Job Summary

The purpose of the position is to serves as the Chief, Occupational Safety and Health (OSH), and is responsible for directing, planning, developing, and implementing, assessing and accountability for oversight of the Veterans Affairs, GCVHCS, Safety and Occupational Health; Safe Patient Handling Management Program; Fire Protection; Green Environmental Management Systems (GEMS), Industrial Hygiene; and Construction Safety Programs.

Job Description

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 12/01/2025. 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 (IOR) BASIC REQUIREMENTS: You must meet one of the following Education or Experience Requirements: 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: 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 for GS-5. Applicants may also qualify for higher grade levels based on their education and/or experience. In addition to meeting the Individual Occupational Requirements above, you must possess the required specialized experience, education, or combination of experience and education as identified below: You may qualify based on your experience as described below: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-11 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Evaluating, planning, organizing, and administering a comprehensive safety management program. Travel and conduct regularly scheduled environmental rounds inspections, fire drills, nursing home inspections, etc. Manage databases and ensure reporting in an accurate and timely manner. Skilled in the use of a variety of fire, construction, property, and emergency preparedness amid safety codes and regulations. Conduct investigations and/or studies, analyze results, provide guidance, document reports, develop briefings, and encourage understanding and acceptance of conclusions and communicate across organizational lines. You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Knowledge Management Leadership Project Management Strategic Thinking 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 requires regular and recurring physical exertion related to frequent inspections and surveys requiring considerable standing, walking, climbing, bending, crouching, stretching, reaching or similar movements. Occasionally, there may be a need to lift and carry moderately heavy objects. The work may require some degree of agility and dexterity when, for example, it involves inspecting construction sites. The work is generally sedentary; however, there is extensive walking and standing while performing assessments At GCVHCS which includes five community-based outpatient clinics, on-site residence quarters, and transitional and nursing homes in the community that are under contract which must be inspected by GCVHCS's Safety Program. There is also some standing, bending, and carrying of small and light objects. The work is usually performed in an office setting. There may be occasional exposure to the risks and hazards of work environments and conditions requiring special safety precautions and clothing. 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/.