Office Specialist

The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality strives to build and sustain an inclusive environment that embraces and values diversity. Employees at all levels of the agency work together to foster fairness, equity, inclusion, and belonging. We are an equal opportunity employer and do not discriminate based on race, color, national origin, ethnicity, veteran, gender, sexual orientation, religion, age, or physical or mental disability. Candidates from diverse backgrounds are encouraged to apply. We are most interested in finding the best candidate for the job, and that candidate may not meet every one of our listed preferred qualifications. Lived experience may count towards the preferred qualification. If you are excited about this position, we encourage you to apply. If you are unsure as to whether or not you meet the qualifications of this position, please contact us to discuss your application.

Are you passionate about preserving, enhancing, and protecting Oregon’s environment? If so, please consider a career with the State of Oregon at the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). At DEQ, employees have the opportunity to work with a dynamic and supportive team of mission-focused individuals tasked with maintaining, restoring, and enhancing the quality of Oregon’s air, land, and water. Here is a video about DEQ: https://youtu.be/E-Cs6M9AAlU

The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality has a full-time opportunity for an Office Specialist (Office Specialist 2) in Bend – Deschutes County, Oregon. This position is limited duration through June 30, 2023, however, it may be extended or made permanent depending on Budget and Legislature approval.

Please consider joining an innovative team, and work to advance our agency’s mission to protect and improve Oregon’s environmental quality. The regional offices are responsible for the implementation of Water Quality, Air Quality, Waste Management, and Cleanup Programs. This includes compliance and inspection of regulated entities; enforcement of permit requirements and administrative rules; issuance of air, water, solid and hazardous waste permits; investigation of complaints; issuance of subsurface permits in counties; response to spills or other incidents with environmental impacts; and direct contact and liaison with other governmental entities, industries and the public.  There are three regions broken into the Northwest, Western, and Eastern Regions.  This position is currently located in DEQ’s eastern region office in Bend.

Click here to view a map of all of the DEQ offices.

What you will do!

You will provide administrative and clerical support and project assistance to Land, Air and Water programs in the Bend office. In this role, you will help to process public records requests and work closely with citizens, local jurisdictions, regulated entities, other agencies, and special interest groups to provide basic technical assistance and information of a specific nature to address inquiries and complaints. You will also provide project assistance primarily to Land Quality Programs (Cleanup, LUST, Emergency Response (Spills), and Hazardous Waste), including utilizing databases (YDO, LUST, UST, Facility Profiler, ECSI) to assist customers and DEQ staff with inquiries, file reviews and requests. You will enter data and maintain the YDO, ECSI, LUST and Spill (Ops Center) site databases, and edit, enter data, and maintain site info in the WebDocs system.

You will also provide office support to the Bend office through purchasing of office supplies, assisting staff with travel and registration arrangements, ensuring the office equipment and vehicles are maintained and providing backup to the front desk reception position.  You will also be a part of an Eastern Region administrative team that provides region-wide support for daily work as well as special projects.

What’s in it for you!

The opportunity to work in a productive and creative environment where no two days are ever the same! We offer a competitive benefits package that offers comprehensive medical, dental, and vision plans for the employee and their qualified family members, as well as paid sick leave, vacation leave, personal leave, and 11 paid holidays a year. In addition, we offer membership in the Public Employees Retirement System (PERS), and you have the opportunity to potentially receive loan forgiveness under the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program (PSLF). If you are passionate about Oregon’s environment, apply today!

This is a full-time, AFSCME represented position.

This recruitment may be used to fill future vacancies.

What are we looking for?

Minimum Qualifications: 2 years of general clerical experience, 1 year of which included typing, word processing, or other experience generating documents, OR an Associate’s degree.

Candidates who are most competitive will also reflect the following:

• Familiarity with Microsoft 365 and Office products: Word, Excel, Outlook, OneNote, Teams, and Access.
• Familiarity with business connectivity software such as Microsoft Teams, Zoom or other similar software.
• Experience using standard office equipment such as desktop and laptop computers, printers, copiers, scanners, video equipment, etc.
• Experience with databases, including entering data, running reports, and maintaining data integrity; familiarity with various DEQ Databases such as YDO, JIRA, etc.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, as well as interpersonal skills.
• Demonstrated customer service skills; ability to act professionally and courteously with internal and external individuals, including coworkers, managers, other staff, and members of the public in-person, via e-mail, and via phone.
• Strong organizational and time management skills with an ability to switch priorities or projects seamlessly; high aptitude for learning new things and an ability to pay attention to detail.
• Experience with records management; experience maintaining electronic and hard-copy files; experience using software for records management.
• Ability to be resourceful and take initiative.
• Experience researching, analyzing, and interpreting data, laws, policies, and procedures, and providing guidance on them to the general public.
• Excellent teamwork skills

Working Conditions:

Work is primarily in an office setting. Work in a fast-paced work environment with multiple demands on time.  This position involves limited travel by car (average one-two days per month) to attend statewide and region-specific staff meetings and trainings or to assist staff in other offices. Occasional overnight travel and evening work required. Must be able to lift boxes up to 25 pounds.

How to Apply:

(complete the application in full)

• Internal Applicants (current State of Oregon employees): Apply through your employee Workday account.  View this job aid for assistance.
• External Applicants Click on the “Apply” button and submit your application. Click this link for the External Candidate job aid, and view this video for additional information.

Helpful Tips:

• Be sure to attach a resume and cover letter.
• Allow yourself plenty of time to complete and submit the application, resume, and cover letter.
• Workday will timeout after 15 minutes of inactivity.
• This posting closes at 11:59 PM on the close date listed.
• Please save a copy of the job announcement for your reference, as it may not be available for you to view after the job posting closes.
• Be sure to check both your email and Workday account for updates regarding this recruitment.
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Please Note: In addition to your related work experience and education, DEQ will use the desired attributes and minimum qualifications above, under the “What are we looking for?” section to determine whom to interview. Please make sure your attributes and minimum qualifications are clearly demonstrated in your application material.

Veterans Information:

DEQ provides veterans’ preference points to all eligible veterans. For more information on veterans’ preference, please visit Veterans Resources, or call the Oregon Department of Veterans’ Affairs at: 1-800-692-9666. For privacy reasons, please do not attach veterans’ preference documents when initially applying. You will be asked to submit those at a later time.

Pay Equity:

As an employer, the State of Oregon complies with HB 2005, the Pay Equity Bill. We do not discriminate on the basis of protected class in the payment of wages, and we do not screen applicants on the basis of their current or past compensation. Please visit http://www.oregon.gov/das/hr/pages/equity.aspx for more information. Please note: the salary listed is the non-PERS qualifying salary range. If the successful candidate is PERS qualifying, the salary range will reflect an additional 6.95% (6% goes to PERS and .95% covers payroll taxes). Please review the Classification and Compensation page for more details.

Work Authorization:

DEQ does not offer visa sponsorships. On the first day of employment, all hires will be required to complete the US Department of Homeland Security’s Form I-9, confirming authorization to work in the United States. In addition, hires will have three business days from their first day of employment to present documents that establish employment authorization and identity. DEQ is an E-Verify employer and will use E-Verify to confirm that hires are authorized to work in the United States.

Questions/Need Help?

If you have questions about the recruitment or need assistance to participate in the application process, please contact Grecia Lora Motz , Human Resources Analyst, at grecia.loramotz@deq.oregon.gov or (503) 863-0621. TTY users: please use the Oregon Telecommunications Relay Service at 1-800-735-2900.

Are you interested in an Informational Interview with DEQ to learn more about working at DEQ, how current DEQ employees got to where they are today, and what opportunities there may be for you at DEQ? Please go here and complete the form: https://www.oregon.gov/deq/about-us/Pages/humanresources.aspx. Please note that informational interviews are not tied to an open recruitment. If you complete the form above, you will be put in the queue to have an informational interview with a Hiring Manager from our Informational Interview Registry.