HANDBOOK EL-312 REVISION
Change to Employment Programs
Effective December 22, 2005, Handbook EL-312, Employment and Placement, is revised to reflect changes
to employment programs.
Summary of Changes to Handbook EL-312
Exhibit 233.32, Competitive Service and Excepted
Service Organizations, changes General Accounting
Office to Government Accountability Office.
Exhibit 512.22, Interview Sheet and Checklist (page
1 only), updates references to Form 61, Appointment
Affidavit, and reorders elements in the form to highlight
where a job offer occurs in the hiring process.
513.5, Citizenship Policy, removes policy regarding
sensitive clearances.
Exhibit 541, Interview Sheet and Checklist (page 1), updates references to Form 61, Appointment Affidavit, and
reorders elements in the form to highlight where a job offer
occurs in the hiring process.
55, Eligibility to Work in the Postal Service, clarifies
process by dividing material into two parts that represent
the two steps: (1) 551, Determining Eligibility at Screening
Stage; and (2) 552, Determining Eligibility After Job Offer.
Subdivides 552 into 552.1, Completing the OMB Form I-9;
and 552.2, Reviewing Evidence to Determine Citizen, Permanent Resident Alien, or Citizen of Territory Status.
551, Determining Eligibility at Screening Stage, clarifies what takes place if applicant responds on Form 2591
that he or she is not a citizen or permanent resident alien.
552, Determining Eligibility After Job Offer, provides
an overview of 552.1 and 552.2.
552.1, Completing the OMB Form I-9, is a new section
that contains text from the old 552 and adds additional details about the completion of this form.
552.2, Reviewing Evidence to Determine Citizen,
Permanent Resident Alien, or Citizen of Territory Status, is a new section that describes the documents accepted to complete the I-9 but are not evidence that the new
employee meets the citizen or permanent resident alien
status.
743.523c corrects reference from 513.122 to 513.32c.
Handbook EL-312, Employment and Placement
* * * * *
2 Recruitment
* * * * *
23 Sources of Recruitment
* * * * *
233 Career Recruitment
* * * * *
233.3 External Recruitment Sources
* * * * *
233.32 Reinstatement
* * * * *
Exhibit 233.32, Competitive Service and Excepted
Service Organizations
[Revise Exhibit 233.32 by replacing the text "General
Accounting Office" with "Government Accountability
Office."]
* * * * *
5 Suitability
51 Employment Eligibility and Suitability
* * * * *
512 Screening Process Philosophy
* * * * *
512.2 Sequence of Screening Activities
* * * * *
512.22 Prescreening
Exhibit 512.22, Interview Sheet and Checklist (page 1
only)
[Revise Exhibit 512.22 to read as shown on page 7.]
* * * * *
513 Eligibility Requirements
* * * * *
513.5 Citizenship Policy
[Revise the text of 513.5 to read as follows:]
To be eligible for career or noncareer Postal Service employment an applicant must be a United States citizen, a
permanent resident alien, or a citizen of American Samoa
or other territory owing permanent allegiance to the United
States. The Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986
makes it unlawful to hire unauthorized aliens, and requires
employers to verify and document the employment
eligibility of all new employees. Refer to Subchapter 55,
Eligibility to Work in the Postal Service, for determining eligibility during screening and after a job offer has been
made.
Noncitizens of the United States who have been granted
permanent resident alien status in the United States are eligible for appointment to all Postal Service positions, levels
EAS-19 and below. Appointment of noncitizens to positions
in levels EAS-20 and above can be made only with the prior
approval of the area vice president.
* * * * *
54 Preemployment Interview
* * * * *
541 Training and Preparation of Interviewers
* * * * *
Exhibit 541, Interview Sheet and Checklist (page 1)
[Revise Exhibit 541 to read as shown on page 7.]
* * * * *
55 Eligibility to Work in the Postal Service
[Revise the title and text of 551 to read as follows:]
551 Determining Eligibility at Screening Stage
The eligibility requirement for career or noncareer postal
employment that an applicant must be a United States citizen, a permanent resident alien, or a citizen of American
Samoa or other territory owing permanent allegiance to the
United States is addressed at the application screening
stage by reviewing the applicant's answer to Item E1, Form
2591; however, citizenship documents are not reviewed at
this stage. If the applicant responds on Form 2591 that he
or she is not a U.S. citizen, a permanent resident alien, or a
citizen of American Samoa or other territory owing permanent allegiance to the United States, the applicant is not eligible for employment. If the applicant responds that he or
she is a U.S. citizen, a permanent resident alien, or a citizen of American Samoa or other territory owing permanent
allegiance to the United States, then the applicant continues in the hiring process. |
[Revise the title and text of 552 to read as follows:]
552 Determining Eligibility After Job Offer
Hiring officials conduct completion of the OMB Form I-9, review of supporting documents and verification of the applicants' status only after bona fide job offers for career or
noncareer positions are extended. The review of documents and determination of status must be the same process for United States citizens, permanent resident aliens,
or citizens of American Samoa or other territory owing permanent allegiance to the United States. The process of determining that a selectee meets this requirement begins
with completing the OMB Form 1-9 and recording
documents presented by selectees to substantiate that
they meet the basic eligibility requirement to work in this
country. After the OMB Form I-9 is satisfactorily completed,
the evidence presented by the selectee is reviewed to determine that he or she meets the U.S. citizen, permanent
resident alien, or a citizen of American Samoa or other territory owing permanent allegiance to the United States
requirement.
[Add new 552.1 to read as follows:]
552.1 Completing the OMB Form I-9
After receiving a job offer, every postal selectee (whether
career or noncareer) must complete Section 1 of an OMB
Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification, used by all
American employers in the federal and private sectors.
Documents acceptable to establish identity and/or employment eligibility are listed on the reverse of Form I-9. Hiring
officials must complete Section 2 by examining evidence of
identity and employment eligibility presented by the selectee. A hiring official may not ask for specific documents from
a selectee, nor refuse employment on the basis of a future
expiration date shown on a document. All persons, whether
a U.S. citizen, a permanent resident alien, or a citizen of
American Samoa or other territory owing permanent allegiance to the United States, may satisfy employment eligibility verification requirements by producing either one
document from List A, or one document from List B and one
from List C. Original documents are presented and recorded on the I-9 and the I-9 completed even though the
documents may not demonstrate that the person meets the
eligibility requirement. Hiring officials must complete the
certification after recording the documents offered.
[Add new 552.2 to read as follows:]
552.2 Reviewing Evidence to Determine U.S.
Citizen, Permanent Resident Alien, or Citizen
of Territory Status
After the I-9 is completed, a determination is made that the
selectee meets the Postal Service requirement for U.S. citizen, permanent resident alien, or citizen of American
Samoa or other territory owing permanent allegiance to the
United States status. Not all documents that are acceptable
to complete the I-9 are evidence that the selectee meets
the Postal Service requirement. The following documents
(or receipts for documents) do not demonstrate that the
person meets the Postal Service's U.S. citizen, permanent
resident alien, or a citizen of American Samoa or other territory owing permanent allegiance to the United States
status requirement:
• Employment Authorization Card (Form I-688A).
• Employment Authorization Document issued by
Department of land Security (DHS), (Form
I-688B).
• Employment Authorization Document, (Form I-766).
• Foreign passport containing a temporary I-551
stamp.
• Foreign passport with machine-readable immigrant
visa (MRIV) and temporary I-551 stamp.
• Foreign passport with the new MRIV containing temporary I-551 language and endorsed with a DHS
admission stamp.
• Foreign passport, with attached Form I-94.
• Temporary Resident Card (Form I-688).
• U.S. social security card issued by the Social
Security Administration with the notation "VALID
FOR WORK ONLY WITH DHS AUTHORIZATION."
A receipt to replace a stolen or lost document that is evidence that the selectee is a U.S. citizen, permanent resident alien, or a citizen of American Samoa or other territory
owing permanent allegiance to the United States is acceptable. The selectee would have 30 days to acquire a replacement document that indicates the status.
If a selectee does not possess evidence to document U.S.
citizen, permanent resident alien, or a citizen of American
Samoa or other territory owing permanent allegiance to the
United States status, then the selectee cannot be allowed
to work in the Postal Service. Completed OMB Forms I-9
for applicants found ineligible are filed in the preemployment investigation file.
* * * * *
7 Assignment, Reassignment, and Promotion
* * * * *
74 EAS Positions
* * * * *
743 Selection Process
* * * * *
743.5 Roles of the Selecting Official and Review
Committee
* * * * *
743.52 Review Committee
* * * * *
743.523 Restrictions on Setting Up Review Committee
[Revise 743.523c by replacing the text "EL-312, 513.122"
with "513.32c".]
* * * * *
We will incorporate these revisions into the next printed edition of Handbook EL-312 and into the online update, available on the Postal ServiceTM PolicyNet Web site:
• Go to http://blue.usps.gov.
• Under "Essential Links" in the left-hand column, click
on References.
• Under "References" in the right-hand column, under
"Policies," click on PolicyNet.
• Click on HBKs.
(The direct URL for the Postal Service PolicyNet Web site
is http://blue.usps.gov/cpim.)
Handbook EL-312 is also available on the Postal Service
Internet:
• Go to www.usps.com.
• Click on About USPS and News, then Forms and
Publications, then Postal Periodicals and Publications, and then Handbooks.
Until the changes described in the article are incorporated
into the online version of Handbook EL-312, use this article
to implement the changes.
— Selection, Evaluation, and Recognition,
Employee Resource Management, 12-22-05 |
ELM REVISION
Reductions in Grade
Effective June 10, 2006 (Pay Period 13-06), Employee
and Labor Relations Manual (ELM) 422.125, Reductions in
Grade, is revised to simplify the bargaining unit salary
determination rules used to process voluntary reductions in
grade. An employee is typically placed into a job with a lower grade through the job bidding process, or through an approved request for reassignment to another bargaining unit.
When this placement occurs, determining the employee's
salary represents one of the most important aspects of
completing PS Form 50, Notification of Personnel Action, in
the Complement Management System (CMS).
The revised policy applies to all bargaining units and,
compared to current policy, represents a major simplification. Under current policy, the employee's salary (a combination of step and next step date) is usually determined
by considering (1) total length of career service, or
(2) length of service before returning to the lower grade, if
previously held. Under the revised policy, the employee's
existing salary is simply slotted to the closest step in the
lower grade, with waiting period credit earned applied toward the next step increase.
The revised policy will allow personnel specialists in field
district offices, as well as the Greensboro Human Resources Shared Services Center (HRSSC), to assign a
salary without using the Step Calculator or PS Schedule
Conversion Calculator (Microsoft Excel-based calculation
tools are found on the Headquarters Compensation Intranet site: http://blue.usps.gov/hrisp/comp/).
The revised policy mirrors the current policy that, since
May 17, 2004, has governed salary determination for nonbargaining to nonbargaining voluntary reduction in grade
placements (see 415.51). The revised policy is similar to
current policy that governs many across-bargaining unit
voluntary reassignments to jobs with an equivalent grade
(see 422.124).
Under the revised policy, employees may find it more attractive to bid on vacant lower-level jobs, since basic pay
usually will remain the same.
Employee and Labor Relations Manual (ELM)
* * * * *
4 Pay Administration
* * * * *
420 Wage Administration Policy for Bargaining
Unit Employees
* * * * *
422 Salary Schedules Covered by Specific
Agreements
422.1 Postal Service and Mail Equipment
Shops/Material Distribution Center Salary
Schedules
* * * * *
|
422.12 Change Action Pay Rules
* * * * *
422.125 Reductions in Grade
* * * * *
[Revise the introductory text, (1), and (2) of item b to read
as follows:]
b. Step and Next Step Date Assignment. Assignments
are determined as follows:
(1) Step. The employee's current salary is moved to
the lower grade. If the current salary falls between two steps in the lower grade, the salary is
set at the higher of the two steps. The salary
may not be set below the minimum or above the
maximum of the lower grade.
(2) Next Step Date. Creditable service in the former
position is maintained toward the next step increase, with the following exceptions:
(a) If the employee's salary is increased by at
least one most prevalent step in the former
grade, a new step waiting period begins on
the effective date of the reduction in grade
(see 421.45c).
(b) If the waiting period time already served
equals or exceeds that required to advance
to the next step following the reduction in
grade, the employee is advanced one additional step and a new step waiting period
begins on the effective date of the reduction
in grade.
* * * * *
We will incorporate these revisions into the next printed
version of the ELM and also into the online update, available on the Postal ServiceTM PolicyNet Web site:
• Go to http://blue.usps.gov.
• Under "Essential Links" in the left-hand column, click
on References.
• Under "References" in the right-hand column, under
"Policies," click on PolicyNet.
• Click on Manuals.
(The direct URL for the Postal Service PolicyNet Web
site is http://blue.usps.gov./cpim.)
It is also available on the Postal Service Internet:
• Go to www.usps.com.
• Click on About USPS & News, then Forms & Publications, then Postal Periodicals and Publications, and
then Manuals.
— Compensation,
Employee Resource Management, 12-22-05 |
