EUROPEAN RAILWAY AGENCY VACANCY NOTICE FOR ESTABLISHING A RESERVE LIST OF SECONDED NATIONAL EXPERTS (SNES) IN THE FIELD OF RAILWAY SAFETY REF.: ERA/SNE/2007/001 Expressions of interest are invited for the establishment of a reserve list of Seconded National Experts (SNEs) to be called upon by the European Railway Agency, established by Regulation (EC) N 881/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2004 (OJ L 164, 30.04.2004). The Agency is located in Lille/Valenciennes, France. The Agency has been established to provide the Member States and the Commission with technical assistance in the fields of railway safety and interoperability. As part of its common transport policy, the Community has adopted legislation to pave the way for gradual establishment of an integrated European railway area, both legally and technically. This involves the development and implementation of technical measures for safety and a common approach to issues concerning railway safety. Further details of the Agency s activities may be found at: http://www.era.europa.eu Essential functions The SNEs will work under the guidance of the project officers in the Safety Unit to develop the dossiers according to the Work Programme of the Agency in one or more of the following technical areas: 1. Evaluation of different regimes for authorisation to place in service rolling stock on the rail systems of the Member States, including assistance to the competent national authorities to facilitate the free movement of railway vehicles (cross acceptance) 2. Classification, evaluation and analyses of rail accident investigation reports and communication with national investigation bodies on reports and recommendations issued through these reports 3. Support of the activities related to safety certification of railway undertakings, in particular the evaluation of different regimes and liaison with the competent national authorities in facilitating safety certification on defined corridors of the trans-european rail system 4. Support of the activities related to the development of Common Safety Methods and Common Safety Targets, in particular the evaluation of different in-use criteria for determining if a change is substantial and for risk acceptance 5. Classification, registration and evaluation of national safety rules notified to the Commission by the Member States.
Qualifications and experience required A. Eligibility criteria University degree giving entitlement to undertake postgraduate studies in engineering, law, economics, human sciences or similar At least 6 years professional experience of which at least 3 years acquired in positions related to one or more of the functions above Thorough knowledge of one of the official languages of the European Union and a satisfactory knowledge of another language of the Communities to the extent necessary for the performance of the duties pertaining to the post Be a national of a Member State of the European Union or of Norway, Iceland or Lichtenstein B. Selection criteria Essential Relevant experience and specialised technical expertise in one or more of the areas related to the functions 1 5 above Good knowledge of European Union railway policy Good command of English Ability to work under pressure and manage his/her responsibilities Excellent communication skills Computer literacy and familiarity with the most wide-spread electronic office equipment (word processing, spreadsheets, e-mail, internet, etc.) Advantageous Experience from international working groups and projects Motivated, dynamic personality with strong aptitude for team work Familiarity with EU administrative procedures and terminology Conditions of secondment This notice concerns positions as seconded national expert (SNE). The secondment is not an employment, nor does it lead to an employment at the Agency. The SNE shall remain in the service of his or her employer throughout the period of secondment and shall continue to be paid by that employer. The SNE is entitled to a daily subsistence allowance, paid by the Agency, during the period of secondment. The SNE shall during the period of secondment carry out his or her duties under the management of the Agency and its Executive Director and the responsible Head of Unit. He or she shall carry out the duties and conduct solely with the interest of the Agency in mind. More information about the conditions of secondment can be found in the rules of the Secondment of National Experts to the Commission which apply by analogy to secondments
at the Agency. The rules can be found at the website of the Commission through this link: http://ec.europa.eu/civil_service/job/sne/index_en.htm. Each candidate should, before applying, assure him- or herself that the employer will support the candidacy and pay the salary during the period of secondment. The final recruitment will be confirmed by an exchange of letters between the Agency and the employer in the Member State concerned. A selected applicant will be offered the position on the basis of a list established by the selection committee. This notice is the basis for the establishment of the selection committee s proposal. The initial secondment will be for two years and may be extended for a further period of maximum two years. The place of secondment will be Valenciennes, where the Agency has its offices. The secondment for a selected applicant will start when a position is available. The first positions are expected to be opened during the second half of 2007. It is brought to the particular attention of candidates that the provisions of Articles 6 and 7 of the Commission Decision laying down rules on the secondment of National Experts to the Commission apply by analogy to secondments to the Agency. These rules specify, concerning duties and rights and obligations of SNEs i.a. that Every effort must be made by the Commission departments concerned, by the SNE s employer and by the SNE to avoid any conflict of interest or appearance of such conflict in relation to the SNE s duties while seconded to the Commission. For these purposes the selected candidate must sign a declaration of honour before the secondment starts and the employer must submit a corresponding declaration. Equal opportunities The European Union takes great care to avoid any form of discrimination in its recruitment procedures. Application procedure For applications to be valid, candidates must submit: A detailed curriculum vitae (on EU CV format only) A letter of motivation (2 pages maximum) The eligibility and selection criteria grid (see below) The application will be rejected if the dossier is incomplete.
Supporting documents showing evidence of the information given in the application documents may be requested at a later stage. No document will be sent back to candidates. Selection procedure The selection will be organised in four steps: The selection committee will check the validity and eligibility criteria of all applications The selection committee will assess the letters of motivation and the CVs of eligible applicants; it will establish a shortlist of candidates meeting the requirements of the Agency. The selection committee will interview the short listed applicants; written tests may be organised simultaneously; following this, the selection committee will establish a list of suitable candidates. Suitable candidates will be offered positions upon decision of the Agency Executive Director. Candidates should note that inclusion on the reserve list does not guarantee that a position will be offered. Candidates may apply in any of the official languages of the European Union but the use of English or French is encouraged to facilitate the selection process. Applications must be sent to mailbox jobs@era.europa.eu until 09/09/2007 at the latest, clearly indicating the vacancy reference number in the subject line. Please note that applications submitted by fax or postal mail cannot be taken into consideration. A reserve list will be constituted, valid until 31/12/2008. The validity of the reserve list could be extended if the Agency Executive Director so decides. Appeal Procedure A candidate who considers that a mistake has been made regarding the eligibility criteria (point A in the vacancy notice) of his/her application may ask for a review. To this end, a request for review may be submitted, within 20 calendar days of the email informing him/her of the rejection of his/her application. The request for review should quote the reference of the selection procedure concerned and should mention clearly the eligibility criterion/a requested to be reconsidered as well as the grounds. This request should be addressed to ERA s dedicated mailbox (jobs@era.europa.eu). The candidate shall be informed, within 45 calendar days following the receipt of his/her request, on the decision of the selection committee on the matter.
Data Protection The purpose of processing of the data you submit is to manage your application in view of a possible pre-selection and recruitment at the Agency. The personal information we request from you will be processed in line with Regulation (EC) N 45/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 December 2000 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data by the Community institutions and bodies and on the free movement of such data.
Eligibility and selection criteria grid Seconded National Expert in the field of safety (Ref. ERA/SNE/2007/001) Last name (in capitals):.. First name:. Gender: Male / Female A. Eligibility criteria (1) I have a university degree giving entitlement to undertake postgraduate studies in engineering, law, economics, human sciences or similar: YES / NO (2) I have at least 6 years professional experience of which at least 3 years acquired in positions related to the functions 1-5 under (7) below: YES / NO Number of years of professional experience: (SPECIFY) Number of years of professional experience in positions related to functions 1-5 under (7) below: (SPECIFY) (3) I have a thorough knowledge of one of the official languages of the European Union and a satisfactory knowledge of another language of the Communities to the extent necessary for the performance of the duties pertaining to the post: YES / NO (4) I am a national of a Member State of the European Union or of Norway, Iceland or Lichtenstein: YES / NO (5) I meet the character requirements for the duties involved: YES / NO (6) My employer supports my candidacy and has committed to pay my salary during the secondment: YES / NO B. Selection criteria (1 = slight; 2 = good; 3 = very good; 4 = excellent) (7) My experience and specialised technical expertise in the areas relevant for the following functions are: 1) Evaluation of different regimes for cross acceptance of rolling stock: 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 2) Classification, evaluation and analyses of rail accident investigation reports: 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 3) Safety certification of railway undertakings: 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 4) Development of Common Safety Methods and Common Safety Targets: 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 5) Classification, registration and evaluation of national safety rules: 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 (8) My knowledge of European Union railway policy: 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 (9) My command of English is: 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 (10) My ability to work under pressure and to manage my responsibilities is: 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 (11) My communication skills are: 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 (12) My computer literacy and familiarity with the most wide-spread electronic office equipment (word processing, spreadsheets, e-mail, internet, etc.) is: 1 / 2 / 3 / 4