This position is located within the Occupational Safety and Health Office at the Lebanon VA Medical Center in Lebanon, PA. The primary purpose of the Safety and Occupational Health Specialist is to plan, develop and administer the Fire Prevention and Protection Program, providing oversight, inspections and surveys for all fire prevention and protection activities throughout the medical center and in support of all contracted community health and social work residential programs.

Duties

***THIS IS NOT A VIRTUAL POSITION, YOU MUST LIVE WITHIN OR BE WILLING TO RELOCATE WITHIN A COMMUTABLE DISTANCE OF THE DUTY LOCATION*** The major duties include but are not limited to: Ensures compliance with all safety and fire prevention requirements by employees and contractors while on VA grounds, with the authority to take immediate action when any situation develops which is deemed a hazard to employees, patients, visitors, contractors or property of the VA; Develops, updates and maintains all policies related to the Safety and Occupational Health Program; Issues reports of gap analysis and tracks the status of corrective and preventive actions; Reviews construction drawings and provides technical expertise for determination of location and adequacy of smoke walls, fire walls, sprinkler systems, alarms, occupancy requirements, exits, evacuation routes, types of doors, size of hallways and other Safety & Occupational Health and safety requirements; Conducts Risk Assessment of all construction designs, modifications and maintenance of facilities for all Safety and Occupational Health issues; Performs routine inspections on the VA campus to include: life safety, fire extinguisher, fire sprinkler, fire and smoke wall, fire and smoke door, exit door, interim life safety measures (ILSM), fire hydrant testing and fire alarm; Conducts and evaluates fire drills (quarterly and annually) in various locations throughout the VA Campus and Community-Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOC); Manages computer programs and databases to track the management of Safety and Occupational Health programs; Monitors contracts for fire alarm inspections, testing and maintenance for fire alarms, sprinklers, pumps and all associated equipment; Develops and executes an annual budget for the Safety and Occupational Health program; Prepares safety and fire prevention-related reports, correspondence, checklists and hazard abatement evaluations after all inspections, drills, etc.; Interviews individuals and develops fire incident reports ensuring completeness, accuracy and adequacy of corrective actions; Serves as a Liaison in Emergency Operation Center for the medical center to coordinate with outside agencies for additional support during emergencies or disasters; Serves as a member of the Environment of Care and Safety Council Committee, Construction Safety Committee, Emergency Management Committee and other committees as necessary; Conducts ergonomic assessments and respiratory protection fit tests as needed to ensure staff works in as safe a workplace as possible; Trains VA employees on the following: Fire Alarm Response, Fire Extinguishers, Interim Life Safety Measures, horizontal and vertical evacuation and providing new employee orientation; Designs and executes promotional and educational activities to promote stakeholder awareness of life safety (i.e., Fire Prevention Week); and, Performs all other duties as assigned. Work Schedule: Monday through Friday, 8:00 am - 4:30 pm. Recruitment & Relocation Incentives: Not authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not approved. Financial Disclosure Report: Not Required

Requirements

Qualifications

To qualify for this position at the GS-11 grade level, you must meet one of the following: Experience: You must have at least one (1) full year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level (GS-9) in the Federal Service that has given you the particular knowledge, skills and abilities required to successfully perform the duties of a Safety and Occupational Health Specialist, and that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled. Qualifying specialized experience includes: 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. NOTE: Experience must be fully documented on your resume and must include job title, duties, month and year start/end dates AND hours worked per week. ~OR~ Education: Successful completion of 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. The major study must be in 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. Such education must demonstrate the knowledge, skills and abilities necessary to do the work of the Safety and Occupational Health Specialist position. NOTE: Transcripts (unofficial or official) must be submitted with your application materials. Education cannot be credited without documentation. ~OR~ Combination: Equivalent combination of successfully completed graduate level education (beyond the second year) and specialized experience, as described above, which may be used to meet total experience requirements for this grade level. The education portion must include graduate courses that demonstrate the knowledge, skills and abilities necessary to do the work of the Safety and Occupational Health Specialist position such as safety or occupational health fields (safety, occupational health, industrial hygiene). NOTE: Transcripts (unofficial or official) must be submitted with your application materials. Education cannot be credited without documentation. ~AND~ Driver's License Requirement (Screen-out): This position requires driving a government vehicle to perform the official duties of the position; therefore, a current and valid state-issued driver's license is required. Note: We cannot accept photographs, therefore; please do not submit a copy of your driver's license with your application package. If an interview is requested, you may be required to provide a copy of your current and valid state-issued driver's license. You will be rated on the following Competencies as part of the assessment questionnaire for this position: SAFETY ENGINEERING PROBLEM SOLVING TECHNICAL COMPETENCE COMPLIANCE COMMUNICATIONS IMPORTANT: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. All experience listed on your resume must include the month and year start/end dates. 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. 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; religious; 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. Physical Requirements: Include office functions (10 - 20 hours per week) typically involve computer work, filing and paperwork. The remainder of the time the person in the position is involved in performing inspections and risk assessments throughout the entire medical center and facilities under the purview of the Lebanon VA Medical Center. This includes required access to all areas (including mechanical rooms, crawl spaces, attics, etc.). Due to the wide range of locations required to be inspected, this position involves frequent walking back and forth between buildings. The person in this position spends additional time outdoors in conjunction with construction projects. These routine inspections require physical exertion such as extensive walking and prolonged bending, stooping, crouching, climbing and standing to observe activities, construction sites, storage areas and leased spaces to name a few. Off-campus inspections involve the requirement to travel by government motor vehicle throughout Southcentral Pennsylvania throughout the year (summer and winter conditions). 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

IMPORTANT: 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 Lebanon VA Medical Center 1700 South Lincoln Avenue Lebanon, PA 17042 US
• Name: VHA National Recruitment Center
• Phone: (844)456-5208
• Email: [email protected]