EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- Airmen retiring from military service no longer must wait 180 days before accepting a federal civilian position within Major Range and Test Facility Bases thanks to a recent temporary authority enacted to help fill jobs that has lacked sufficiently qualified candidate pools.
Immediately, Air Force Test Center is able to appoint retired members of the Armed Forces without a 180-day waiting period for “all” positions that are at or below the GS-13 (or equivalent); which covers a broad spectrum of equivalent pay systems to include Wage Grade, General Schedule, and Acquisition Demo positions for Air Force Test Center positions located at MRTFBs. AFTC has over 30 locations including Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., Eglin AFB, Fla., Arnold AFB, Tenn., Holloman AFB, N.M., Robins AFB, Ga., Nellis AFB, Nev., and Hill AFB, Utah.
“As some of our experienced civilians retire, we lose critical knowledge and expertise and must replace current talent with entry-level experience. Hiring veterans with their experience saves on training, creates a more balanced workforce, and provides workers who often already have a security clearance,” said Ms. Theresa Houston, AFTC Directorate of Personnel program manager.
Section 1108 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021, as amended by section 1103 of the NDAA for FY 2022, for certain (“covered”) positions, waives application of 5 U.S.C. § 3326, which generally imposes a 180-day waiting period between the retirement of a Service member and appointment to a DoD civilian position.
This temporary authority expires January 1, 2024.
The waiting period has often been seen as a disadvantage to retirees who are interested in federal service, are not always willing to wait six months before finding other work. They often take their skillset to other companies before becoming eligible to work for the DOD.
AFTC is now able to recruit and appoint qualified persons immediately through Direct Hiring Authority for Major Range and Test Facilities Bases without applying competitive rating and ranking procedures. No assessment or announcement required to bypass the traditional recruitment job announcement process via USA Jobs.
Active-duty members may now apply for these positions even before their official retirement date and be appointed while still on terminal leave, before being discharged or released from active duty.
“Hiring retiring military members is key to our vision of shaping AFTC organizations of today to confront the challenges of tomorrow,” said Mr. Justin Anthony, AFTC Directorate of Personnel talent acquisition manager. “This temporary amendment allows AFTC to compete against the private sector for the extraordinary talent that our military members bring to our workforce.”
The AFTC Personnel Directorate has created an online registration for interested applicants to submit their resumes and other supporting documents: https://afcs.experience.crmforce.mil/s/events?eventId=a02t0000008fvdiAAA
These hard-to-fill positions include:
Engineers (all professional disciplines)
Test Pilots
Information Technology Specialists
Aircraft Survival and Flight Equipment Repairer
Air Traffic Control Specialist (Terminal)
Meteorologists
Non-Destructive Test Inspector
Aircraft Mechanic
Aircraft Avionics Mechanic
Electronic Measurement Equipment Mechanic
Aircraft Ordnance Systems Repair Inspector
Munitions Maintenance Mechanic
Composite/Plastic Fabricator
Welder (Aircraft)
Sheet Metal Worker (Aircraft)
Aircraft Engine Mechanic
Engineering Equipment Operator
High Voltage Electrician
Utility Systems Operator
Facility Operations
Emergency Management Specialist
Housing Management Specialist
Police Officers
Security Forces – Operations, Training, and Staff Positions
Firefighters
Fire Chief, Deputy Fire Chief, Assistant Fire Chief
Airfield Management
Budget Analyst
Logistics Management Specialist
Other positions not listed above are covered under this flexibility if owed by AFTC.
In addition, recent and future retirees are encouraged to visit the AFTC Job Board at https://www.aftc.af.mil/About-Us/Jobs/ for additional job listings. Jobs can be filtered by location, and the board also contains a search function for more filtered results.
For more information or assistance in the AFTC hiring process, please reach out to AFTC.Enterprise.Recruiting@us.af.mil.