Description

The Washington State Department of Agriculture has been serving the state for more than 100 years. Through service, regulation, and advocacy, we keep agriculture viable and vital in Washington State, while protecting consumers, public health, and the environment. We work extensively with farmers and ranchers, but our responsibilities – from ensuring food safety to environmental protection – touch the lives of millions of people locally, nationally, and abroad.

The agency includes 780 employees approximately and grows close to 1,000 employees at the peak of seasonal work. To learn more and view additional openings, please visit our Employment Page.

The Pesticide Management Division of the Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA) is responsible for ensuring that pesticides are used safely and legally. To accomplish this responsibility, WSDA performs a number of activities including registering pesticides, licensing pesticide applicators, dealers and consultants, investigating complaints of possible misuse, maintaining a registry of pesticide sensitive individuals and administering a waste pesticide collection program.

The Pesticide Registration Customer Service Lead is the first point of contact for pesticide registrants and serves as the secondary contact for fertilizer registrants, providing professional level expertise in compliance with state and federal statues, rules and division policies. This position takes the lead role in understanding, resolving, and keeping current on program fiscal processing issues, and recording paperwork with payroll. This position independently acts as a liaison between registrants, staff, and regulatory agencies on pesticide registration issues and complex fertilizer registration issues.

Position and Salary Information

WSDA is recruiting for a full-time permanent Pesticide Registration Customer Service Lead position within the Pesticide Management Division. This position is located in Olympia, Washington. This is a non-represented position.

The base pay offered will take into account internal equity and may vary depending on the preferred candidate's job-related knowledge, skills, and experience. The typical starting salary range for this position is: $38,004 Step A - $49,404 Step L annually.

Employee Benefits

• A healthy work/life balance, which may include flexible work schedules, and teleworking.
• WSDA provides an excellent benefits package beyond traditional benefits. State employment offers Dependent Care Assistance, Flexible Spending Accounts, Public Service Loan Forgiveness, Tuition Waiver, Deferred Compensation; click here for more information.
• 12 paid Holidays & Vacation and Leave Accruals.
• All Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) required will be provided by the agency.
• Commute Trip Reduction Program.

Duties

Some of what you do include:

• 
  Plan, coordinate, and execute annual pesticide registration renewal notification, preparation, and mail out.
• Perform initial review of Pesticide Registrations and backs up for fertilizer pre-registration, Section l8's, Special Local Needs (SLN), and Experimental Use Permits (EUP) for completeness, and accuracy; Works with applicants to fulfill complete application status.
• Update and maintain registration databases, spreadsheets, SharePoint, and other database systems with high level of accuracy and efficiency.
• Serve as the secondary point of contact for fertilizer registration applications, scanning of incoming Tonnage documents and records related to: NIA's, Fertilizer and Failure to Renew, and any additional administrative actions related to Registration applications.
• Create, maintain and update all forms and electronic files in accordance with program policy and procedures.
• Scan hard copy documents into electronic format into company or individual files while applying following naming conventions.
• Respond to phone and email inquiries regarding pesticide registrations.
• Provide technical assistance and information to customers around application requirements.
• Review and approve fiscal documents associated with pesticide registration.
• Work with WSDA fiscal staff to correct fiscal related issues for the work unit, issuing refunds as needed.
• Attend meetings and/or conferences as a program representative.
• Maintaining records retention for the program following records retention schedule.

Qualifications

Who should apply?

Professionals with:

• 
  Associate degree or 1-2 years of experience providing assistance to clients/customers regarding inquiries, complaint or problems. Experience will substitute year for year for education requirements.
• Demonstrated ability to communicate effectively.
• Apply critical thinking; actively analyzing and evaluating information.
• Ability to multi-task in a high-paced work environment.
• Advanced knowledge in working with Microsoft Office Software.
• Ability to execute accurate data entry.
• Proficiency using computers and databases.
• Excellent customer service skills.

Preferred/Desired:

• Knowledge of Adobe Pro, SharePoint, and Microsoft Office Suite.

Supplemental Information

• 
  Current resume detailing experience and education
• A cover letter describing how you meet the specific qualifications for this position.
• Three professional references

The Washington State Department of Agriculture requires all employees to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 as a condition of employment. Exemption may be granted for religious or medical purposes and should be requested a minimum of (7) seven days prior to the first day of employment. Accommodations will be subject to approval based on the essential functions required of the position.

Veteran's Preference: Applicants who meet the minimum qualifications and wish to claim Veteran's Preference MUST attach a copy of their DD214, or other verification of military service. Please blackout any personally identifiable data such as social security numbers. For additional information on Veteran's Preference and guidance on how to determine if you are eligible, click here.

Persons with a disability, who need assistance with their application or need this announcement in an alternative format, may call 664-1960 or toll free (877) 664-1960. TTY users should first call 711 to access the Washington Relay Service.