JOB DESCRIPTION

Deadline for Applications

October 4, 2025

Hardship Level

A (least hardship)

Family Type

Family

Family Type

Family

Residential location (if applicable)

Grade

GS6

Staff Member / Affiliate Type

General Service

Reason

Regular > Regular Assignment

Target Start Date

2025-10-01

Standard Job Description

Administrative Associate

Organizational Setting and Work Relationships

The Administrative Associate is responsible for the office management in assisting the concerned manager in the implementation of general administrative and resource management tasks.

The Administrative Associate is normally supervised by a (Senior) Administrative Officer or a National Administrative Officer who defines general work objectives and provides necessary advice and guidance. The incumbent may supervise some support staff. S/he keeps frequent contacts with staff at various levels in the office and occasionally with staff at the same level in other duty stations and/or Headquarters; with local suppliers and/or officials and/or partners on subject matters which may be of importance to the Organization.

All UNHCR staff members are accountable to perform their duties as reflected in their job description. They do so within their delegated authorities, in line with the regulatory framework of UNHCR which includes the UN Charter, UN Staff Regulations and Rules, UNHCR Policies and Administrative Instructions as well as relevant accountability frameworks. In addition, staff members are required to discharge their responsibilities in a manner consistent with the core, functional, cross-functional and managerial competencies and UNHCR’s core values of professionalism, integrity and respect for diversity.

Duties

• Assist the supervisor in the provision of resources (human, material and services) necessary to support the day-to-day activities of the staff in the office.
• Assist the supervisor in ensuring the UNHCR Office premises provide a healthy, safe and respectful working environment.
• Provide administrative support in the areas of finance, administrative and human resources as well as up to date and accurate data and records in Cloud ERP and other systems.

• Provide interpretation of administrative rules, regulations and procedures. Perform personnel work including processing of entitlement, issuance of contracts maintenance of various personnel records and files.
• Assist in the recruitment of General Service staff for non-specialized work including evaluating candidate applications, administering recruitment exams if applicable, conducting preliminary interviews of candidates; assign General Service staff to meet work requirements.
• Collect information and assist in conduct of surveys on local cost of living, daily subsistence allowance criteria, local salaries for office and servicing staff, house rentals.
• Brief international personnel on general administrative matters relating to visas, licences, security; provide advice and ensure administrative support as required.
• Arrange for and/or attend meetings on day-to-day administrative matters, participate in discussions of new or revised procedures and practices, interpret and assess the impact of changes and make recommendations for follow-up action.
• Prepare, on own initiative, correspondence, reports, evaluations and justifications, as required, on general administrative or specialized tasks which may be of a confidential nature within the assigned area of responsibility.
• Assist in the preparation of office budgets applicable to staff and servicing costs and maintain necessary budgetary control records.
• In addition to general administration responsibilities, may also supervise directly or indirectly, activities concerned with office and grounds maintenance, security, transport and similar services.
• Arrange for requisition of office supplies and equipment and arrange for control of distribution and maintenance of appropriate inventory records.
• Support the identification and management of risks and seek to seize opportunities impacting objectives in the area of responsibility. Ensure decision making in risk based in the functional area of work. Raise risks, issues and concerns to a supervisor or to relevant functional colleague(s).
• Perform other related duties as required.

Minimum Qualifications

Years of Experience / Degree Level

For G6 – 3 years relevant experience with High School Diploma; or 2 years relevant work experience with Bachelor or equivalent or higher

Field(s) of Education

Not applicable.

Certificates and/or Licenses

Business Administration, Finance, Office Management, Human Resources or other related fields.;

(Certificates and Licenses marked with an asterisk* are essential)

Relevant Job Experience

Essential

Not specified.

Desirable

Completion of UNHCR learning programmes or specific training relevant to functions of the position.

Functional Skills

*IT-Computer Literacy

UN-UN/UNHCR Administrative Rules, Regulations and Procedures

FI-Application of Financial Rules, Regulations and Procedures

SC-UNHCR Procurement Rules and Procedures

BU-PeopleSoft EPM/Budget

(Functional Skills marked with an asterisk* are essential)

Language Requirements

For International Professional and Field Service jobs: Knowledge of English and UN working language of the duty station if not English.

For National Professional jobs: Knowledge of English and UN working language of the duty station if not English and local language.

For General Service jobs: Knowledge of English and/or UN working language of the duty station if not English.

Competency Requirements

All jobs at UNHCR require six core competencies and may also require managerial competencies and/or cross-functional competencies. The six core competencies are listed below.

Core Competencies:

Accountability

Communication

Organizational Awareness

Teamwork & Collaboration

Commitment to Continuous Learning

Client & Result Orientation

Managerial Competencies:

Managing Resources

Cross-Functional Competencies:

Analytical Thinking

Planning and Organizing

Change Capability and Adaptability

All UNHCR workforce members must individually and collectively, contribute towards a working environment where each person feels safe, and empowered to perform their duties. This includes by demonstrating no tolerance for sexual exploitation and abuse, harassment including sexual harassment, sexism, gender inequality, discrimination, and abuse of power.

As individuals and as managers, all must be proactive in preventing and responding to inappropriate conduct, support ongoing dialogue on these matters and speaking up and seeking guidance and support from relevant UNHCR resources when these issues arise.

This is a Standard Job Description for all UNHCR jobs with this job title and grade level. The Operational Context may contain additional essential and/or desirable qualifications relating to the specific operation and/or position. Any such requirements are incorporated by reference in this Job Description and will be considered for the screening, shortlisting and selection of candidates.

Desired Candidate Profile

Working away from the majority of the team requires a high degree of understanding of the nature of the position, conscientiousness and motivation. The incumbent needs to have a demonstrated ability to work proactively and independently, with minimal supervision, while remaining aligned with team objectives and protocols. The incumbent will be expected to engage effectively with colleagues across different personal, cultural and professional backgrounds, so having strong interpersonal and intercultural skills is critical. In addition, the capacity to establish good working relationships with the relevant stakeholders across the region is key to the liaising function. Given the nature of the job, having a high-level of self-awareness, empathy and active listening is important. Proven organizational skills and being able to coordinate and support the implementation of wellbeing activities across countries and time zones is critical.

Background in psychology, social sciences, public health, communications, project management or related field is an asset. Minimum 5 years of relevant work experience in administration, coordination or project management, preferably in staff wellbeing, HR or learning and development is required. The incumbent is required to be fluent in Spanish and English (both oral and written) while working knowledge of French and Portuguese is desirable.

Required languages (expected Overall ability is at least B2 level):

English

,

Spanish

,

Desired languages

,

,

Operational context

Occupational Safety and Health Considerations:

To view occupational safety and health considerations for this duty station, please visit this link:

https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel

Nature of Position:

UNHCR workplace mental health and psychosocial wellbeing strategy is based on three pillars: prevention, promotion/protection and support. While the support pillar, which encompasses direct psychological services to individuals and groups, will be covered by the Geneva based team, the role of the Admin Associate (Psychosocial Wellbeing) is to engage predominantly in the promotion/protection pillar. As a part of the Psychosocial Wellbeing Unit (PWU), based in Panama, this role will act as a liaison between the Psychosocial Wellbeing team and UNHCR operations in the Americas in order to ensure visibility and continuity of psychosocial wellbeing programming in the region. Under the guidance of the Staff Counsellor – Regional Manager (Geneva) the incumbent will establish collaborative working relationships with relevant stakeholders in the RB and the country operations including the management, HR, security, staff representatives, risk focal points and PAN and will work on identifying the opportunities for integration of psychosocial wellbeing messages in the HR processes (onboarding or offboarding); ensure that all critical incidents are reported and survivors are connected with the support resources; support the coordination and visibility of regional events and campaigns (eg. World Mental Health Day campaign, leadership panels, psychosocial awareness events) including translation and dissemination of key messages, tools and materials in regional languages; be the regional focal point for the wellbeing platform (local information) with editing rights; maintain a directory of external mental health resources and services to facilitate staff referrals (eg. Suicide prevention, domestic abuse support services, substance abuse centres, etc); support the tracking and documentation of the wellbeing initiatives across country operations and keep the regional leadership informed of the wellbeing agenda; support the work of the Regional Occupational Health and Safety (RECHOSH); provide admin support to virtual and in-person psychosocial wellbeing trainings.

As the only admin person on the psychosocial wellbeing team, this role will perform a number of global administrative tasks related to management of the Psychosocial Wellbeing Unit generic mailbox; maintenance of the filing of the PWU to ensure easy retrieval and knowledge management; occasional data collection, data analysis and reporting. The incumbent will take part in the global PWU and SHWS meetings and will assist in preparing notes, minutes and action points as required. The incumbent will be a part of the Peer Advisor Network (PAN) and will help with coordination of monthly meetings.

Living and Working Conditions:

Panama City is classified ”A” Duty Station (Family) and has good infrastructure (health, housing, banking, transportation, telecommunications and recreational facilities) and good supply of goods and services, with no particular health hazards. -In terms of security Panama is relatively safe compared to other cities throughout Latin America and it is rated as security level ”1 minimal” whereas for Darién Province (border with Colombia) it is security level ”2 low”. The city is a communication hub, and it is possible to fly to all countries of the region with direct flights and it offers good options for travelling in general. -UNHCR offices are located in the Canal Zone, in a green area outside the city centre called ”Ciudad del Saber” where most of the other UN Agencies are also located, as well as International Schools, NGOs and research centres, etc. -The cost of living is relatively high for the region (reflected in the post adjustment), especially for housing and health, but it is easy to find accommodation on the private market, including in the area of the office in houses or in the city centre towers in modern apartments. Most of the food is imported except for sea products and some fruits and vegetables. There is a wide range of international schools, several of them offering IB curriculum including some in the office area. -In terms of recreational activities, Panama being a hub for the purchasing of goods for neighbouring countries, the city offers a lot of malls and doing shopping and going to malls is a common weekend activity. Cultural offer is limited but there are a good offer of restaurants and a dynamic nightlife. Beaches on the Pacific and Atlantic coasts are reachable within one hour by car or by boat directly from the city and there are some options for hiking too. There is also a relatively good range of sports activities.

Additional Qualifications

Skills

BU-PeopleSoft EPM/Budget, FI-Application of Financial Rules, Regulations and Procedures, IT-Computer Literacy, SC-UN/UNHCR Procurement Rules and Procedures, UN-UN/UNHCR Administrative Rules, Regulations and Procedures

Education

Certifications

Business Administration – Other, Finance – Other, Human Resources – Other, Office Management – Other

Work Experience

Administration, Human Resources, Staff Health and Wellbeing

Competencies

Accountability, Analytical thinking, Change capability & adaptability, Client & results orientation, Commitment to continuous learning, Communication, Managing resource, Organizational awareness, Planning & organizing, Teamwork & collaboration

UNHCR Salary Calculator

https://icsc.un.org/Home/SalaryScales

Compendium

Additional Information

Functional clearance

This position doesn”t require a functional clearance