The position serves as an Industrial Hygienist in the Quality Safety Value Service at the Johnathan M/ Wainwright Memorial VA Medical Center.

Duties

Performs analysis to determine nature and degree of toxic materials present. Receives and disposes of hazardous wastes and maintains appropriate records in accordance with existing EPA standards, state laws, and VA regulations. Develops criteria used in evaluations, prescribes corrective procedures and actions to protect health, and instructs employees in these areas. Conducts studies of work operations and processes, examining work environments, analyzing findings, promulgating recommendations, and preparing various reports. Inspects the medical center to identify potential occupational health hazards and the need for further investigative studies and surveys to determine compliance with various established criteria, evaluating exposures, and advising on control measures and changes in work procedures or schedules to comply with established health requirements, and providing information for evaluation purposes. Plans and carries out assignments, resolving conflicts that arise, coordinating work with other, and for interpreting policy. Prepares comprehensive and legally sufficient written reports of all monitoring activities performed which are subsequently incorporated into comprehensive reports prepared to assess the overall effectiveness of the industrial hygiene program. Develops programs to train and protect employees. Provides consultative services to management. Uses of a full range of industrial hygiene sampling techniques, instrumentation, analytical methods, and control measures utilized to identify and control industrial hygiene exposures. Manages and directs an industrial hygiene program including planning and initiating surveys of work operations to identify and quantify hazardous conditions, and personal contact with medical center personnel to convey information and obtain corrective action. Devises alternative methods to accomplish program objectives when technical guidelines are not always clear-cut, economic conflicts arise. Work situations cover a wide variety of hazards, work activities and environments and involve numerous types and quantities of exposure to chemical, biological, physical, and radiological hazards. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday 8:00am-4:30pm Position Description Title/PD#: Industrial Hygienist/PD803350 Physical Requirements: The performance of duties requires long periods of walking, standing, crawling, kneeling and bending. Moderate lifting and carrying of equipment, use of personal protective devices, and work in hazardous and confined spaces is required. Use of all appendages, good vision, and hearing are necessary. Emotional and mental stability are required. Working Environment: The incumbent is frequently exposed to potentially hazardous conditions and materials such as noise, dust, asbestos, fumes, smoke gases, solvents, flammables, explosives. The incumbent is frequently exposed to equipment in operation and construction hazards. Temperatures encountered can be extremely hot or cold for periods of time. Per OSHA requirements, a beard is not permitted due to the usage of a respirator. The ability to operate a motor vehicle is necessary.

Requirements

• You must be a U.S. citizen to apply for this job
• Subject to a background/suitability investigation
• May serve a probationary period
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• A complete application package; Resume, Transcripts, etc.
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process
• 5 CFR 330.502 - General restriction on movement after competitive appointment applies.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement. Individual Occupational Requirement (IOR): An IOR is a basic requirement that must be met in order to qualify for the 0690 occupational series. All applicants, regardless of grade level must meet minimum education requirements. For this occupation, the education must be accredited by an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education at the time the degree was obtained. Applicants must meet one of the following requirements: NOTE: Courses in the history or teaching of chemistry are not acceptable. A bachelors or graduate/higher level degree in industrial hygiene, occupational health sciences, occupational and environmental health, toxicology, safety sciences, or related science. OR, A bachelors degree in a branch of engineering, physical science, or life science that included 12 semester hours in chemistry, including organic chemistry, and 18 additional semester hours of courses in any combination of chemistry, physics, engineering, health physics, environmental health, biostatistics, biology, physiology, toxicology, epidemiology, or industrial hygiene. OR, A Certification from the American Board of Industrial Hygiene (ABIH). GS-11 grade level: One year of specialized experience (equivalent to the GS-09 grade level in the federal service); experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities (KSA's) and other characteristics to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled, in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Specialized experience includes: Professional knowledge of industrial hygiene principles, procedures, standards, equipment, techniques, and methods. Applies knowledge to a full range of industrial and hazardous operations such as: clinical, research, nuclear medicine, and radiological procedures; use and storage of hazardous drugs and materials, building construction; maintenance shops; generating plants; warehousing; grounds maintenance; hazardous waste handling and disposal; and various other medical center operations where there is exposure to hazardous materials and environments. OR Applicants may substitute education for the experience required for the GS-11 level. You must have a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree or three full academic years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a doctoral degree in a field closely related to the duties of the position. 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.

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.

Contacts

• Address Jonathan M Wainwright Memorial VA Medical Center 77 Wainwright Drive Walla Walla, WA 99362 US
• Name: Danielle Callinder
• Phone: 253-582-8440 X75465
• Email: [email protected]