Job opening: Safety and Occupational Health Specialist
Salary: $73 317 - 95 310 per year
Published at: Jan 25 2024
Employment Type: Full-time
This position serves as the Safety and Occupational Health Specialists for the New Mexico Veterans Administration Health Care System in Albuquerque, NM. This position supports safety and health staff in regulatory compliance, research, training, program development, accident prevention and safety surveys in a healthcare environment.
Duties
***THIS IS NOT A VIRTUAL POSITION, YOU MUST LIVE WITHIN OR BE WILLING TO RELOCATE WITHIN A COMMUTABLE DISTANCE OF THE DUTY LOCATION***
Duties may include, but are not limited to the following:
Assumes a lead role in the development of safety goals, policy, and procedural documentation for a facility.
Works closely with leadership to review how safety considerations are integrated into the planning and operational activities of the facility for which he/she is responsible.
Coordinates safety activities with local representatives and supports the development of integrated planning.
Develops goals and objectives, prepares safety policies, procedures and guidelines, organizes and participates in program budget.
Develops safety training curriculum and reviews proposed equipment procurement requests to insure the inclusion of necessary safety features.
Advises management officials within the assigned area on the status of the safety and occupational health programs and recommends changes in the design of work programs to meet new safety and occupational health standards.
Conducts inspections and surveys to assure that areas inspected conforms to applicable standards.
Develops and evaluates all safety, occupational health and fire protection programs conducted by safety office staff, and is responsible for assuring that training needs of employees, in regard to health and safety, are adequately met.
Conducts supervisory and employee training programs in safety and occupational health and coordinates training programs conducted by outside agencies or departments.
Performs other related duties as assigned.
Work Schedule: Monday-Friday, 07:00 a.m.-3:30 p.m
Recruitment & Relocation Incentives: Not authorized
Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not approved
Financial Disclosure Report: Not Required
Qualifications
TO QUALIFY FOR THIS POSITION AT THE GS-11 LEVEL YOU MUST MEET THE FOLLOWING CRITERIA:
SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: Have one (1) full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-9 level in the Federal service that equipped you with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of an Safety and Occupational Health Specialist, and that is typically in or related to the work of this position. 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. In addition, at this level, experience also includes conducting safety surveillance inspections; assisting in developing corrective action plans; occupational injury and illness record keeping; and investigating reports of unsafe or unhealthy working conditions. 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. NOTE: 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. -OR-
EDUCATION: Have successfully completed a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree or 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree. 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. This education must have been obtained in an accredited college or university. 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 number cannot be obtained from the school, 18 semester hours will be considered an academic year of graduate study. Part-time graduate education is creditable in accordance with its relationship to a year of full-time study at the school attended. (TRANSCRIPTS REQUIRED) -OR-
COMBINATION: Have an equivalent combination of successfully completed graduate education and specialized experience, as described above, which meets the total qualification requirement for the GS-11 grade level. Note: If you select this option, a copy of your transcripts is required. Education cannot be credited without documentation. Your resume must indicate clearly the nature of your duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment.
You will be rated on the following Competencies as part of the assessment questionnaire for this position:
Accident InvestigationCommunicationProblem SolvingPublic Safety and Security
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: There may be some walking or bending during infrequent walk-through inspections of worksites.
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:
Recognition of Foreign Qualifications | International Affairs Office (ed.gov).
Contacts
- Address Raymond G Murphy Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center
1501 San Pedro Drive, Southeast
Albuquerque, NM 87108
US
- Name: VHA National Recruitment Center
- Phone: (844)456-5208
- Email: [email protected]
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