This Safety and Occupational Health Manager position is within the Safety and Emergency Management Service at the White River Junction VA Medical Center located at the White River Junction, Vermont location. This position is full-time at 40 hours per week.

Duties

The incumbent serves as the Supervisory Safety and Occupational Health Specialist, and is responsible for planning, organizing, administering, and evaluating a comprehensive environmental and safety management program at the White River Junction, VT. VA Healthcare System (VAMC). The incumbent is the administrative head of the Safety Service which includes Environmental Compliance, Occupational Safety and Health, Safety Engineering, Fire Protection Engineering, Industrial Hygiene Program (Medical Center and Research), Green Environmental Management Program (GEMS) and the Life Safety Management Program. They develop and manage a comprehensive safety program which accounts for environmental risk management, hazardous material and waste management, Life safety and Fire safety compliance and all regulatory and compliance requirements. Major duties include but is not limited to: Fire Protection and Safety (25%): Develops and maintains a comprehensive fire protection program for both divisions of the Medical Center and supported activities. Develops programs to meet VACO, OSHA, CARF, JCAHO and other regulatory agency requirements. Development of a comprehensive Fire Protection Plan and the ongoing monitoring of the effectiveness of the plan. Evaluates reports of fires and directs implementation and evaluation of corrective action plans. Serves as the principal investigator on all major fires at the VA WRJ Healthcare System. Develops, administers, implements, and revises a comprehensive fire protection/prevention plan. Reviews and evaluates fire protection and prevention readiness. Oversees testing and maintenance of fire protection and alarm equipment. Industrial Hygiene (25%): Provides administrative guidance and sets broad program goals for the Industrial Hygienist. Establishes a mechanism for monitoring and evaluating the effectiveness of the program. Reviews, plans, develops, implements, and evaluates occupational safety procedures and policies to handle occupational hygiene issues (proper use of materials and equipment, carcinogens, antineoplastic, hazardous chemicals, biohazard, asbestos, noise abatement, respiratory protection, use of personnel protective equipment etc. Ensures all regulatory requirements are met. Conducts recurring or special surveys or investigations as requested or indicated using appropriate and systematic investigative mechanisms. Support of VISN and Local Environment of Care Committee (25%): Provides support to chairperson of the Environment of Care Committee by the following: Preparing indicator reports reflective of areas of responsibility, for example GEMS, accident, and incident rate statistics; assures that the committee is kept abreast of issues affecting the safety/life safety of employees, staff, visitors, and patients. Provides the committee with updates relating to ongoing construction products and any inherent hazards. Reports on current Intermediate Life Safety Measures in the hospital. Brings any discrepancies regarding JCAHO, OSHA, or National Fire codes to the committee for review. Supervision (25%): Directs subordinates, formulates standards of performance, sets timelines for work accomplished, delivers performance evaluations, approve/disapprove leave requests, give council/guidance on both work and administrative related higher-level problems or matters, writes position descriptions, makes final determination on discipline, and performs all aspect of human resources for subordinates. Ensures all subordinates receive equitable evaluations. Work Schedule: Full-Time, Monday-Friday, 8:00 am - 4:30 pm Telework: VA supports the use of telework as a way to help attract and retain talented individuals in public service, increase worker productivity, and better prepare the agency to operate during emergencies. This position may be authorized for telework. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Safety & Occupational Health Manager/PD033290 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): 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, 08/26/2024. 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-12 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-11. 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 Basic Requirements: The following education or experience are required to meet the specific qualification requirements for this position. Education: Undergraduate and Graduate Education: 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 Experience: Specialized Experience (for positions above GS-5): 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. You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: Specialized Experience: You must have one year (1) full year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level (GS-11) in the Federal Service that has given me the particular knowledge, skills and abilities required to successfully perform the duties of a Safety and Occupational Health Manager, and that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled. Qualifying specialized experience is demonstrated lead or supervisory experience such as directing the work of subordinates, managing performance, reviewing training needs, etc.; 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. 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. 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: The work involves the frequent performance of surveys and onsite visits to offices, laboratory, and maintenance shops necessitating prolonged periods of walking, standing, climbing, crouching, and lifting as much as 50 pounds. Work frequently involves walking, standing, bending, crawling during surveys of spaces. Protective devices and equipment must be worn as required by the hazards of incidence which may include extreme temperatures, asbestos, lead, chemical exposure, etc. Incumbent occasionally must climb ladders, navigate access hatches to perform observations of existing conditions of infrastructure. 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: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

Contacts

• Address White River Junction VA Medical Center 215 North Main St. White River Jct., VT 05009 US
• Name: Jessica Steed
• Phone: (802) 295-9363 X2021
• Email: [email protected]