and any other pertinent information available (see 727.3, When to Evaluate Qualifications, and 727.4, Timing and Sequence of Evaluation). If there is sufficient information to show that the senior bidder meets the job requirements, the senior bidder is presumed to be qualified. Otherwise, the 5 senior bidders must be requested to address the requirements of the position in writing, using the following procedures:
- Each of the 5 senior bidders is asked to furnish his or her qualifications for the position in writing; however, if any of the 5 are currently qualified through previous qualification, they are not subject to this requirement (see 727.3b, When to Evaluate Qualifications, Bidding to Return to a Position Previously Held).
- A copy of the qualification standard, and the B–element questions, if applicable (see (763.1b, Contents, Appendix I) must be provided to the bidders. If the position does not have a qualification standard, a copy of the posting indicating the requirements must be provided to the bidders.
- Bidders are allowed at least 3 days to respond. They must record their qualifications on Form 991, Application for Promotion or Assignment, and return it by the deadline specified.
- If a test is required that is normally given after the posting closes, the 5 senior bidders — at a minimum — are scheduled for the test, unless currently qualified.
- If there are fewer than 5 bidders for a position, these procedures apply to all who bid.
If a test is required, any existing test scores are obtained for the bidders. A qualification evaluator from human resources considers the senior bidder’s qualifications in comparison to the position requirements, as follows:
- The evaluator may review the employee’s OPF and other official records that contain pertinent information, and, if necessary, contact the bidder and/or an appropriate supervisor for clarification.
- If written statements were obtained, the evaluator must complete Form 1796–A, Qualifications Rating Sheet for Senior Qualified Positions, for the senior bidder.
- Only if the senior bidder is found to be not qualified will the next senior bidder be evaluated, and Form 1796–A completed for that bidder.
- The evaluator may conduct interviews to supplement the written record to establish whether a bidder meets specific requirements. The use of interviews for a senior qualified position must not be used to rank or selectively choose among bidders.
Form 1796–A is used to document that the senior bidder meets all the requirements of the position. This form is not used if the senior bidder is determined to be qualified from the OPF review. However, if the 5 senior bidders have been requested to address their qualifications on Form 991, the evaluator must complete Form 1796–A to document the evaluation process for the senior bidder as follows:
- In Column A, Identification of Requirements, the evaluator lists the test requirements including the knowledge, skills, and abilities, and any other requirements for the position.
- In Column B, Demonstration, the evaluator must decide whether the senior bidder has demonstrated each requirement, based on the information available. If the bidder failed a required examination, the bidder is not qualified and no additional information is needed on Form 1796–A. Similarly, if the position requires driving and the bidder failed a driver’s license checklist review (see 517.5, Driver’s License Review), the bidder is not qualified, and no additional information is needed on Form 1796–A.
- In Column C, Measurements Used, the evaluator must indicate how the determination for each requirement was made. The statements may be brief, but should provide enough information to enable the evaluator to recall the facts that led to the decision. This column is not completed for examination requirements.
- The evaluator completes Section 3, Finding, checking qualified if the bidder has demonstrated every requirement. If the evaluator checked no in Column B for 1 or more requirements, the bidder is not qualified. (See 727.4, Timing and Sequence of Evaluation, which explains timing and sequences for bidders to meet some requirements.)
When the evaluation is completed, the senior bidder is selected for the position if qualified. An evaluation of the next senior bidder’s qualifications is not necessary when the senior bidder is selected.
Appropriate documentation, including Forms 1796–A (if completed), Forms 1717, the posting, and written statements (if obtained) must be maintained with employee bidding records.
Qualifications determine the relative standing for selection of career employees who are eligible to apply for such positions based on applicable collective bargaining agreements. Of those applicants who meet all of the requirements, the applicant who is found to be the best qualified on the basis of total qualifications will be selected. This determination is made on the basis of a comparison of total qualifications among applicants for the position (see 728.36, Selection of Best Qualified Applicant).
For filling best qualified positions, the selecting official is normally the supervisor or manager with the vacancy. Bargaining employees serving as acting supervisors may not serve as selecting officials. The selecting official has numerous options with regard to review committees and interviews, and these options are described in the sections that follow. If recommendations are made to the selecting official from a review committee, the selecting official may have access to all information used by the review committee, including completed Forms 1796–B, Qualifications Rating Sheet for Best Qualified Positions.
The initial determination of qualifications is documented on Form 1796–B. The review committee or in the absence of a review committee, the selecting official, completes this form for every applicant.
Applicants for best qualified positions are required to describe their qualifications in writing (see 765.2, Best Qualified Positions). Form 991, Application for Promotion or Assignment, must be used for this purpose. Applicants must address each of the requirements listed on the qualification standard or posting, including desirable qualifications, if any. Applications must be submitted by the deadline specified.
The qualifications of all applicants are compared to the position requirements stated on the vacancy announcement or job posting. As a minimum, applicants’ written statements are reviewed by selection officials and review committee members. The applicants’ OPFs and other official records may be reviewed; however, it is recommended that the selecting official review the OPF of the person to be selected before finalizing the decision. The selecting official’s decision whether to use a review committee normally is based on the number of applicants and the time available to the selecting official to review the applications.
The function of the review committee is to evaluate the applicants’ qualifications and eligibility for the position, to conduct interviews if appropriate (see 728.34, Conducting Interviews), and to make recommendations to the selecting official on the best qualified applicants. The selecting official may also choose to have the review committee make the determination of the best qualified applicant.
All review committee members must be nonbargaining employees. Normally, a committee will consist of 2 nonbargaining employees from the functional area of the vacancy, and 1 from outside the functional area. A selecting official who asks a review committee to determine the best qualified applicant may also be a member of the committee. However, a selecting official who asks a review committee to recommend those who best meet the requirements of the position may not be a member of the committee.
Review committee procedures follow the principles of independent work and consensus decision–making. Specific steps are:
- Each committee member should independently determine if the applicants have demonstrated each requirement.
- Members should discuss their decisions collectively and arrive at a consensus for each requirement for each applicant.
- The committee chairperson must complete Form 1796–B through column B based on this consensus for each applicant. Applicants found not qualified at this stage are removed from further consideration for this vacancy. For those applicants who are not qualified, the chairperson completes column D and section 5, and obtains signatures for section 6 of Form 1796–B.
- For applicants who are qualified, individual review committee members should then determine the level of demonstration of each requirement by each applicant.
- Members should then discuss their decisions collectively and arrive at a consensus on the level of demonstration of each requirement by each applicant.
- The chairperson completes a Form 1796–B for each applicant and all members sign the form.
- If the review committee conducts interviews, it selects applicants based on the highest point totals on Form 1796–B. There is no set minimum or maximum number of applicants to interview. Applicants who are tied in point totals must be treated equally. Either all applicants are interviewed or no applicants are interviewed.
Note: Applicants found not qualified must not be interviewed.
- If the review committee makes recommendations to the selecting official but does not interview, approximately 3–5 applicants (there is no set minimum or maximum number), are recommended based on the highest point totals on Form 1796–B. Applicants who are tied in point totals must be treated the same. Either they are all recommended or none of them are recommended. The review committee must prepare a signed memorandum to the selecting official indicating, in alphabetical order, the names of the recommended applicants.
- If the review committee interviews and makes recommendations to the selecting official, approximately 3–5 applicants (there is no set minimum or maximum number) are recommended. No formal method exists for incorporating the results of the interview. The review committee must recommend only those applicants who best meet the position requirements based on the point totals from Form 1796–B, the interview, and any other pertinent information reviewed during the evaluation. The review committee must prepare a signed memorandum to the selecting official indicating, in alphabetical order, the names of the recommended applicants.
- If the selecting official wishes the review committee to determine who is the best qualified applicant, then no recommendations are made to the selecting official. In this case, the review committee must interview the potential applicants. The review committee determines who the best qualified applicant is based on the point totals from Form 1796–B, the interview, any other pertinent information reviewed during the evaluation, and consideration of any desirable qualifications. The review committee must prepare a signed memorandum to the manager of Human Resources indicating the names of the best qualified applicant and 2 alternates in rank order.
Interviews provide additional information for a comparison of the applicants’ qualifications. Interviews are mandatory and may be conducted by the selecting official, the review committee, or both. Interviews may be conducted only after completion of Forms 1796–B. No documentation of the interviews is required. Review committees must reach consensus on combining the interview results with the point totals from Forms 1796–B (and other pertinent information) in reaching their final recommendations or final determination of the best qualified applicant.
Form 1796–B documents whether an applicant has demonstrated all the position requirements, and, if so, the level of their qualifications. Form 1796–B does not document interviews. The following list gives specific instructions for the correct use of Form 1796–B.
- In Column A, Identification of Requirements, the review committee or selecting official lists all the position requirements. These are divided into Examination Requirements; Physical and Driving requirements; and Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (that may be written in B–element format, per 763.1b, Appendix I, Bqnet). Desirable qualifications are not listed as requirements (see 714.1f).
- In Column B, Demonstration, the review committee determines whether the applicant has demonstrated each requirement, based on the information available. If the applicant does not meet all the requirements — i.e., if the evaluator checked no under Demonstrated for any requirement, the applicant is not qualified and Column C is not completed.
Note: If the applicant failed a required examination, the applicant is not qualified, and no additional information is needed on Form 1796–B.
- In Column C, Points, information is entered only for those applicants who meet all the position requirements as established by Column B. The review committee or selecting official assigns points to indicate the level of qualifications demonstrated by the applicant. No points are assigned for driving or physical requirements.
- In Column D, Measurements Used, the review committee or selecting official must indicate briefly how the decision was made. These statements need not include all facts considered.
- In Section 4, Score Calculation, the total points in Column C are averaged and multiplied by 20. The maximum points that can be earned from the evaluation are 100. The examination score, if any, is then added to this score to obtain the total points.
- In Section 5, Finding, the results of the evaluation of the applicant’s qualifications are summarized.
Selection for the position will be based on total qualifications, considering the point totals on Forms 1796–B, the results of the interviews, desirable qualifications (if any), and other pertinent information reviewed during the evaluation.
It is imperative that selecting officials, review committee members for best qualified positions, and evaluators for senior qualified positions, know the scope of their responsibilities and the correct application of the principles of selection. In this regard, it is helpful, but not mandatory, to include a nonbargaining human resources employee on each review committee for a best qualified position.
The vacancy file must contain full documentation supporting the selection decision. This documentation includes a copy of the announcement, the qualification standard, applications, Forms 1796–B, a list of review committee members, and the name of the selecting official. Notes made by individual review committee members are the members’ own property, not records of the Postal Service, and they are not included in the vacancy file.
