Hi guys! I recently recruited a really great person. She was an EE for 20 years in the armed services and is now looking for a part time retirement job for extra cash. I told her how much I enjoy working for the PTO and she applied and was given an offer.

Two gripes I have with her situation:

  1. Despite having 20 years of experience as an EE, she was only offered GS-7 step 10.
  2. She was told she would be on probation for 2 years because she received a veterans preference during hiring.

My questions for the hive mind:

  1. Can she counter her offer and request to be given a chance at GS-9? Last time I checked, you need to be GS-11 to work part time and being brought on at GS-9 would make this easier for her.
  2. Can she still go to part time after a year if she is on probation? The PDF I got a hold of only says "1 year of service"; nothing about probationary status.

I just think she's really qualified and capable and feel like the office low balled and might even lose her because of the GS-7 offer and 2 years of probation. This wasn't a smart move because, as I understand it, we are already short on EE examiners.

Thanks for any insight.