LACKLAND AIR FORCE BASE, Texas –
Two units in the 802nd Force Support Squadron, the Airman and Family Readiness Center and the Civilian Personnel Section, have joined together to provide resources for educating current Air Force civilian employees on the new single staffing program.
Beginning Nov. 15, civilian employees will apply for vacant internal and external positions using the federal government website USAJOBS. To search for vacant positions, employees can use a recently launched Air Force website, www.afciviliancareers.com, or www.usajobs.com. The process now requires applicants to include a resume.
To assist Lackland's Civilian Personnel Section with the changeover, AFRC is offering eight classes in basic resume writing during November and December. The first class was held this week and the next class is Wednesday, 5-7 p.m., at the AFRC, Bldg. 1249.
AFRC will hold more classes during the next seven weeks on different days and times to reach cross sections of the base population interested in the class.
"Our part is to support civilian personnel because this is the first time a lot of people are going to have to develop a resume as an internal employee," said Sharon Witter, AFRC chief. "We understand it's difficult to write a resume and some people may not have done it before. We're offering these extra basic resume writing classes to those who may want to learn more and create a better resume."
In addition to the resume writing classes, civilian personnel sponsored five town hall meetings last week on the new single staffing tool. Additional town halls for organizations to inform even more Lackland employees will depend on demand.
Beverly Diaz, Civilian Personnel Section chief, said civilian employees should be proactive with the new program in creating or updating their resumes at usajobs.com.
"We are encouraging candidates to establish an account on usajobs.com and pre-position their resumes so they will be ready if a job they are looking for is posted," Ms. Diaz said.
"(With the town halls and basic resume writing classes) we are trying to provide resources for applicants to be successful in preparation for a future job search."
Ms. Diaz said the normal timeframe for job announcements at Lackland is five days. Creating an account and resume at usajobs.com ahead of time, she said, would help avoid missing an announcement deadline.
"It's very important to start positioning a resume now because if a person decides to apply for a job and sees the announcement on the third day, they might lose out," Ms. Diaz said. "By the time an account and resume are created, the announcement may have closed."
Ms. Diaz also said that the www.afciviliancareers.com website already links to www.usajobs.com for tutorials with step-by-step instructions. Most San Antonio-area Workforce Solutions Alamo centers also have certified USAJOBS personnel on site for assistance off base.
"It's a big change but I think it will be a welcome change," she said. "It will be one central process, not one internal way and one external way."
Ms. Witter said AFRC stands ready to provide the necessary tools to civilian employees in the converting to the new program.
"We'll saturate the basic resume writing class for the next two months," she said. "If these classes fill up, we may do more until the demands are met."
For information about upcoming basic resume writing classes, call the AFRC at 671-3722.