Entering a Vacancy Noticeagency User Manual / Task Card Vacancy Notice

Entering a Vacancy NoticeAgency User Manual / Task Card – Vacancy Notice

Purpose

This Task Card guides APSjobs users through the process of notifying an employment vacancy notice in the Gazette.

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Process

The process for entering a vacancy notice is detailed below.

Step 1 – Work Tray

Once logged into the APSjobs system your work tray will be displayed. Select ‘Enter new Vacancies’ from the menu list.

Once the ‘Add New Vacancies’ option has been selected the ‘APSjobs Employment Vacancy Notification Wizard’ will automatically be activated.

The Wizard is divided into 6 separate sections. After completing the details on the first screen the user can save and close the vacancy at the end of each section.

Throughout the Wizard all mandatory fields within the system are highlighted in bold.

Step 2 – Agency Details

This stage of the Wizard relates to Agency Details as depicted in the screen capture below.

Field 1 - New notice in

This field requires the user to select a publication date for the employment vacancy. A list of possible publication dates can be selected from the drop down list. *Please note that employment vacancies can only be lodged in the daily editions of the Gazette*.

Field 2 – Department/agency:

This field displays the Agency that is advertising the vacancy.

In cases where the user is the administrator for only one agency this field will be automatically populated by the system.

In cases where the user has administration access for more than one agency they will have to select the relevant agency from the drop down list.

Field 3 - Classification Details:

This field requires the user to select the relevant APS classification for the vacancy.

The user should take care to select the correct APS classification for the vacancy.

More than one classification can be selected for each vacancy.

Field 4 Redeployment Register / Non APS positionconfirmation:

This field requires the user to either confirm that any relevant clients from the APS Redeployment Register have been considered for the position, or the occupant of the position will not be employed under the Public Service Act 1999.

In order to save this information and progress to the next section of the wizard the user should click on the ‘Next’ button at the bottom of the screen.

Step 3 – Position Details

This stage of the Wizard relates to Position Details as depicted in the screen capture below.

Field 1 – Position Location

This field requires the user to enter information regarding what Division/Branch/Section of the agency the vacancy is in. Although not mandatory, this information can assist applicants in making an assessment of their interest in and suitability for the vacancy.

This field also details the physical location(s) of the vacancy or vacancies. To enter this information the user enters a postcode and then selects the ‘Verify’ button. After this the user can select the relevant suburb from the drop down list. Users can select up to 6 locations for each vacancy. This is an amendment to the previous process when location details were entered by free text.

Field 2 – Position Details

This field requires the user to enter the following information for the vacancy:

Position title: For example ‘Customer Service Team Leader’ or ‘Assistant Director – Finance’
Salary Range: Salary ranges can either be entered or agencies can set upthe APSjobs to pre-populatesalary information
Job Category: The relevant Job Category can be selected from the drop down list
Position Reference: The user can select any relevant options from the drop down list
Position Number: Agencies can enter agency reference number for the vacancy in this field
Working arrangements: In this field the user can indicate if the position is being filled on a full or part time basis. Users can select both the full and part time boxes.
Employment Status: In this field the user can indicate if the position is being filled on an ongoing or non-ongoing basis. Users can select both the ongoing and non-ongoing boxes.

Field 3 – Position Initiatives and Programs

This field relates to information that may relate to the vacancy including:

APS employees only: If an agency head has approved a vacancy to be advertised open only to APS employees they must check this box. In instances where a vacancy is open only to APS employees only the agency is required to be able to produce evidence of the agency heads approval upon request.
Identified Indigenous position: Identified positions are positions with specific selection criteria that signify that the role has a strong involvement in issues relating to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. If an agency wishes to advertise a vacancy as an identified position this box must be selected.
Special Measure opportunity: Special Measures enable agency heads to put in place special measures to identify particular opportunities as open only to either Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander applicants or applicants with disability. When a vacancy is to be filled using Special Measures provisions this box must be checked.
Graduate Program: Many agencies run tailored programs for graduates. Selecting this box will also ensure that the vacancy is advertised on the APSjobs Graduate Portal.
Independent Selection Advisory Committee (ISAC): An ISAC is an independent committee that makes recommendations to agencies about the suitability of candidates in staff recruitment exercises. An ISAC can be used to fill vacancies at the job classification levels of APS 2 to 6 (or job titles at these levels). If the agency accepts the recommendations of the ISAC, any resulting promotions are not subject to the promotion review procedures in the Public Service Regulations. If an agency intends using an ISAC to assess applicants for a vacancy this box should be selected.
RecruitAbility: The RecruitAbility scheme facilitates the progression of applicants with disability to further assessment in APS recruitment exercises, such as interview, when they opt into the scheme and meet the minimum requirements for the position. The intent of the scheme is to better support the APS employment of people with disability. If the RecruitAbility scheme is being used as part of the assessment process for the vacancy this box should be selected.

Users should note that if they select the APS employees only, Special Measure opportunity, or Identified Indigenous position tick boxes some text relating to these provisions will automatically populate the ‘Eligibility’ field in the ‘Duties’ screen as described in Step 4.

Selecting these fields appropriately allows APSjobs to gather statistics and information to enable more accurate reporting on these initiatives and programs.

At the completion of this stage users can save incomplete vacancy notices as drafts and revisit the notice at a later time without having to re-enter these details. The saved notice will be available through the ‘My Saved Notices’ option in the users Work Tray.

To progress to the next section of the wizard the user should click on the ‘Next’ button at the bottom of the screen.

Step 4 - Duties

This stage of the Wizard relates to the Duties of the vacancy as depicted in the screen capture below.

Field 1 – Duties

This field requires the user to enter the duties of the position. The duties should be described in sufficient detail to provide potential applicants with sufficient information so they can make a considered decision as to whether they believe they have the necessary skills and experience to apply for the vacancy.

Field 2 – Eligibility

As described previously if the user has previously indicated that the vacancy is an APS employees only, Identified Indigenous position, or Special Measure opportunity then text relating to these provisions will automatically be populated in this field.

The user may also detail any other eligibility requirements (such as educational qualifications) in this field.

Field 3 – Notes

In this field the user can note any other information that is relevant to the vacancy. Examples of information that may be included in this field is information regarding an impending rise in salary rates or a statement encouraging Indigenous applicants and applicants with disability to apply.

To progress to the next section of the wizard the user should click on the ‘Next’ button at the bottom of the screen.

Step 5 – Notice Details

This stage of the Wizard relates to the notice Details of the vacancy as depicted in the screen capture below.

Field 1 – Notice Details

Closing Date: In this field the user enters the closing date for the vacancy. The default closing period is 14 calendar days. Other durations can be selected by the user but a closing date of less than 7 days cannot be selected unless the closing date has previously been approved by the relevant agency head. In circumstances where a closing date of less than 7 days has been approved a short explanatory statement should be included in the ‘Closing date reason’ field. In instances where a vacancy has a closing date of less than 7 days the agency is required to be able to produce evidence of the agency heads approval upon request.

Fields 2, 3 and 4 – Contact Officer and Selection Criteria details

In these fields the user can enter the details for the relevant agency contacts. When an agency nominates a contact officer care should be taken to ensure that the contact is available and can answer questions regarding the vacancy.

Many agencies do not nominate a separate point of contact for selection criteria details and make these documents available through their e-recruitment system.

Field 5 – Include banner/logo

If an agency has provided their banner to APSjobs then this banner will appear on the notice if the check box is selected. If the agency has not provided a banner this option is not available.

Fields 6 and 7 – Agency information link and Apply online link

In these fields the agency provides details to the relevant links to their website. The Apply online link is where potential applicants are directed when they click on the ‘Agency Information’ the ‘Apply Online’ buttons in the published vacancy.

These fields can be set up to be pre populated.

Field 8 – Application Postal Address

This field is not always used but postal information can be entered here in case applications cannot be submitted through the e-recruitment system or if a potential applicant cannot submit their application online.

Field 9 – Australian JobSearch

JobSearch is an online jobs website funded by the Government as a free service to assist job seekers find employment and assist in connecting employers with quality staff. When notifying a vacancy opportunity on APSjobs the system has an automatic default to publish the vacancy on the JobSearch website as well as on APSjobs. Users can deselect this box if they do not want the vacancy published on the JobSearch website.

Field 10 – Editorial Instructions

Notes placed in this field are visible to agency registered users and System Administrators but are not part of the published notice. This field can be used to make any notes pertaining to the vacancy. For example if a closing date of less than 7 days had been approved this could be noted here.

At the completion of this stage users can save incomplete vacancy notices as drafts and revisit the notice at a later time without having to re-enter these details.

To progress to the next section of the wizard the user should click on the ‘Save as Draft & Next’ button at the bottom of the screen.

Step 6 – Review

This stage of the Wizard relates to reviewing the details of a draft vacancy notice as depicted in the screen capture below.

This screen allows the user to view the notice as it will appear when published and identify any changes they might want to make to the notice.

If the user submitting the notification is satisfied the draft notice is ready for publication the user can progress to submitting the notice for approval by clicking on the ‘Next’ button at the bottom of the screen.

If the user wishes to make changes to the notice they can click on the ‘Previous’ button and amend the content of the notice as required.

Step 6 – Submit

This stage of the Wizard relates to submitting the draft notice to another APSjobs user within the agency for approval.

The process for the submitting and approving a notice can be divided into 2 roles – the user and the approver.

The user

In this screen the user is prompted to select another user from within their agency to approve the notice in the ‘Registered user’ field. A list of registered users is available from the drop down list.

After an approver has been selected the user can forward the notice to the approver for consideration by selecting the ‘Submit’ button at the bottom of the screen.

Submitting the Employment Vacancy Notice for approval

The approver

It is the approver’s responsibility to proof read the notice and approve it for publication.

The approver can be any other registered APSjobs user within the same agency as the user that drafted the notice. They do not need to be a higher classification than the other user.

When a registered user is sent a draft notice to approve they will automatically be sent the below e-mail. They will also receive a notification in their APSjobs Work Tray.

Approval of Employment Vacancy notice

Subject: Approval review for <Notice ID> - <Notice type>

Dear <Firstname

Notice <Notice ID> - <Notice type> has been allocated to you for approval by <User>

Please logon to your APSjobs account and action this notice.

This is done via the My Action Items on the Work Tray menu.

The process requires you to review the notice and either approve it for publication or return it to <User> for further action.

If you have forgotten your password, the Login page has a Forgotten Password function which will send you a new password.

Thank You.

APSjobs Support
Email:
URL:

The nominated approver will be able to see the draft notice in APSjobs as shown below:

If the approver is satisfied that the notice is ready for publication they can select the ‘Approve’ button at the bottom of the screen.

This approves the notice for publication. Approvers should be aware that no further amendments can be made to the notice after it has been approved.

If the Approver identifies amendments or further information they want included in the notice they can make a note of these in the ‘Editorial Instructions’ field. These comments will be forwarded to the user when the notice is rejected.

In the case of a rejected notice the original user can amend the notice details and then resubmit the notice to the Approver for reconsideration.