Safety & Occupational Health Specialist

U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs; Washington (District of Columbia); On-site; USD 84,000 - 110,000; Full time

Job summary

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs seeks a Safety & Occupational Health Specialist to lead safety initiatives at the Washington, DC VA Medical Center. Responsibilities include implementing policies, managing incident investigations, and conducting training sessions, ensuring compliance with safety standards. This role offers a competitive salary and is integral to maintaining a safe working environment.

Qualifications

• Experience with safety and health regulations and policies required.
• Knowledge of OSHA standards is essential.

Responsibilities

• Implements safety, fire protection, and occupational health policies.
• Conducts safety drills and develops training plans for employees.
• Investigates incidents impacting employee safety.

Skills

Analysis

Communication

Project Management

Technical Competence

Education

Degree in safety, occupational health, industrial hygiene or related fields

Job description

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U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs provided pay range

This range is provided by U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Your actual pay will be based on your skills and experience — talk with your recruiter to learn more.

Base pay range

$84,601.00/yr - $109,975.00/yr

Summary

The position serves as the resident expert at the Washington, DC VA Medical Center in support of VISN, VACO, and the Executive Office of the President execution of Law, Executive Order, or VA Policy in which Energy Management is the primary concern. The incumbent implements energy conservation initiatives and prepares project submission documents for cost-effective energy conservation retrofit projects.

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Duties

MAJOR DUTIES

• Prepares written procedures for the implementation of safety, fire protection, and occupational health policies.
• Ensures that fire drills are conducted throughout the facility according to VA and local policies, assists management in developing a comprehensive Disaster Plan, and conducts disaster drills.
• Consult with certified professional Industrial Hygienists for the purpose of assuring facility compliance with all OSHA standards for general industry.
• Investigates alleged adverse incidents involving regulated materials, machinery, or other items that have an impact on employee/patient safety or occupational health, including thorough reporting of findings, related data, illustrations, analysis, and recommendations.
• Provides advisory services on the practical use of safety resources and program compliance with safety and occupational health standards.
• Manages and supervises hazardous chemical spill cleanups with the medical center.
• Develop training plans for employees in the fields of fire protection, workplace safety, and occupational health, including accomplishment and documentation of training.
• Conducts safety and fire protection orientation classes for all employees.
• Reviews proposed/required corrective actions to ensure the accomplishment of hazard abatement.
• Develop an operating budget for the services in areas of safety, occupational health, fire protection, and industrial hygiene.
• Conduct administrative inspections of patient care areas for hazards associated with the Environment of Care (EOC) and Life Safety Code violations.
• Makes recommendations and follow-up inspections when necessary to assure compliance.
• Recommends sampling strategies for the performance of environmental surveys; participates in surveys for the purpose of verifying proper completion and adequate documentation; reviews construction drawings for compliance with fire codes and other safety standards; coordinates safety and occupational health activities with medical and administrative personnel and other hospitals representatives; develop hospital responses to inquiries from other facilities, agencies, and outside sources.
• Prepares monthly, quarterly, and annual occupational safety and health reports as specified by MP-3, Part 111, and other regulations.
• Provides advisory services on the practical use of safety resources and program compliance with safety and occupational health standards. Manages and supervises hazardous chemical spill cleanups with the medical center.
• Develop training plans for employees in fields related to fire protection, workplace safety, and occupational health, including the accomplishment and documentation of training.
• Conducts safety and fire protection orientation classes for all employees.
• Develops and operates a budget for the services in areas of safety, occupational health, fire protection, and industrial hygiene. Conducts administrative inspections of patient care areas for hazards associated with the Environment of Care (EOC) and Life Safety Code violations.
• Other duties as assigned.
  
  

Work Schedule: 07:00 AM - 3:30 PM, Monday-Friday

Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Position Description/PD#: Safety & Occupational Health Specialist/PD513220

Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized

Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Authorized

Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

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Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• You may be required to serve a probationary period
• Subject to background/security investigation
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP)
  
  

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 06/30/2025.

Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade at 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 that you possess one year of time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one year of 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) appointments.

Individual Occupational Requirement (IOR): This position has an IOR; failure to demonstrate that you meet the following requirements will result in an ineligibility rating.

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. This education must have been obtained at an accredited college or university.

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.
  
  

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: Performing surveys; inspecting construction projects and designs to determine compliance; recommending corrective measures to eliminate or control hazards; and interpreting NFPA, JC, and OSHA regulations to determine compliance.
  
  

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 three (3) full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree or LL.M. if related, that provided the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position. (One year of full-time graduate education is considered to be the number of credit hours that the school attended has determined to represent one (1) year of full-time study. If that information cannot be obtained from the school, 18 semester hours will be considered as satisfying the one (1) year of full-time study requirement).
  
  NOTE: Transcripts must be submitted with your application materials. Education cannot be credited without documentation.
  
  

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 degree.
  
  NOTE: Your experience must be documented in your resume, and transcripts are required.
  
  

You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position:

• Administration and Management
• Communication
• Project Management
• Technical Competence
  
  
  
  

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, 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.

Preferred specialized experience with the following certifications or be able to obtain within 12 months of hire: Safety Program Management, Safety Management Systems, Applied Fire/Safety/Protection Analysis (NFPA 101), Risk Management & Job Hazard Analysis, Motor Vehicle and Transportation Safety, Radiological Health and Safety, Safety Training and Educational Strategies, Systems Safety and Analysis, Legal Aspects of Occupational Health and Safety, OSHA 510 / OSHA Construction, Electrical Safety (NFPA 70E/NEC)Hazardous Materials (HAZMAT) (HAZWOPR), Ergonomics, Industrial Hygiene, OSHA 2264 Hazardous Environment Operations / Confined Space Entry, OSHA 511 Standards for General Industry, Accident Investigation and Analysis, and/ or Blueprint Reading and Interpretation



Physical Requirements: The position is sedentary for long periods but is frequently required to make site surveys requiring prolonged standing, walking, climbing, bending, stooping, stretching, reaching, and other physical movement. Physical coordination, balance, and good health are required because the incumbent is often exposed to fire situations, construction sites, and hazardous materials.

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/.

Education

A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.



Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

Additional information

Receiving Service Credit or Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6, or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior work experience or military service experience. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed.

Special Employment Consideration: VA encourages persons eligible for hiring under 5 CFR 213.3102(u), Schedule A, Appointment, or other preference eligible veterans to apply. Contact the Agency Contact for information on how to apply under this appointment authority via the Selective Placement Coordinator.

The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced Federal/VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be qualified you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified for this vacancy. To be well-qualified: applicants must possess experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in most of the required competencies of the job. Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/.

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement.

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• Help A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.
  
  

Review our benefits

Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.

Seniority level

• Seniority level

  Mid-Senior level

Employment type

• Employment type

  Full-time

Job function

• Job function

  Management and Manufacturing

• Industries

  Hospitals and Health Care

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