
Law Clerk (Trainee) (Honors Law Clerk)
National Labor Relations Board
Birmingham, ALFull-time$64–83K/yrPosted 1 day ago
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Job overview
The National Labor Relations Board Honors program Law Clerk (Trainee) works in a Field Office, which serves as an operating arm of the agency. Typical assignments may include interviewing witnesses, obtaining statements in affidavits, conducting unfair labor practice investigations, and assisting with legal drafting. Applicants must be pursuing their first professional law degree at an ABA-accredited law school, with anticipated graduation by June 2027, and must not be barred or licensed when applying.
Skills & qualifications
Skills
Qualifications
Benefits
Full job description
Summary
This position is established as part of the National Labor Relations Board Honors program. The Honors program supports positions working in three different program areas: Board, General Counsel- Headquarters, and General Counsel-Field. This position resides in a Field Office of the National Labor Relations Board. The Field Offices represent the actual operating arm of the Agency, the means through which both the Board and the General Counsel reach the public.
Duties
As a Law Clerk (Trainee) (Honors Law Clerk), GS-0904-11, typical work assignments in the Regions may include: Interviewing witnesses to ascertain their knowledge of the allegations; and Obtaining statement(s) of persons interviewed in an affidavit; and Conducting unfair labor practice investigations; and Assisting with drafting memoranda, motions and briefs. Qualifications
All qualifications and eligibility requirements specified in the announcement must be met by the closing date of the job announcement. Ideal Candidate Statement The Ideal Candidate for the Law Clerk (Trainee) (Honors Law Clerk), General Counsel-Field position, will have a strong academic law school record. Course study relevant to industrial, labor law and/or labor relations or similar courses in employment are preferred. The candidate should have excellent oral and written communication skills. Basic Eligibility Requirement In order to meet the basic eligibility requirements, applicants must have at least one of the following: A GPA of 3.0 (out of a 4.0) or above (or equivalent) or are in the top 25% of their law school class or their school does not use a numerical GPA/rank; OR Have previously interned or worked at the NLRB or another labor agency; OR Have other specialized labor law or labor relations experience. In addition to the Basic Eligibility Requirement, applicants must also meet the following: Minimum Qualifications To be eligible for the GS-0904-11 Law Clerk (Trainee) (Honors Law Clerk) position and grade, applicants must meet all of the following qualifications: Must be pursuing their first professional law degree (J.D. or LL.B) at an American Bar Association-accredited law school with an anticipated graduation date no later than June 2027; AND Must not be barred/licensed at the time of application. These qualifications must be fully supported and articulated in an applicant's resume to receive consideration.
Education
Applicants must successfully complete a full course of study in a school of law accredited by the American Bar Association (ABA) no later than June 2027. You must meet all qualification requirements. All academic degrees and coursework must be completed at a college or university that has obtained accreditation or pre-accreditation status from an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. For a list of schools that meet this criteria, see www.ed.gov. All education claimed by applicants will be verified by the appointing agency accordingly. Special Instructions for Foreign Education If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show that the education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in accredited U.S. education programs; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university. For further information, visit Recognition of Foreign Qualifications | U.S. Department of Education. How You Will Be Evaluated
Once the application process is complete, your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents) and your responses to all assessments required for this position. You will be assessed on the following competencies: Influencing/Negotiating Oral Communication Problem Solving Research Written Communication Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. To preview the application questionnaire, click the following link: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/13099539 In order to be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. For evaluating the quality of applicants for referral to the selecting official, a multi-phased process will be used. Phase 1: Applicants' resume and supporting documents will be reviewed by Human Resources (HR) to determine whether they meet the minimum qualification requirements. Phase 2: Applicants who are minimally qualified may be advanced to a Structured Resume Review assessment conducted by a Subject Matter Expert (SME) panel. SMEs may review applicants' resumes to evaluate technical qualifications for this position based on the required specialized experience. Phase 3: Applicants who successfully pass the Structured Resume Review assessment may be advanced to a Writing Sample Review conducted by a Subject Matter Expert (SME) panel. SMEs may assess applicants' ability to demonstrate the required competencies for the position. Phase 4: A final score, which may combine the results from one or more assessments, may be used to identify the top-rated applicants. Applicants meeting the established cut-off score may be referred to the selecting official for consideration and may be required to participate in one or more additional interviews as part of the hiring process. THE RULE OF MANY The NLRB uses the Rule of Many which ranks job applicants numerically and allows for selection from a broader, top-ranked pool. Applications will be evaluated and rated using the Rule of Many procedures under 5 C.F.R. §332.402 based on a set number, score or percentage of highest ranked eligibles. Preference eligibles will receive 5 or 10 points added to their score based on the adjudicated preference. All eligibles at or above the pre-determined number, score or percentage, including any preference eligibles with a service-connected disability of 10 percent or more, at any score, will be referred to the selecting official for consideration. For this job opportunity announcement applicants will be referred to the selecting official using the Rule of Many under 5 C.F.R. §332.402 based on a predetermined score. Other Information
The General Counsel-Field (Regional Offices) program area of the Honors Program is also accepting applications for a Law Clerk (Trainee) GS-0904-12 (Notice of Vacancy NL27EX13099542ZA) and General Attorney (Labor) (Honors Attorney) GS-0905-12 (Notice of Vacancy NL27EX13099543ZA). Additionally, the General Counsel-Headquarters and the Board have postings for their respective program areas. We encourage those who are interested to review the applicable postings to determine qualifications and/or eligibilities. Please visit the NLRB's Honors Program webpage for additional information about the different program areas and Notices of Vacancy. Salary range listed is base. Locality salary to be determined after selection. To determine the locality salary of a certain location, please click HERE. SUPPLEMENTARY VACANCIES Supplementary vacancies may be filled in addition to the number stated in this announcement. EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY/REASONABLE ACCOMODATION The National Labor Relations Board is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for appointment without regard to race; color; religion; sex; national origin; age; disability; genetic information; pregnancy, childbirth, or a related medical condition. Applicants with disabilities who need reasonable accommodations for any part of the application and hiring process should contact the Agency's Selective Placement Coordinator by email here. NLRB offers a wide array of reasonable accommodations and programs for individuals with disabilities. (Note: For additional information for job seekers with disabilities, please click on the following website here.) PLACEMENT POLICY The posting of this announcement does not obligate management to fill a vacancy or vacancies by promotion. The position will be filled by a new appointment. TRIAL PERIOD As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you may be required to serve a 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider: Your performance and conduct; and The needs and interests of the agency; and Whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and Whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service. Upon completion of your trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest. ALTERNATE APPLICATION INFORMATION Applicants may contact the Office of Human Resources. The National Labor Relations Board offers career opportunities that feature competitive starting salaries and the potential for performance-based increases, flexible hours, and the ability to achieve and maintain a balanced lifestyle. You will enjoy a range of comprehensive and competitive employment benefits that include Work/Life Balance Programs (Alternative Work Schedules, Telework, Employee Assistance Program, and the Child Care Subsidy Program), the Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) Program, Flexible Spending Accounts, Life Insurance, Long-Term Care Insurance, Thrift Savings Plan, and the Transit Benefit Program.
How this job compares
Set against the 849 open Legal jobs on Olive Jobs, counted November 3, 2026.
- Pay
- This posting$64–83K/yr
- US median$146–232K/yr607 salary ranges
This range's midpoint, $73K, is 60% below the US median midpoint ($185K) — in the lowest quarter of Legal salary ranges across the US.
- Openings
- Olive Jobs lists 849 open Legal jobs across the US. 9% of them nationwide are listed as remote or flexible.
- Hiring the most across the US
- Cardinal Health72 open
- PwC27 open
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- Experience
- Legal postings that state a minimum ask for 5 years of experience at the median; the middle half ask for 4 to 8 years (662 postings).
- Education
- 526 of the 849 open Legal jobs (62%) ask for a bachelor's degree or higher.
Counted across the open, public US postings on Olive Jobs on November 3, 2026. Pay medians are the middle values of the low ends and of the high ends of postings that list both ends of a range in the same cadence (a yearly salary or an hourly rate); a range's midpoint is halfway between its ends. Pay and experience figures resting on fewer than 20 postings are left out.
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