This position serves as a Safety Technician responsible for supporting a comprehensive safety, fire prevention, and inspection program for the Office of Safety and Emergency Management at the Bay Pines VA Healthcare System.

Duties

The major duties consist of fire equipment inspections, performing safety inspections, conducting ergonomic evaluations, maintaining safety bulletin boards, displays and scheduling/conducting fire drills. Duties include: Performs safety protection inspections where the hazards and potential severity could be of a high degree. The safety situations are difficult to recognize and require advanced, innovative methods in order to reduce or eliminate them. Inspects areas and buildings to include Engineering shops (carpentry, electrical, plumbing, air conditioning, painting, mechanical, grounds maintenance, refrigeration, machine, boiler & AC plant), oxygen storage, patient care areas (general medical, surgical, ICU, isolation rooms/areas, geriatrics and intermediate care services, psychiatric, nursing home care, and ambulatory care), clinical and research laboratories, parking lots, and outdoor work areas including construction sites. Discuss safety-related situations with personnel and searches technical manuals, and fire/safety codes to ascertain proper means for resolving workplace hazards. Determines measures to reduce or eliminate the potential for fire or safety hazards. Composes inspections and reports tp follow up on any discrepancies to ensure deficiencies are corrected. Inspects all facility portable fire extinguishers in accordance with National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) standards and takes immediate action to resolve identified deficiencies. Makes or recommends changes in basic safety protection, equipment, procedures or station policies. Participates in the investigation of safety incidents by inspecting areas and interviewing individuals. Incumbent may appear as a witness before courts or boards of inquiry. Makes thorough inspections and evaluations of conditions prior to issuing permits for cutting/welding with gas or arc equipment and above ceiling work. Ensures proper hot work and above ceiling permits and safeguards are in effect while such work is performed. Maintains and documents proper closure of permits. The incumbent conducts ergonomic evaluations in accordance with the expectations described within the VA Ergonomic Guidebook and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Guidance. Performs other related duties as assigned. Work Schedule: Monday- Friday 7:30AM-4:00PM Compressed/Flexible: Not Authorized Telework: Not Authorized Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Safety Technician/PD516-10940-A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 09/26/2023. 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-05 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-4. 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 for the GS-05 grade level 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-04 level in the federal service, that includes: (l) identifying, preventing, or eliminating safety hazards in work methods or environmental conditions; or (2) safety training or promotion. Such experience must have provided a practical knowledge of occupational and environmental safety hazards, survey techniques, and control and preventive methods. Examples of qualifying specialized experience include: biological technician, medical technician, engineering technician, fire prevention inspector, and environmental health worker. OR Education: Successful completion of a full 4-year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree with major study or at least 24 semester hours in any combination of subjects such as safety, fire prevention, industrial hygiene, or other directly related subjects. OR Combination: Specialized experience and education when combined equal to 100% of the requirement. (Only education in excess of the first 60 semester hours of a course of study leading to a bachelor's degree is creditable toward meeting the specialized experience requirements). Physical Requirements: The work involves working in an office environment, walking through areas to conduct inspections, lifting fire extinguishers or other equipment weighing 40 pounds or more, demonstrating use of equipment, frequent walking, bending, climbing, and crawling. Occasional period of physical exertion are required during fire alarm, patient evacuation or any other emergency that may occur or is reported.

Education

Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level only education in excess of the first 60 semester hours of a course of study leading to a bachelor's degree is creditable toward meeting the specialized experience requirements. Two full academic years of study, or 60 semester hours, beyond the second year is equivalent to l year of specialized experience.

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: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html.

Contacts

• Address CW Bill Young Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center 10000 Bay Pines Boulevard Bay Pines, FL 33744 US
• Name: Tamikia Walton
• Phone: 216-544-3848
• Email: [email protected]