Safety & Occupational Health Specialist (Life Safety Program)

Full Job Description

The Safety and Occupational Health Specialist oversees facility life safety and occupational safety programs; develops policies, procedures, and training; conducts inspections, risk assessments, and hazard analyses; ensures compliance with federal and regulatory standards; investigates incidents; monitors fire, construction, and environmental safety; coordinates safety committees and inspections; tracks corrective actions; and advises leadership on safety management and risk mitigation.

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 03/16/2026.

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.

INDIVIDUAL OCCUPATIONAL REQUIREMENTS (IOR): Education.

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.

(TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED) OR, Experience.

Specialized experience: Experience in or related to safety & 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 & occupational health policy to higher levels of management; Applying safety & occupational health laws, regulations, principles, theories, practices, and procedures to advise on or resolve technical matters dealing with occupational safety & health requirements; Developing safety & 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 & occupational health policies or standards and to identify potential new hazards; Training of workers, supervisors, managers, or other safety & 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.

OR, Certification as a Certified Safety Professional (CSP), Certified Industrial Hygienist (CIH), or Certified Health Physicist (CHP), or similar certification that included successful completion of a written examination meets the requirements for GS-5.

Applicants may also qualify for higher grade levels based on their education and/or experience.

In addition to meeting the Individual Occupational Requirements (IOR) above, you may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-09 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization.

Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Develop, implement, and manage safety & occupational health programs in a health care setting; Provide statistical analysis of data, and graphical presentation of information using technology; Experience using ECOMP; Evaluate, apply methods and equipment to, and make decisions regarding safety practice; Draw conclusions from fact and principle analysis; Independently formulate corrective or abatement procedures; Identify, evaluate, and determine causal factors, deficiencies, and hazards or instances of noncompliance; Determine and initiate corrective actions based on standards; Write policies; Apply standards based on NFPA, OSHA, VA, The Joint Commission (TJC), and EPA regulatory codes; Confirm safety compliance or identify concerns in engineering plans; Analyze work processes to ensure safe work standards are met, PPE requirements are maintained, and hazard precautions are employed; Budgeting and accounting; Develop sound transportation safety policies; Assess the relationship and impact of the working environment upon individuals and motivate workers to perform safely; Develop and conduct safety and occupational health training.

OR, Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have a Ph.D.

or equivalent doctoral degree or 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree or LL.M. if related. (TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED).

OR, Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level.

You must have a combination of specialized experience and education beyond a master's or equivalent graduate degree.

Note: Only post-graduate level education in excess of the amount required for the next lower grade level (beyond 2 full years - 36 hours - of progressively higher level graduate education) may be combined with experience.

(TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED).

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:

Conduct safety surveillance audits and inspections on a frequent basis according to required standards and regulations and depending on the degree of hazard.

Perform skillfully in safety work that involves a combined approach to unusual or complex safety and occupational health management issues.

Review safety policies, procedures, and regulations published by serviced organizations. Conduct comprehensive analytical surveys and/or studies of serviced safety programs.

Investigate hazardous conditions, equipment, and practices to identify and analyze the nature and severity of hazards and possible remedial actions.

Investigate accidents/mishaps, obtain witness statements, photograph the accident scene, record circumstances and extent of injuries, and estimate cost of property damages.

Advise and consult on the overall planning and programming requirements for and problems encountered in the day-to-day operations of a facility.

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

Research various sources of information for promotional items and campaigns to initiate and maintain interest in accident prevention and occupational health for at-work and off-the-job employee activities.

Develop or adapt materials for safety campaigns and training courses. Maintain historical safety records and note trends or changing conditions that warrant revision of safety procedures.

Provide technical assistance to managers and supervisors necessary to achieve safe and healthful working conditions.

Plan, schedule, and conduct difficult inspections in establishments and worksites where there is a strong probability of encountering hazardous work processes and materials, and unsafe environmental conditions, involving a substantial number of employees.

Ensure safety programs meet regulatory compliance by oversight agencies.

Ensure corrective actions are initiated and consult with personnel/managers on changes in work processes and proposed methods to eliminate unnecessary risks and control hazardous conditions.

Regulate and enforce safety policies, programs, or activities.

Update education and promotional information bulletin boards and disseminate information via contemporary communication means to all assigned areas.

Prepare reports on investigation findings, including recommendations to correct unsafe acts or conditions which caused an accident.

Ensure information and guidance developed by accident prevention committees is distributed to all pertinent parties. Manage computer programs and databases to enhance management of safety programs.

Work Schedule: Monday-Friday, 8:00am to 4:30pm Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Position Description/PD#: Safety & Occupational Health Specialist (Life Safety Program)/PD02337O Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized