Safety & Occupational Health Specalist

Full Job Description

The Safety & Occupational Health Specialist serves as the Green Environmental Management System (GEMS) Coordinator and is the key member of the VAMC GEMS Committee responsible for coordinating the development and implementation of the VA GEMS across the Dorm VA Healthcare System.

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 03/05/2026.

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-12 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-11. 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.

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet the Individual Occupational Requirement (IOR). An IOR is a basic requirement that must be met in order to qualify for the GS 0018 occupational series.

Education must be accredited by an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education at the time the degree was obtained.

To qualify for this occupational series, applicants must have one of the following listed below : Undergraduate and Graduate Education: Major study -- safety or occupational health fields (safety, occupational health, industrial hygiene), or degree in other related fields that included or was supplemented by at least 24 semester hours of study from among the following (or closely related) disciplines: safety, occupational health, industrial hygiene, occupational medicine, toxicology, public health, mathematics, physics, chemistry, biological sciences, engineering, and industrial psychology.(Transcripts Required) OR, Specialized experience: Experience in or related to safety and occupational health that provided the specific knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position.

Examples of qualifying specialized experience include: Managing safety or occupational health program elements.

Developing and recommending safety and occupational health policy to higher levels of management.

Applying safety and occupational health laws, regulations, principles, theories, practices, and procedures to advise on or resolve technical matters dealing with occupational safety and health requirements.

Developing safety and occupational health standards, regulations, practices, and procedures to eliminate or control potential hazards.

Developing or implementing programs to reduce the frequency, severity, and cost of accidents and occupational illnesses.

Analyzing or evaluating new and existing jobs, processes, products, or other systems to determine the existence, severity, probability, and outcome of hazards.

Designing or modifying workplaces, processes, products, or other systems to control or eliminate hazards.

Inspecting or surveying workplaces, processes, products, or other systems for compliance with established safety and occupational health policies or standards and to identify potential new hazards.

Training of workers, supervisors, managers, or other safety and occupational health personnel in safety or occupational health subjects.

Work in occupational fields such as industrial hygienist, safety engineer, fire prevention engineer, health physicist, and occupational health nurse.

In addition to meeting the Individual Occupational Requirement, applicants may qualify based on their experience as described below: You may qualify based on your experience and/or education s described below: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-11 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization.

Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Managing safety or occupational health program elements.

Developing and recommending safety and occupational health policy to higher levels of management.

Applying safety and occupational health laws, regulations, principles, theories, practices, and procedures to advise on or resolve technical matters dealing with occupational safety and health requirements.

Developing safety and occupational health standards, regulations, practices, and procedures to eliminate or control potential hazards.

Developing or implementing programs to reduce the frequency, severity, and cost of accidents and occupational illnesses.

Analyzing or evaluating new and existing jobs, processes, products, or other systems to determine the existence, severity, probability, and outcome of hazards.

Designing or modifying workplaces, processes, products, or other systems to control or eliminate hazards.

Inspecting or surveying workplaces, processes, products, or other systems for compliance with established safety and occupational health policies or standards and to identify potential new hazards.

Training of workers, supervisors, managers, or other safety and occupational health personnel in safety or occupational health subjects.

Work in occupational fields such as industrial hygienist, safety engineer, fire prevention engineer, health physicist, and occupational health nurse..

You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Communications Environmental Engineering Hardware Engineering Health Physics Technical Competence Technical Documentation Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religions; spiritual; community; student; social).

Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment.

You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week.

Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities.

Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment.

Physical Requirements: The work requires moderate physical activity, including walking, climbing stairs and vertical ladders, and long periods of standing when conducting onsite evaluations.

Onsite visits require regular and recurrent exposure to operating machinery, equipment, high-noise areas, hazardous materials, dust, and fumes, which may require personal protective equipment to control or reduce the risk.

The work requires significant travel utilizing vehicles and air transportation that may involve long hours of travel, often beyond the normal work shift.

Travel is often required on weekends to meet complex work and meeting schedules.

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: Advise management on how environmental policies, procedures and systems will affect the operation of the VA Medical Center.

Evaluate, modify and implement pollution prevention alternatives at the Medical Center and Outpatient Clinics to reduce the generation of waste.

Manage and/or provide technical advice regarding response to environmental emergencies including releases/spills of hazardous material.

Facilitate the exchange of environmental information to Medical Center and Outpatient Clinics staff, including the development and implementation of Develop and present to upper-level VA Medical Center management budgetary information related to environmental programs.

Manage computer programs and databases to enhance management of environmental programs.

Develops healthcare decontamination, respiratory protection and Green Environmental Management Systems (GEMS) programs at the Medical Center and Outpatient Clinics.

Resolves difficult and complex technical, project management and organizational problems using innovative and original approaches.

Serves as an expert on issues related to environmental statutes and Occupational Safety and Health Administration requirements, as well as for new or enhanced information system software related to occupational safety and health and environmental programs.

Develops facility decontamination programs in compliance with agency policy, regulatory standards and current best practices. Leads facility training and exercises.

Develops, conducts, and participates in training sessions for the Medical Center and Outpatient Clinics personnel. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday 7:00am - 3:30pm.

(Schedule subject to change based on needs of the Agency,) Compressed/Flexible: Yes Telework: This position may be authorized for telework.

Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process. Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Position Description/PD#: Safety & Occupational Health Specalist/PD013110 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized