Recruitment of Temporary Agents

THE COMMUNITY FISHERIES CONTROL AGENCY - CFCA - IS A EUROPEAN UNION BODY ESTABLISHED IN 2005 TO ORGANISE OPERATIONAL COORDINATION OF FISHERIES CONTROL AND INSPECTION ACTIVITIES BY THE MEMBER STATES AND TO ASSIST THEM TO COOPERATE SO AS TO COMPLY WITH THE RULES OF THE COMMON FISHERIES POLICY IN ORDER TO ENSURE ITS EFFECTIVE AND UNIFORM APPLICATION.

The Community Fisheries Control Agency is organising selection procedures with a view to drawing up reserve lists for the following positions:

FISH-CFCA-TA-AD9-0711: HEAD OF PROGRAMMES FOR OPERATIONAL COORDINATION

FISH-CFCA-TA-AD7/AD8-0712: DESK MANAGER FOR NORTH ATLANTIC WATERS

FISH-CFCA-TA-AD7/AD8-0714: ASSESSMENT COORDINATOR FOR NETWORKS

FISH-CFCA-TA-AST7/AST8-0715: PROJECT OFFICER ON COORDINATION OF TRAINING

The Agency will welcome applications from highly motivated candidates to participate in the development of CFCA.

1. Conditions of employment

The successful applicants will be appointed as Temporary Staff members of CFCA, according to the provisions of Article 2 (a), title I of the Conditions of Employment of other servants of the European Communities (CEOS).

The successful candidates will be recruited in grades mentioned in the titles of offered positions. When a career bracket is mentioned, the recruitment grade will be fixed depending of professional experience.

The initial duration of the contract is of three years, with possibility of renewal.

The place of employment is Brussels, Belgium, where the temporary seat of CFCA is situated. As decided by the European Council on 13 December 2003, the official seat of the Agency is in Vigo, Spain, where CFCA will be relocated at a date which is to be fixed.

Applicants are informed that Staff members of CFCA will not be entitled to any additional indemnities than those already foreseen by the CEOS when the relocation in Vigo will take place.

2. General conditions for applications

Candidates may apply only where meeting the following criteria for consideration of their application:

A. Common conditions to all positions

• You must be a national of one of the Member States of the European Union or of Iceland or Norway.
• You must be entitled to your full rights as a citizen.
• You must have fulfilled the obligations imposed on you by the laws concerning military service.
• You must meet the character requirements relating to the position you apply for.
• You must submit a completed application for each post applied for.
• You will be invited, if selected for an interview, to sign and date a declaration that information provided in the application documents is true and complete.

Candidates may apply in any of the official languages of the European Community, but it would be helpful to apply in English in order to facilitate the selection process, when the Agency follows a practise of using English as working language.

However candidates are also requested to state their educational qualifications and positions held in the language of origin.

The Agency is an equal opportunity employer and accepts applications without discrimination on the grounds of age, race, political and/or religious beliefs, sex or sexual orientation, marital and/or family status and regardless any kind of disability.

If you are invited to an interview, you will be asked to submit supporting documents to prove the information provided in your application.

B. Submission of applications

Each application shall contain the following documents:

• A detailed curriculum vitae in European format (that can be obtained at the following address
  http://europass.cedefop.eu.int/europass/home/vernav/Europass+Documents/ Europass+CV//navigate.action,
• A duly completed and signed declaration of honour ( ~87 Kb),
• A motivation letter of 2 pages maximum including a clear mention of the post applied for and of your address for correspondence and for invitation to interview

These three documents should be sent by electronic mail only to:
cfca-vacancies-ta@ec.europa.eu

Please, note that only complete applications containing the above mentioned documents and information required will be taken into account.

Deadline for sending your application is Friday 31 August 2007.

3. Selection procedure

A. Selection

A selection board is set up for each selection procedure. The principle of confidentiality, which states that the proceedings of the selection board must be secret, shall apply. It works in two ways: first, it imposes obligations to ensure equal treatment for candidates; and second, it seeks to protect the selection board to ensure that its decisions are totally impartial.

The selection board adheres strictly to the conditions of admissions laid down in the publication notice when deciding whether of not candidates are to be admitted. Candidates admitted to a previous selection procedure will not be automatically eligible.

Candidates are strictly forbidden to make any contact with the members of the selection board, either directly or indirectly. Any infringement of this rule will lead to disqualification from the selection procedure.

Should the selection board discover at any stage in the procedure that the candidate does not meet one or more of the general or special conditions for admission to the selection procedure or that the information on the application form does not correspond with the supporting documents, the candidate will be disqualified.

The selection board decides on those candidates who are admitted to the selection procedure in accordance with the requirements as specified in the publication notice. The applications of the candidates admitted to the selection procedure are reviewed and the selection board decides on those candidates who are invited to attend for interview. The selection board may decide on the need for interviewees to undergo one or more written tests related to the nature of the duties in order to facilitate the selection process. Following the interviews, which are conducted by the selection board, the selection board decides which candidates will be placed on the reserve list.

B. Reserve list and recruitment

Each candidate will be informed by mail whether or not he/she has been placed on the reserve list. Candidates should note that inclusion on the reserve list does not guarantee appointment. The recruitment procedure is as follows: as and when funds become available, candidates on the reserve list will be considered and the reserve list will be drawn on to fill vacancies. If a letter of intention is issued, the candidate must undergo a compulsory medical examination to establish that he/she meets the standard of physical fitness necessary to perform the duties involved and the candidate must provide original or certified copies of all relevant documents.

Successful candidates who are recruited undergo an initial probation period of 6 months.

C. Pay and welfare benefits

The pay of staff members consists of a basic salary supplemented with various allowances, including family allowances.

Basic salary: there is a basic salary scale for each grade, divided into a number of steps. Staff members progress automatically to the next step every two years until they reach the top of the scale for that grade.

Allowances: in addition to their basic salary, staff members may be entitled to various allowances, in particular an expatriation or foreign residence allowance, and family allowances, including household allowance, dependent child allowance, pre-school allowance and an education allowance.

Under certain circumstances, in particular where staff members are obliged to change their place of residence in order to take up employment, the Agency may also reimburse various expenses incurred on recruitment, notably removal expenses.

Additional information can be obtained from the web site of the CFCA Agency. Additional information can be obtained from the web site of the CFCA Agency. Furthermore, the following link gives you direct access to the Staff Regulations: http://ec.europa.eu/dgs/personnel_administration/statut/tocen100.pdf. 

Important

Please, take note that a binding commitment can only be made after verification of all conditions and will take the form of a contract signed by the Executive Director.

Note that this call may be used for the recruitment of a similar post, for a period of 2 years following the closing date stipulated. Therefore candidates whose name will be put on a reserve list could be offered a contract during this period of time.

Please note that the selection process may take some time to be completed and that no information will be released during this period. Once a selection process has been completed, its status will be displayed on the web site of CFCA.

4. Specific requirements and details of positions offered
HEAD OF PROGRAMMES FOR OPERATIONAL COORDINATION
Ref: FISH-CFCA-TA-AD9-0711

Job description

Overall purpose:
The Head of Programmes for Operational Coordination will be in charge of the programmes and plans department and responsible for coordination of the operations of the Agency.

Functions and Duties:
Under the Head of Unit "Operational Coordination", the Head of Programmes for Operational Coordination is responsible for:

• Producing general planning documents, including the Unit business plan and annual work programme.
• Monitoring and reporting on the progress of the operations against its plans, including the management and further development of the Unit and Agency's scoreboards.
• Producing the annual activity report of operations.
• Collaborating in the definition and monitoring of objectives and performances indicators for the main processes of operations.
• Coordinating the planning and reporting activities of operations with the other units and departments of the Agency.

Qualifications and experience required

A. Eligibility criteria

• University degree relating to the field covered by the duties concerned
• At least, 12 years of professional experience (following the award of the university degree) in a domain relevant to the aforementioned duties, with/and.
• At least 5 years of professional experience of strategic advice and coordination of questions in areas relating to the implementation and compliance with the Common Fisheries Policy.
• To have a proven experience of negotiations at international level.
• To have a thorough knowledge of at least two official languages of the European Union. 

B. Selection criteria

Essential:

• Excellent knowledge of the EU decision making and legislative processes and of EU legislation and policies in the field of fisheries and maritime affairs
• Strong interpersonal skills and sense of initiative and responsibility, preferably developed in negotiations at international level
• Excellent communication skills and ability to communicate effectively in English, including ability to produce writing papers and reports
• Very good analytical skills and ability to set priorities

Advantageous:

• Good knowledge of relevant international and regional organisations involved in the field and their working methods and procedures
• Masters degree in European or Maritime Law
• Knowledge of French and /or Spanish

DESK MANAGER FOR NORTH ATLANTIC WATERS
Ref: FISH-CFCA-TA-AD7/AD8-0712

Job description

Overall purpose:
The Desk Manager for North Atlantic Waters will be in charge of coordinating activities of the Desk of North Atlantic and NAFO of the Agency.

Functions and Duties:
Under the Head of Unit "Operational Coordination", the Desk Manager for North Atlantic Waters is responsible for:

• Planning and follow-up of the activities of the Desk and staff in charge of operations in North Atlantic waters.
• Developing methodologies for planning and coordination of control and inspection activities by the Member States.
• Reporting on fishing matters and in particular risks that certain activities may not comply with Community legislation in force.
• Reporting on the general performance of the Desk in relation with plans and programmes. 

Qualifications and experience required

A. Eligibility criteria

• University degree relating to the field covered by the duties concerned
• At least, 6 years for AD7 and 9 years for AD8 of professional experience (following the award of the university degree) in a domain relevant to the aforementioned duties, with/and      
• At least 2 years for AD7 and 3 years for AD8 of professional experience of strategic advice and coordination of questions in areas relating to the implementation and compliance with the Common Fisheries Policy.
• To have a proven experience of negotiations at international level.
• To have a thorough knowledge of at least two official languages of the European Union.

B. Selection criteria

Essential:

• Good sense of initiative and responsibility;
• Excellent communication skills;
• Ability to draft clear and concise reports;
• Good experience of main office software, internet, email;
• Thorough knowledge of Community fisheries legislation;
• Ability to undertake missions of several weeks duration;
• Ability to cooperate and work in a team.
• Experience in leading teams for operations at sea or in the fisheries sector;

Advantages:

• Knowledge of EU Institutions and of their working procedures;
• Experience in computer applications, including satellite monitoring systems;
• Qualified as ISO 9001 lead auditor;

ASSESSMENT COORDINATOR FOR NETWORKS
Ref: FISH-CFCA-TA-AD7/AD8-0714

Job description

Overall purpose:
The Assessment Coordinator for Networks will be in charge of assessing systems and tasks used for facilitate the operations of the Agency in its internal and external communication.

Functions and Duties:
Under the Head of Unit "Networks and Information", the Assessment Coordinator for Networks is responsible for:

• Specifying, designing, and implementing networks solutions of the Agency.  
• Defining and implementing requirements and standards for the operation of networks and systems.
• Developing and implementing ICT Security standards, plans and procedures to ensure data security.
• Advising other units on solutions to be implemented for important quality and efficiency of networks.

Qualifications and experience required

A. Eligibility criteria

• University degree relating to the field covered by the duties concerned
• At least, 6 years for AD7 and 9 years for AD8 of professional experience (following the award of the university degree) in a domain relevant to the aforementioned duties, with/and
• At least 2 years for AD and 3 years for AD8 of professional experience of strategic advice and coordination of questions in areas relating to the implementation and compliance with the Common Fisheries Policy.
• To have a proven experience of negotiations at international level.
• To have a thorough knowledge of at least two official languages of the European Union.

B. Selection criteria

Essential:

• Good sense of initiative and responsibility;
• Excellent communication skills;
• Ability to draft clear and concise reports;
• Good experience of main office software, internet, email;
• Thorough knowledge of Community fisheries legislation;
• Ability to undertake missions of several weeks duration;
• Ability to cooperate and work in a team.
• Experience in leading teams for operations at sea or in the fisheries sector;

Advantages:

• Knowledge of EU Institutions and of their working procedures;
• Experience in computer applications, including satellite monitoring systems;
• Qualified as ISO 9001 lead auditor;

PROJECT OFFICER ON COORDINATION OF TRAINING
Ref: FISH-CFCA-TA-AST7/AST8-0715

Job description

Overall purpose:
The Project Office on Coordination of Training will contribute to the coordination of inspection training and the exchange of experience and best practice between Member States. 

Functions and Duties:
Under the Head of Unit "Networks and Information", the Project Officer on Coordination of Training is responsible for:

• Contributing to the organisation and carrying out the assessments mentioned in art. 3g and 7a of EC Regulation n°768/2005 in cooperation with the Member States.
• Drawing up assessment supports.
• Managing the process of setting up an information system on training levels and requirements for the competent bodies in the Member States.
• Planning and coordinating assessments and visits to the Member States and promoting quality and methodology coherence for assessments in the field.

Qualifications and experience required
A. Eligibility criteria

• University degree relating to the field covered by the duties concerned
• At least, 6 years for AST7 and 9 years for AST8 of professional experience (following the award of the university degree) in a domain relevant to the aforementioned duties, with/and    
• At least 2 years for AST7 and 3 years for AST8 of professional experience of strategic advice and coordination of questions in areas relating to the implementation and compliance with the Common Fisheries Policy.
• To have a proven experience of negotiations at international level.
• To have a thorough knowledge of at least two official languages of the European Union.

B. Selection criteria
Essential:

• Good sense of initiative and responsibility;
• Excellent communication skills;
• Ability to draft clear and concise reports;
• Good experience of main office software, internet, email;
• Thorough knowledge of Community fisheries legislation;
• Ability to undertake missions of several weeks duration;
• Ability to cooperate and work in a team.
• Experience in leading teams for operations at sea or in the fisheries sector;

Advantages:

• Knowledge of EU Institutions and of their working procedures;
• Experience in computer applications, including satellite monitoring systems;
• Qualified as ISO 9001 lead auditor