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Gardener (MVO)

Department of the Interior
National Park Service
President's Park-White House

Summary

These positions are located in Office of NPS Liaison to the White House, in the White House Division.

Open to the first 75 applicants or until 12/02/2025 whichever comes first. All applications submitted by 11:59 (EST) on the closing day will receive consideration.

Overview

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Accepting applications
Open & closing dates
11/18/2025 to 12/02/2025
This job will close when we have received 75 applications which may be sooner than the closing date. Learn more
Salary
$32.52 to - $38.02 per hour
Pay scale & grade
WG 9
Location
3 vacancies in the following location:
Washington, DC
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
No
Travel Required
Occasional travel - You may be expected to travel for this position.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
None
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Secret
Drug test
No
Position sensitivity and risk
NCS/High Risk
Trust determination process
Financial disclosure
No
Bargaining unit status
Yes
Announcement number
NC-1616-WHHO-25-12803848-ST
Control number
850243900

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Duties

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The major duties of the Gardener MVO position include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • Plans and carries out gardening work based on project plans, master landscape, and long-range plans, making independent judgements within the framework of good gardening practices
  • Preforms grounds maintenance to trees, shrubs, plants, flowers, and lawns, taking into consideration the individual needs and/or characteristics.
  • Uses and maintains a variety of hand and power operated garden tools and equipment, such as seeders, spreaders, edgers, hedge trimmers, pruning shears, sprayers, spades, hoes, rakes, and mowers.
  • Operates a variety of gasoline, diesel, or electric wheeled vehicles, such as platform trucks, van trucks, stake trucks, or dump trucks which typically have a gross vehicle weight (GVW) of not more than 32,000 pounds.
  • Utilizes safety practices and procedures following established safety rules and regulations and maintains a safe and clean work environment.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • U.S. Citizenship required.
  • Appointment subject to background investigation and favorable adjudication.
  • Meet Selective Service Registration Act requirement for males
  • Selectee will be required to participate in the Direct Deposit Electronics Funds Transfer Program.
  • You will be required to operate a government (or private) motor vehicle as part of your official duties; a valid driver's license is required. You will be required to submit a Motor Vehicle Operator's License and Driving Record. You must also submit (within a State sealed envelope or submitted directly by the State authorities), and at your own expense, all certified driving records from all States that disclose all valid driver's licenses, whether current or past, possessed by you.
  • You will be required to wear a uniform and comply with the National Park Service uniform standards. A uniform allowance will be provided.
  • You may be required to work on-call, evenings, weekends, holidays, overtime and shift work.
  • You may be required to complete training and obtain/maintain a government charge card with travel and/or purchase authority.
  • You will be considered emergency personnel
  • Applicants must be at least (1)18 years old or (2) at least 16 years old and: (a) Have graduated from high school or been awarded a certificate equivalent to graduating from high school; or (b) Have completed a formal vocational training program; or (c) Have received a statement from school authorities agreeing with their preference for employment rather than continuing their education; or (d) Be currently enrolled in a secondary school and either work only during school vacation periods or work part-time during the school year under a formal student employment program.
  • Pesticide Applicator Certification. The incumbent of this position must possess or be able to obtain a pesticide certificate within 6 months of employment.
  • As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period. Please visit the Additional Information section for more details on the conditions of probationary periods for this position.

Qualifications

All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement-12/02/2025-unless otherwise stated in this vacancy announcement.

Credit will be given for all appropriate qualifying experience. For current Federal employees, if hours worked per week are not included on your resume, you must submit a non-award SF-50 for each federal position listed as part of your application to be used to validate your work schedule and determine the amount of qualifying experience that you will be granted. An award SF-50 will not be acceptable documentation for which to consider your amount of qualifying experience. For all other applicants who are not current federal employees, your resume must state either "full-time" (or "40 hours a week") or "part-time" with the number of hours worked per week to ensure proper crediting of specialized experience. Failure to adequately provide information needed to determine number of hours worked in each position may result in that time not being credited when evaluating qualifying experience.

For periods of time that reflect military service, the DD-214 or Statement of Service is sufficient to meet the full and/or part-time hours requirement as the service dates will be reflected.

To qualify for this position, you must have sufficient knowledge and ability in the following job-related factors:

  1. Ability To Do The Work Of The Position Without More Than Normal Supervision (SCREEN OUT)
  2. Technical Practices: theoretical precise, artistic
  3. Use of Measuring Instruments
  4. Ability to Interpret Instructions, specifications; other than blueprints
  5. Ability To Use and Maintain Tools and Equipment
  6. Knowledge of Materials
  7. Dexterity and Safety
  8. Pesticide Application Certificate (QUALITY RANKING FACTOR)
If your knowledge and ability in the SCREEN OUT factor above is not sufficient, you will receive no further consideration. In preparing your application, describe in detail the experience and training which you have had that specifically prepared you for this job and to perform the duties described for this job. Experience should be clearly described and documented in your resume. The qualifications reviewer will not assume performance of such duties by Job Titles alone. Address your knowledge, skills and/or abilities in the areas shown in the job-related factors.Pesticide Applicator Experience and Certification is a Quality Ranking Factor for this position. Quality Ranking Factors are knowledge, skills and abilities that could be expected to significantly enhance your performance in a position, but are not essential for satisfactory performance. Although it is highly desirable for an applicant to possess pesticide applicator experience and certification, applicants will not be rated ineligible solely for failure to possess the certification.

Volunteer Experience: Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

Education

There is no substitution of education for experience at the grade level(s) of this announcement.

Additional information

A selectee receiving a first appointment to the Federal Government (Civil Service) is entitled only to the lowest step of the grade for which selected The display of a salary range on this vacancy shall not be construed as granting an entitlement to a higher rate of pay.

This announcement may be used to fill additional positions if identical vacancies occur within 90 days of the issue date of the referral certificate.

Physical Demands: The work requires lengthy periods of standing, walking, bending and stooping, reaching and lifting moderately heavy (up to 50 pounds) unassisted and heavier items with the assistance of others or with the use of a lifting device. Climbs ladders to prune or trim shrubs or trees. Performs work from an aerial lift.

Working Conditions: Incumbent is required to work outdoors and indoor in all types of weather and is subject to discomfort from heat, humidity and cold. Clothing may become soiled from chemicals, dirt, and medium generated from tree pruning or removal process, etc. Incumbent is frequently exposed to the possibility of cuts, bruises, burns and broken bones. Incumbent is subject to fumes, dust and reside generated by power tools and chemical sprays and dust. The work requires wearing protective equipment and clothing and may experience discomfort while wearing same.

Telework is not authorized for this position.

Continued Condition of Employment For Probationary Period: As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period during which your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest will be evaluated. This probationary period is an extension of the appointment process and therefore requires the agency to determine if continued employment would advance the public interest, meet the organization goals and mission of the agency, and/or otherwise promote the efficiency of the service. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, the agency will consider:

  • your performance and conduct;
  • the needs and interests of the agency;
  • whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and
  • whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.

Under applicable law, the employment of an individual serving a probationary or trial period automatically terminates when that period ends unless the agency affirmatively certifies, in writing, that the individual's employment should continue and that their appointment should be finalized. In the absence of agency action to affirmatively certify continued employment beyond the probationary or trial period, such appointments are terminated. Upon completion of your probationary period your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.


Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

You will be evaluated based on how well you meet the qualifications listed in this vacancy announcement. Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), the responses you provide on the application questionnaire, and the result of the additional assessments required for this position. A review of your resume and supporting documentation will be made and compared against your responses to the Assessment Questionnaire to determine if you are qualified for this job. If your resume is incomplete or does not support the responses provided in the Assessment Questionnaire, or if you fail to submit all required documentation, you will be rated 'ineligible', 'not qualified', or your score will be adjusted accordingly. If a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications or experience, you can lose consideration for this position. Please follow all instructions carefully; errors or omissions can affect your rating. Resumes must not exceed two single-sided pages and resumes longer than two pages will not be accepted. The minimum font size is 10-point for all body text. Headers may be slightly larger but must remain legible. All resumes must maintain a minimum 0.5-inch margins on all sides to ensure readability and prevent excessive content compression. Including supplemental pages or attachments disguised as resume extensions are prohibited and will not be reviewed to determine your eligibility/qualifications.

Candidates who apply under Competitive Merit Promotion procedures will undergo a quality review to determine if they are highly qualified based on the content of their resume and their responses to the questionnaire. Best qualified candidates will be referred if all required supporting documentation has been provided.

Candidates who apply under Noncompetitive Merit Promotion procedures will undergo a quality review to determine if they are minimally qualified based on the content of their resume and their responses to the questionnaire. Qualified candidates will be referred if all required supporting documentation has been provided.

You will be evaluated on the following competencies:

  • Ability To Do The Work Of The Position Without More Than Normal Supervision (SCREEN OUT)
  • Ability To Interpret Instructions, Specifications, etc. (other than blueprints)
  • Ability To Use and Maintain Tools and Equipment
  • Dexterity and Safety
  • Knowledge of materials
  • Technical Practices (theoretical precise, artistic)
  • Use of Measuring Instruments


In order to be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and application questionnaire, this position requires successful completion of additional assessments, including a panel resume review. These assessments measure the critical competencies listed above that are required to successfully perform the job.

Please submit 1) a copy of your most recent performance appraisal/evaluation and 2) a list of any awards (e.g. superior performance awards, special act or achievement awards, quality step increase, etc.) you received in the last 5 years. Any performance appraisal/evaluation and award documentation you provide will be forwarded to the selecting official. The selecting official will review this documentation and give it due weight consideration during the overall selection process.

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