Industrial Hygienist

Full Job Description

The incumbent serves as an Industrial Hygienist in the Occupational Safety & Health Service (OSH) which reports to Facilities Engineering or the Associate Director located at the facility.

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 04/20/2026.

Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement.

For a GS-11 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-09. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service.

An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials.

If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement.

In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade.

Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment.

You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: Basic Education Requirements A bachelor's or graduate/higher level degree in industrial hygiene, occupational health sciences, occupational and environmental health, toxicology, safety sciences, or related science; or A bachelor's degree in a branch of engineering, physical science, or life science that included 12 semester hours in chemistry, including organic chemistry, and 18 additional semester hours of courses in any combination of chemistry, physics, engineering, health physics, environmental health, biostatistics, biology, physiology, toxicology, epidemiology, or industrial hygiene; or Certification from the Board for Global EHS Credentialing (formerly American Board of Industrial Hygiene(external link) (ABIH)).

Courses in the history or teaching of chemistry are not acceptable. The education must be accredited by an accrediting body recognized by the U.S.

Department of Education(external link) at the time the degree was obtained.

Applicants must meet one of the following requirements: GS-11 Qualifications In addition to meeting the basic entry qualification requirements above, applicants must have the following specialized experience and/or directly related education: Education: 3 years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a Ph.D.

degree or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree OR One (1) year of specialized experience equivalent to at least GS-9.

Specialized Experience is defined as experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled.

To be creditable, specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the next lower grade level in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization.

Examples of Specialized Experience for this occupational series includes: the recognition, evaluation, corrective actions, and elimination of environmental conditions in the workplace that causes sickness, impaired health, or illness.

This experience must demonstrate a professional knowledge of the theory and application of the principles of industrial hygiene and closely related sciences such as physics and engineering controls.

Preferred Experience: Experience with Organic Chemistry Evaluation of Education All science or engineering courses offered in fulfillment of the above requirements must be acceptable for credit toward the completion of a standard 4-year professional curriculum leading to a bachelor's degree in science or engineering at an accredited college or university.

For engineering degrees to be acceptable, the curriculum must be in a school of engineering with at least one curriculum accredited by the ABET (Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology) as a professional engineering curriculum.

Evaluation of Experience Qualifying experience involves the recognition, evaluation, corrective actions, and elimination of environmental conditions in the workplace that causes sickness, impaired health, or illness.

This experience must demonstrate a professional knowledge of the theory and application of the principles of industrial hygiene and closely related sciences such as physics and engineering controls.

Such work must have involved experience in all of the following areas: the acquisition of quantitative and qualitative data, and the measurement of exposures for a variety of chemical, physical, and biological stresses; the analysis of the data acquired and the prediction of probable effects of exposures on the health and well-being of workers; and the selection and recommendation of appropriate controls, including management, medical, engineering, education or training, and personal protective equipment.

For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.

Major Duties:

Major duties include but may not be limited to the following: Program Management Planning and implementation of comprehensive industrial hygiene programs at the facility (Industrial Hygiene Exposure Assessments, Respiratory Protection, Hearing Conservation, Indoor Air Quality/Mold and Moisture Management, Ergonomics, Asbestos, Laboratory Occupational Health, Chemical Hygiene, & Lead sampling, among others) Assume a lead role in the development of industrial hygiene goals, policies, and procedural documentation for the facility.

Work closely with facility leadership to review how industrial hygiene considerations are integrated into the planning and operational activities of the facility for which he/she is responsible Support the development of facility industrial hygiene policies, programs, and procedural documentation Conduct surveys of working conditions to determine the nature and magnitude of hazardous exposures and the effectiveness of existing control measures Apply appropriate sampling techniques and procedures and may oversee the work of contractors engaged to perform specific monitoring Where hazardous exposures are discovered, devise or work with engineers to develop control measures, such as changes in work procedures, systems, materials or the use of personal protective equipment.

Test and Evaluation Evaluation of occupational health hazards thru the use of experienced judgment, qualitative, and quantitative measurement techniques to assess the magnitude of occupational health and environmental stressors in relation to their potential to impair workers' health and well-being.

Employing a wide variety of sampling instrumentation and techniques and having an understanding of the types and limitations of analytical methods used in determining sample results, interpreting the results, and the determining the degree of hazard to which workers are exposed after ascertaining the intensity and duration of exposure Communication and Collaboration Assist service by serving on, and providing, subject matter expertise to: committees such as Safety & Health Leadership Executive Committee (SHLEC), Accident Review Board, Patient Safety, Water Safety/Management, Ergonomics.

May also participate in Environment of Care rounds, and assisting the DECON Team and VISN 5 Safety/IH.

Implements IH policies and programs in accordance with regulatory requirements, consensus industry standards, consensus guidelines, Veterans Heath Administration (VHA) Directives and Guidelines, facility policies, and local government policies.

Utilize and manage computer programs and databases to track and manage the IH program. Manage a tracking system of IH equipment to ensure serviceability and inventory of supplies.

Discuss deficiencies and provide necessary remedial action with appropriate stakeholders.

Project Management Anticipation, recognition, evaluation, and control of occupational health and environmental conditions or stressors arising in or from the workplace, which may cause illness, injury, impaired health, significant discomfort, and/ or inefficiency.

Provide technical advice and direction to management and personnel regarding the IH program. Serve as a project manager for IH contracts and programs at our facility.

Responsible compliance with Joint Commission Standards and regulatory requirements, consensus industry standards, consensus guidelines, Veterans Heath Administration (VHA) Directives and Guidelines, facility policies, and local government policies.

Participate and respond to external reviews and inspections, including the Annual Workplace Evaluations (AWEs) Performs other duties as assigned.

Work Schedule: Full-time, Monday-Friday, 8:00am-4:30pm Telework: Ad-Hoc Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Position Description/PD#: Industrial Hygienist/PD048530 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized