New York State Department of Civil Service Announces Examinations Open to All Qualified Individuals

Weights & Measures Specialist Trainee 1

Appointees who work in the five boroughs of New York City or in Nassau, Suffolk, Rockland, or Westchester Counties will receive an additional $3,026 annual downstate adjustment. Appointees who work in Dutchess, Orange, or Putnam Counties will receive an additional $1,513 annual mid-Hudson adjustment.

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Minimum Qualifications

On or before November 1, 2008, you must have 120 college semester hours which must include at least 24 semester credit hours in specialized courses related to: physical,* electronic,** or mathematics*** sciences. The Weights and Measures Specialist Trainee 1 position requires completion of a two-year traineeship. After successful completion of the first year of the traineeship appointees will be advanced without further examination to the Trainee 2 level, SG-14 (beginning salary of $38,434). Successful completion of the second year of the traineeship will result in permanent advancement without further examination to the Weights and Measures Specialist 1, SG-18 (beginning salary $47,860). Candidates may be eligible for appointment directly to Trainee 2.+

* Physical sciences include chemistry (inorganic chemistry, organic chemistry, biochemistry), earth sciences (meteorology, astronomy, geology), and physics.

** Electronic sciences is a branch of physics that deals with the emission, behavior, and effects of electrons (in tubes and transistors) and with electronic devices. Coursework in electricity, a science that deals with the laws of electricity, is NOT qualifying.

*** Mathematics includes coursework in accounting, economics, etc., provided the primary focus of the course is the manipulation of numbers.

+ Advanced placement is possible with education/experience: If you meet the minimum qualifications and have an additional year of qualifying experience as described below you may be appointed to Weights and Measures Specialist Trainee 2. This will reduce the traineeship time by one year. You must inform the hiring agency of this additional experience at the time of interview.

IMPORTANT! You MUST submit a transcript of qualifying courses with your application.

Substitution: 60 college credits, at the rate of one year of experience equaling 30 semester credit hours.

Examples of Qualifying Experience Include: Employment in which the primary functions/responsibilities include any one of the following:

• Enforcing weights and measures laws and regulations and inspecting and testing of devices and packaged commodities.
• Inspecting, testing, and repairing commercial weighing or measuring devices and/or industrial weighing or measuring devices with appropriate specifications and tolerances.
• Inspecting and testing both quality and quantity of packaged or manufactured goods using precision scales/balances and other precision measuring equipment, performing data reductions, and assessing compliance of the results with appropriate specifications and tolerances.
• Conducting chemical or physical analyses using precision scales/balances and other precision measuring equipment, performing data reduction, and assessing compliance of results with the appropriate specifications and tolerances.

Notes

1. Your degree or college credit must have been awarded by a regionally accredited college or university or one recognized by the NYS Education Department as following acceptable educational practices. If your degree or college credit was awarded by an educational institution outside the United States and its territories, you must provide independent verification of equivalency. You can write to the Examination Information Desk of the NYS Department of Civil Service for a list of acceptable companies who provide this service. You must pay the required evaluation fee. If you are applying on the Internet, you must mail the independent verification of equivalency to the NYS Department of Civil Service, Alfred E. Smith State Office Building, Albany, New York 12239. Attention: S1VXR.
2. You may file for these examinations by completing one OC-APP application form or applying on the Internet. Unless you are eligible for a fee waiver, the indicated processing fee must be submitted for each examination listed on your application.
3. Travel Requirements: Appointment to certain positions requires extensive travel within a designated area of assignment. Appointees to these positions may be required to operate a motor vehicle or otherwise demonstrate their capacity to meet the transportation needs of the job. If the position requires that you operate a motor vehicle, you must possess a driver's license valid in New York State at the time of appointment and continuously thereafter. Field work and travel expenses are reimbursed on a fixed schedule.
4. If you expect to meet the educational requirements by January 31, 2009, you can be admitted to the written test but you cannot be considered for appointment until you submit proof of successful completion of the educational requirements to the New York State Department of Civil Service.
5. Physical/Medical Requirements: Your physical and medical condition will be evaluated to ensure that you are able to satisfactorily perform the duties of this position with or without reasonable accommodation. You will be tested for satisfactory physical strength and coordination. To obtain a complete statement of the physical and medical standards write to the Medical Review Unit, NYS Department of Civil Service, 55 Mohawk St, Suite 201, Cohoes, NY 12047. A medical examination will be required prior to appointment, and you are responsible for payment of the clinical laboratory test fee. Appointees to this position may be required to undergo periodic medical examinations to reassess their ability to perform the essential duties of position. Eligibles will be called to the physical/medical screening in score order as needed to fill existing and anticipated vacancies.
6. Appropriate part-time and volunteer experience, which can be verified, will be accepted on a prorated basis.
7. New York State residence is not required.

The Positions

These positions exist in the Bureau of Weights and Measures of the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets. At present, there are vacancies at various locations throughout the State.

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Duties

As a Weights and Measures Specialist Trainee 1, you would be in a two-year formal training program. The training provides the experience necessary to perform inspections and tests of commercial weighing and measuring devices, verify accuracy of packaged commodities, conduct investigations and otherwise regulate commercial transactions, sample petroleum products for quality, and supervise and train municipal officials performing similar tasks at the local level. Upon successful completion of the two-year training program, you would be advanced to Weights and Measures Specialist 1, SG-18, without further examination.

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Subject of Examination

There will be a written test which you must pass in order to be considered for appointment. The written test is designed to test for knowledge, skills, and/or abilities in such areas as:

1. Preparing written material - These questions test for the ability to present information clearly and accurately and to organize paragraphs logically and comprehensibly. For some questions, you will be given information in two or three sentences followed by four restatements of the information. You must then choose the best version. For other questions, you will be given paragraphs with their sentences out of order and then asked to choose from four suggestions the best order for the sentences.
2. Arithmetic reasoning - These questions test your ability to solve an arithmetic problem presented in sentence or short paragraph form You must read the problem, understand the situation presented, decide what must be done to solve it, and apply the appropriate arithmetic operation(s) in the appropriate order, in order to determine the correct answer. Knowledge of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division will be necessary. Questions may also involve the use of percents, decimals, and fractions.
3. Inspection and interviewing techniques - These questions test your ability to select the proper course of action in situations which might occur during routine inspections. Question topics may cover, but will not be limited to, such areas as interviewing, gathering information and evidence, maintaining proper attitude, and handling irregularities and violations with integrity and sound judgment. Some questions may be in a situational format while others may deal with the proper principles and practices of inspection.
4. Determining the accuracy of scales - These questions are designed to test a candidate's ability to determine if weighing scales are reading accurately and, if not, the extent of error associated with each scale. The candidate is shown a test load and given the weights of single units in the load and must calculate the total weight of the test load. The candidate is also shown two separate scale readings and must determine if either or both readings are fast or slow and by how much. Knowledge of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division will be necessary. Specific knowledge of weights and scales is not required.
5. Weights and measures - These questions are designed to test a candidate's knowledge of the various types of weighing and measuring systems commonly used throughout business and industry. The questions will deal with, but not necessarily limited to, such areas as: typical quantities associated with the Metric and English weights and measures systems; types of linear and liquid measuring devices in common use; various types of weighing devices in common use; and basic construction and operation of the various types of weighing and measuring devices in common use.
6. Organizing data into tables and records - These questions test for the ability to combine and manipulate information into a specified format. You will be given numerical data in tabular and/or narrative form, and you must compile it into tables or records. Ability to add and subtract is required. All information necessary to answer the questions is given. No knowledge of specific bookkeeping, account-keeping, or recordkeeping systems is required.

Your final score must be 70 or higher in order to pass. Rank on the eligible list will be determined after adding any wartime veterans' and Civil Service Law Section 85-a credits to your final passing score.

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How To Apply

Additional Information

New York State is an Equal Opportunity Employer

It is the policy of the State of New York to provide for and promote equal opportunity in employment, compensation and other terms and conditions of employment without discrimination on the basis of age, race, color, religion, disability, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, marital status, or arrest and/or criminal conviction record unless based upon a bona fide occupational qualification or other exception.

Appointment to many positions in State government require candidates to undergo an investigative screening. This may include a thorough character investigation, a Federal Bureau of Investigation Criminal Record History Check, a Child Abuse Registry clearance, or other similar procedures. Candidates may be fingerprinted and may be required to pay any necessary fees for that procedure. Depending on the nature of the job, the criminal convictions discovered, or any falsified or omitted information revealed, the investigative findings may bar appointment or result in removal after appointment.

Eligibility for Employment

You must be legally eligible to work in the United States at the time of appointment and throughout your employment with New York State. If appointed, you must produce documents that establish your identity and eligibility to work in the United States, as required by the federal Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986, and the Immigration and Nationality Act.

Religious Accommodation

Most written tests are held on Saturdays. If you cannot take the test on the announced test date, due to a conflict with a religious observance or practice, check the box under “Religious Accommodation.” We will make arrangements for you to take the test on a different date (usually the following day).

Reasonable Accommodations in Testing

In addition, it is the policy of the Department of Civil Service, in accordance with the New York State Human Rights Law and the Americans with Disabilities Act, to provide qualified persons with disabilities equal employment opportunity and equal opportunity to participate in and receive the benefits, services, programs, and activities of the Department. It is the policy of the Department to provide such persons reasonable accommodations and reasonable modifications as are necessary to enjoy equal opportunity. Persons with disabilities who require an accommodation to participate in an examination must note this on their applications. Further information is available from the Special Arrangements Unit of the Department of Civil Service at 518-457-2487 [press 2, then press 2] in the Albany area, toll free at 1-877-697-5627 [press 2, then press 2], or via TDD (telecommunications device for the deaf) at 518-457-8480.

Admission to Examination

Notice to appear for the test may be conditional as review of applications may not be made until after the test. If you have not received your notice to appear for the written test three days before the date of the test, call 518-474-6470 in the Albany area or toll free at 1-877-697-5627 [press 2, then press 1].

Multiple Examinations Scheduled for the Same Day

With the exception of written tests announced by New York City, if you have applied to take a written test announced by a local jurisdiction (county, town, city) scheduled to be held on the same test date as this written test, you must call 518-474-6470 in the Albany area or toll free at 1-877-697-5627 [press 2, then press 1], no later than two weeks before the test date, to make arrangements for taking all tests at one test site. All tests will be held at the state examination center.

S1/TA1 VXR-vla
Issued: 8/15/08

This announcement is subject to amendment or cancellation without notice. Do not copy it, or post it to any other site, but link to it instead.

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