On March 14, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Memphis District held a Job Fair at the America Job Center, 3040 Walnut Grove Road, Memphis. The successful four hour event attracted approximately 50 potential candidates.
At the time of the event, the District had 31 open positions listed on USAJobs.gov. Though the event is over, job seekers can still search openings with the district on USAJobs.gov or by going to the district’s website (https://www.mvm.usace.army.mil/) and clicking on the “Jobs” link.
Three sessions of the district’s Career Seminar was offered at the Job Fair. The seminar gave job seekers an overview of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Memphis District missions, steps on navigating the USAJobs.gov website to apply for positions, and resume tips.
The seminar also sought to dispel two myths about working for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers: 1) you have to join the Army to work for the Corps, and 2) the Corps is only looking for engineers. Truth is you don’t have to be military or an engineer to work for the Corps. The Corps is primarily civilians and more than half its workforce is non-engineers.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the world’s largest public engineering organization, provides engineering solutions to customers worldwide. It has about 35,000 civilians working in every state and in dozens of countries around the world. Its employees work in diverse fields such as construction, real estate, contracting, engineering, project and program management, operations and maintenance, etc. A larger sample of its civilian occupations is at: https://www.usace.army.mil/Careers/
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Memphis District was recently named a “Best Place to Work in Federal Government” for a third consecutive year. The district employs a high performance team of about 475 team members who enjoy challenging and rewarding careers with a robust package of benefits and competitive pay.
The Corps offers a robust package of benefits to its employees:
• 10 paid Federal Holidays
• Annual Leave -- Our beginning employees earn nearly 3 weeks (13 days of annual leave)
• Sick Leave -- USACE employees earn 13 days of sick leave every year, with the ability to carry over existing sick leave to following years
• Medical Insurance -- Employees choose from a number of options to include Preferred Provider Organizations (PPO) and Health Maintenance Organizations (HMOs).
• Dental and Vision -- Our employees can use the Federal Employees Dental and Vision Insurance Program (FEDVIP).
• Flexible Spending Accounts -- Our employees may contribute a portion of their salaries on a pre-tax basis to pay for health or dependent care costs.
• Long Term Care Insurance -- USACE employees are eligible to purchase coverage for themselves and/or eligible families to provide financial relief should they require lengthy or lifelong assistance.
• Life Insurance -- Our employees are eligible for the Federal Employees Group Life Insurance. They may choose from the Basic Option and three forms of Optional Insurance.
• Retirement -- USACE employees are covered under the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS). Employees accrue a retirement benefit of 1% of their annual salary for every year of service.
• Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) -- A tax-deferred savings and investment plan with the same type of savings and tax benefits as 401(k) plans with private corporations. USACE matches your contributions on the first 5 percent of your pay.
• Alternate Work Schedules -- Our employees may fulfill their 80-hour biweekly work schedule in a number of ways.
• Telework -- Eligible employees may arrange to work from home when their work can be performed away from the office.
• Working Overseas -- USACE employees are eligible for exciting and rewarding assignments in Europe, the Middle East and the Far East.
• Advanced Education -- USACE employees may compete for paid programs to finish their degree or to receive their Master's degree from the Army War College or National Defense University.
The Corps follows the standard US Government pay system that offers competitive salaries from a range of experience levels:
GS-5: $33,394--$43,414
GS-7: $41,364--$53,773
GS-9: $50,598--$65,778
GS-11: $61,218--$79,586
GS-12: $73,375--$95,388
GS-13: $87,252--$113,428
Note: Above salary ranges are based on the 2019 General Schedule salary table for the "Rest of U.S."