Office Assistant 1 (NY HELPS)

NY HELPS: This title is part of the New York Hiring for Emergency Limited Placement Statewide Program (NY HELPS).

For the duration of the NY HELPS Program, this title may be filled via a non-competitive appointment, which means no examination is required, but all candidates must meet the minimum qualifications of the title for which they apply. At this time, agencies may recruit and hire employees by making temporary appointments. In May 2024, if a temporary NY HELPS employee is satisfactorily performing in the position, the appointment will be changed from temporary pending Civil Service Commission Action to permanent non-competitive, and the official probationary period will begin.

At a future date (within one year of permanent appointment), it is expected employees hired under NY HELPS will have their non-competitive employment status converted to competitive status, without having to compete in an examination. Employees will then be afforded all of the same rights and privileges of competitive class employees of New York State. While serving permanently in a NY HELPS title, employees may take part in any promotion examination for which they are qualified.

NON-COMPETITIVE QUALIFICATIONS:

There are no minimum education or experience requirements.

Preferred Qualifications: High School Diploma or equivalent.

Desired competencies:

• Customer service and a “people first” attitude– employees will be answering questions from recipients/providers/financial institutions via phone, email, mail and e-fax and initiate the mailing of documents to recipients/provider agencies;

• Clear communication skills, in particular good phone skills;

• Basic computer and math skills – employees will be entering data from calls into the SSP system and opening new SSP cases; reviewing forms for completeness; processing changes reported from various sources by updating client records and initiating the case actions calculating regular, manual and retroactive payments;

• Solid organizational skills;

• Ability to follow directions; and

• Empathy, reliability, adaptability, and the ability to work under pressure when dealing with difficult calls/work situations.

OR

55 b/c: This position is eligible for 55b/c appointment, and candidates with 55b/c eligibility are encouraged to apply. To be eligible for a 55b/c appointment, candidate must be currently enrolled in the Civil Service 55b/c program. Information about the 55b/c program can be found here: https://www.osc.ny.gov/jobs/55bc.

COMPETITIVE QUALIFICATIONS:

Eligible for a lateral transfer or eligible for transfer under Section 70.1 of the Civil Service Law by having one year of permanent competitive service in an appropriate title. Information regarding transfer eligibility is available on the Civil Service Career Mobility Office website at https://careermobilityoffice.cs.ny.gov/cmo/gotit/.

OR

Reachable on the appropriate eligible list in Albany.

These full-time Office Assistant 1 positions are located within Employment and Income Support's (EISP) State Supplement Program (SSP) Bureau. Duties may include but are not limited to the following:

• Answering telephones following SSP protocols;

• Entering data from calls into SSP system;

• Initiating the mailing of documents to recipients/provider agencies;

• Escalating issues to supervisor as needed;

• Directing recipients to internal or external resources as necessary (i.e., Social Security Administration, Medicaid, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program);

• Creating work items;

• Communicating with all co-workers (both verbally and written);

• Returning phone calls;

• Opening new SSP cases;

• Processing changes reported from various sources by updating client records and initiating the case actions;

• Calculating regular, manual and retroactive payments;

• Issuing all program related notices;

• Conducting re-determinations and initiating recoveries;

• Requesting information from recipients and responding to recipient requests;

• Entering and retrieving information from the SSP computer system;

• Answering questions from recipients/providers/financial institutions;

• Faxing, mailing, and emailing recipients & vendors; and

• Reviewing activity/exception reports.

Full-time, permanent, contingent permanent or temporary appointments will be made. If certified by Civil Service, mandatory reemployment list candidates must be considered first for appointment to this title. Candidates must be legally authorized to work in the United States.

Remarks:

• Candidates should reference posting 24050SNY when submitting your application.
• If submitting electronically, please reference posting 24050SNY as part of your subject line.
• If you are interested in applying to this position, please visit how to apply for applicant instructions.

Interested applicants should send an email with their resume and cover letter attached to jobpostings@otda.ny.gov and reference posting #24050SNY. DO NOT REFERENCE THE VACANCY ID NUMBER.

NYS OTDA seeks to promote a diverse workforce that is a representation of the various cultures, voices, backgrounds, ideas, and talents of the citizens and communities that we serve. We actively solicit and encourage applications from Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (“BIPOC”); LGBTQIA individuals; women; people with disabilities; and military veterans.