FAQ's > Satellite Broadcast
The following questions are from the IFPM Satellite Broadcast that were not answered on the air. Select a topic:Human Resources
Collateral Duty
Human Resources & Fire Management
Training & Education
General
At how many of the grade levels can any of the 14 key positions be advertised? (e.g. 5/7/9/11)
There is no restriction on how many grades can be used when filling a key position. The expectation is that most GS-401 positions would not be filled below the GS-7. However, the hiring manager along with seeking advice from Human Resources should carefully consider the impact on the mission and fire program of where the position is being filled if filling below the recommended minimum grade level identified in the IFPM.
When the unit fills a new position, the applicant must meet the qualifications standards. How will this work for incumbents who have 5 years to meet the qualifications, but decide to apply for another position?
To be considered for other key fire management positions, the employee has to meet all the OPM requirements at the time of hire but will have until October 1, 2009 to meet the NWCG and "additional required training" requirements. Please refer to Decision Paper #2 at http://www.ifpm.nifc.gov/newdevelopments.htm.
When an employee receives conflicting answers on whether they are GS-0401 qualified or not (from different HR offices), how will this conflict be resolved?
Employees are encouraged to address their concerns with their local Human Resources office. If the issue can not be resolved at the local office, the employee should follow their chaind of command.
Does previous experience count toward the GS-0401? How is it credited, please give an example.
The OPM Supplemental Standard for the GS-401, states “One grade interval experience may be qualifying for two-grade interval positions, provided that the experience demonstrated the knowledge, skills and ability required to perform the work successfully.” Therefore the applicant would have to show how he/she meets the specialized experience requirement as reflected in the OPM Supplemental Standard, for the specific grade level the applicant is applying to. For instance at the GS-07, the applicant must show, in writing, that he/she has experience that demonstrates an understanding of fire behavior relative to fuels, weather, and topography and how fire effects natural and cultural resources.
Will the IFPM Standard move all agencies to standardized position descriptions?
One of the goals of the IFPM is standardization and consistency. So yes, all agencies should be using the newly developed standardized position descriptions for DOI and Forest Service.
How are organizations creating professional positions below the GS-9 level?
There are no target level professional positions below the GS-09 level in any of the agencies. If an agency is creating a professional position below the GS-09 level, it is as a trainee. To advertise a career ladder announcement (7/9) either a statement of differences or a GS-07 position description must be developed. Individuals selected at the lower level will operate in the GS-07 trainee position until they qualify for the GS-09 (target grade level).
There is confusion between primary fire jobs, collateral duties and ICS positions. Please define collateral duties. How are people with collateral duties affected by IFPM Standard?
Collateral Duty - Collateral duties, as defined in the IFPM, are official IFPM related duties assigned to an employee. The fire management duties must be documented in the official position description of record. Employees formally assigned IFPM fire duties and responsibilities must meet the IFPM Standard qualification requirements for the key fire management position that substantially matches those duties and responsibilities.
ICS Position - Employees who hold an Incident Qualification Card and only function on fires in those positions are not required to meet the IFPM qualification requirements. These individuals must meet the qualifications of the NWCG position assigned.
Do people with fire as a collateral duty from other divisions such as maintenance and law enforcement have to meet the IFPM standards?
If an individual holds an Incident qualification Card and only functions on fires in those positions, no. If it is a duty documented in their official position description of record, yes.
Does a Helicopter Manager for a Call-When-Needed helicopter need to meet the IFPM Standards?
If it is a duty documented in their official position description of record, yes.
How does collateral duty, as defined by the IFPM Standard, apply to the collateral duty language placed in the position descriptions of our militia who hold red card qualifications that require arduous duty?
If the language in the position description is only to provide the arduous duty statement to allow the employee to go out on fires as militia, it is not required.
HUMAN RESOURCES & FIRE MANAGEMENT
The Recommended Minimum Qualifications outlined in the IFPM Standard is confusing. What determines the grade level, the recommended minimum grade level in IFPM or the HR Classifier?
The HR Classifier. Refer to OPM Classification regulations found in the following website: http://opm.gov/fedclass/
How do the Organization Complexity Analysis, the Position Identification Analysis , and the Recommended Minimum Grade level relate to one another?
The complexity analysis provides the qualifications, competencies and for some positions the series. The Position Identification Analysis identifies which positions in your organization are affected by the IFPM Standard. And the Recommended Grade Level is a notation from the subject matter experts that put the IFPM Standard together to illustrate commonly used grade levels based upon the complexity for organizations in the field.
How are employees working in remote locations going to receive the education required to meet the GS-0401?
To meet GS-401 requirements, an employee has two ways of going about it. 1) They attain a Bachelors of Science (4 year degree) in a natural resource related field –or- 2) They attain 24 credit hours in related course material, plus meet specialized experience at the appropriate level.
Given the number of courses currently sponsored by NWCG available for credit towards the 401 series, as well as other curriculum such as Technical Fire Management, Continuing Education Ecosystem Management, or Continuing Education Fire Management, the employee should not have to enroll fulltime at a university or college to meet 401 standards. All of the courses that are accredited for 401 series mentioned above are agency-sponsored training classes in which your unit should provide travel, per diem, and salary for the employee to attend. Many of the same classes are required for certification of various NWCG qualifications, and should be a part of your career development anyway.
Over time, additional agency-sponsored classes will become accredited for use towards the 401 series, and should assist current government employees to meet the 401 requirements.
Some of the new courses may be offered on-line, through various universities, or in other formats such as satellite telecast etc… for those in remote locations. However, as stated above, the one to two week agency-sponsored courses should be sufficient to meet the 401 requirements, and your agency should be budgeting you with a certain amount of travel / training funds each year.
Will employees who do not hold one of the 14 key positions be given the same agency-paid education? Will they be reimbursed if they pay for it themselves?
All employees within the agencies should be provided with opportunities to develop their skills, knowledge, and experience. However, supervisors should consider IFPM Standards requirements for their employees when prioritizing nominations for certain courses.
If the employee is not currently encumbered in a position that has been identified for conversion to the 401 series, the government is not required to assist the employee. However, non-encumbered employees are still eligible to attend the same agency-sponsored training (i.e. NATRC course, TFM etc…) just like those employees encumbered within one of the 14 key positions. Nominations to these courses will depend on the priorities your home unit assigns. However, there are a number of programs available to all agency personnel to help finance higher education, including scholarships, Student Career Experience Program (SCEP), etc. You should contact your unit or Region’s Training Officer for further information.
Will the Forest Service adopt the NWCG 310-1 standards as part of this implementation (the 310-1 is easier to meet that the 5109.17)?
The FSH 5109.17 is based on the NWCG 310-1, but applies additional requirements for certain positions (i.e. requires attendance of S-300 for ICT3). Both the FSH 5109.17 and NWCG 310-1 are based on position performance as well as pre-requisite training requirements.
At current time, the FSH 5109.17 is the US Forest Service standard, and all Forest Service employees must meet FSH 5109.17 requirements prior to certification.
Will Red Card training documentation suffice as proof of course completion, if course certificates are not available?
Yes, if the documentation comes from the agency’s system of record (i.e. IQCS). A copy of the Master Record, which clearly identifies NWCG qualifications and training record, must be submitted as part of the Incumbent Declaration to Human Resource to determine the employee’s qualification status.
Many employees may not have maintained their own records, or were not issued certificates upon completion of the training. However, proof of attendance is dependent on your unit’s policies and procedures for documentation on your IQCS Master Record.
If NWCG courses are offered at colleges or universities for 3 credits but when taken through their agency they are only given 1 credit?
NWCG courses offered at Colleges or Universities as part of a Technical Degree program are based on satisfying the requirements of that particular degree or certificate. Credits earned from NWCG Courses vary from school to school and therefore only the credit equivalency listed in Attachment 3 of the Supplemental Qualification Standards for the GS-401 Fire Management Specialist may be used. In addition numerous NWCG Courses have credit value assigned at these schools and some of these courses may not be applied toward the 24-credit requirement. Only the approved Lower and Upper Division NWCG Courses and the credits earned for those courses that are listed in Attachment 3 of the Supplemental Qualification Standards for the GS-401 Fire Management Specialist may be used to satisfy those requirements.
Will someone review college courses employees are interested in taking to ensure they meet the intent of the GS-0401 or will they provide curriculum guidelines to assist the employees in selecting courses to meet the requirements?
A National HR IFPM Committee has put out a policy interpretation for the Human Resources and Fire community that explains what types of College or University courses are creditable toward the GS-0401 Supplemental Standards. Please refer to the GS-0401 Supplemental Standards at: http://www.ifpm.nifc.gov/implementation/GS0401.htm.
Are all fire positions required to crosswalk with the IFPM positions?
No, there are some fire positions (i.e. fire ecologist) that will not crosswalk with the 14 key positions. To determine if the position in question is subject to the IFPM Standard you will need to compare the position description of the position in question with one of the Interagency Standard Position Descriptions that most closely matches in title, series and grade. Further instructions on this process can be found in Appendix C of the IFPM Standard Implementation Plan.
What is the difference between the qualifications and the competencies and what are the timelines?
The qualifications refer to the Minimum Qualification Standards associated with each of the 14 key positions. The Minimum Qualification Standards are comprised of OPM Qualification Standard Requirements; Specialized Experience Requirements; NWCG Incident Management Qualifications; and Additional Required Training. Employees currently in one of the 14 key positions will have until October 1, 2009 to meet the Minimum Qualification Standards for their position.
The Competencies constitute the requisite knowledge, skills and abilities which, when acquired, allow a person to perform a task or function at a defined level of proficiency. The IFPM Standard identifies both position-specific and common competencies. Employees will have 3 years from the date they meet the Minimum Qualification Standards to meet the competencies.
How can a four year degree or 24 credit hours increase safety?
It is not the degree that enhances safety, it is the standardized competencies, specialized experience, and NWCG Incident Management qualifications that improve safety. The education is only a small part of the overall IFPM Qualifications Standard.
What area does the incumbent have 5 years to meet? 3 years?
Incumbents have until October 1, 2009 to meet the Minimum Qualification Standards. Once the Minimum Qualification Standards are met the incumbent will have 3 years to meet the position-specific and common competencies for their position.
Who are the designated IFPM National Agency/Bureau Representatives for Fire Management and Human Resources?
BIA – Fire Management: Dave Koch
BIA – HR: Sharon Limberhand/Jack Kuntz
BLM – Fire Management: Wini Sorensen
BLM – HR: Cindy Pogue
Forest Service – Fire Management: Evans Kuo/Beth Lund
Forest Service – HR: Joy Thomas
FWS – Fire Management: Kevin Conn
FWS – HR: Marc Gunby
NPS – Fire Management: Mark Koontz
NPS – HR: Melissa Anglin
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