This position is located at the Beckley, West Virginia VA Medical Center, in the Safety Department under the Associate Director's Office. Incumbent serves as the Safety and Occupational Health Specialist and is responsible for assisting in the development, implementation and maintenance of comprehensive safety, occupational health, fire safety, and emergency management programs for a medical center engaged in a diversity of programs, including medical, psychiatric, and alcohol/drug abuse.

Duties

Serves in a regulatory and enforcement capacity to assure compliance with all applicable criteria adopted or developed by the VA to recognize, evaluate, control and eliminate hazards encountered in the construction, operation and maintenance of the health care facility and supporting facilities (i.e. leased space(s), Veterans Outreach Centers, etc.). The incumbent serves as a staff advisor to the Safety Manager and assists in providing guidance, technical assistance and advice to all levels of medical center management for effective application of the program. Under the direction of the Safety Manager, the incumbent plans, organizes and administers a series of comprehensive inspections of the medical center inpatient care areas, laboratory areas, engineering shops, administrative offices, as well as community homes, nursing homes, medical foster homes, residential board and care homes. The incumbent provides reports on compliance and violations of safety and fire protection mandates, in compliance with the guidelines and regulations developed by Veterans Affairs Central Office (VACO), Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), The Joint Commission (TJC), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF) and other agencies. Conducts and monitors safety; occupational health, TJC, CARF, emergency management and fire protection training for all medical center staff as required by VA, TJC, CARF and OSHA regulations; evaluates and reports on safety- related training performed station wide. Assists in assuring compliance with federal, state and local regulations concerning the management of hazardous materials and wastes from the point of entry into the facility to its final disposal. Responsible for the day-to-day planning and prioritization, and independently plans and carries out inspections and monitoring required for accomplishing the program objectives in maintaining a safe environment for the medical center. Assists in the planning, development, coordination, and evaluation of the Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan (CEMP) for the medical center and other supporting facilities. Assists in the planning, development and construction phases of all construction projects and monitors construction work sites for compliance with applicable standards and conformance with Life Safety Codes and OSHA regulations. The incumbent assists design engineers in the unique safety features required in renovations, including building construction, fire and smoke detection, and suppression system. Advise, counsel and assist employees and supervisors in modifying their concepts, programs, methodologies, standards and procedures to assure maximum protection of workers and must have the knowledge to evaluate the effectiveness of the guidance and surveillance provided. Knowledge of the latest VA policies, regulations, standards, operational directives and methodologies, as well as TJC, GARF, OSHA, EPA, and NFPA standards is required. Work Schedule: 8:00 am-4:30 pm Monday-Friday (Eastern Standard Time) Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Safety & Occupational Health Specialist/PD231760 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): 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, 11/17/2023. 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-09 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-07. 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): Must be satisfied to be further considered for the position. Education Undergraduate and Graduate Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have: 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. 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. OR, Certificates 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. Applicants may also qualify for higher grade levels based on their education and/or experience. OR, Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have an combination of specialized experience and education beyond undergraduate level. OR, GS-09 Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have a master's or equivalent graduate degree or 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree or LL.B. or J.D., if related. Such education must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work. OR,GS-09 Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have an combination of specialized experience directly related to the work of the Safety & Occupation Health Specialist position and education beyond 1 year of graduate level education (the first year of graduate study is not qualifying for GS-9). Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-07 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Performs Safety Inspections to identify hazards, detect risks, and determine causal relationships. Develops abatement recommendations for Safety and Occupational Health hazards. Responsible for the day-to-day planning and prioritization and independently plans and carries out inspections Reviews and conducts investigations of accidents resulting in injury, property damage, and/or fire. Prepares annual reports, statistical and/or investigative reports. Note: Evidence of specialized experience must be supported by detailed documentation of duties performed in positions held on your resume. You must provide work experience information such as hours per week, salary, and starting/ending dates of employment (month and year format) to establish you have one (1) full year of Specialized Experience at or comparable to the required grade level. You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: CommunicationsComplianceProblem SolvingSafety EngineeringTechnical 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; 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: Incumbent accomplishes on-site visits throughout the facility and requires moderate physical exertion, including transporting equipment, climbing, standing, walking and bending, as well as using personal protective devices and occasional work in confined spaces. Incumbent must have good hearing, eyesight, color and depth perception, and the use of all limbs. 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: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html.

Contacts

• Address Beckley VA Medical Center 200 Veterans Avenue Beckley, WV 25801 US
• Name: Kellye Nolen
• Phone: 404-314-4165
• Email: [email protected]