Summary The incumbent serves as a Safety and Occupational Health Specialist under the direct supervision of the Safety and Occupational Health Manager at Dayton VA Medical Center, in Dayton, OH. The incumbent will work with the Executive Leadership Team, Service Chiefs, supervisors, and safety and occupational health committees to eliminate or control hazardous operations or conditions. The incumbent manages construction safety and fire prevention programs. The Dayton VAMC is a 1C facility. Responsibilities Duties include, but are not limited to: Designated as the Life Safety expert and is responsible for the initiation, development, administration, coordination and auditing all operations in aspects of Federal, State, and municipal safety and fire protection. Will assist the Green Environmental Management System (GEMS) Program Manager, Industrial Hygienist, hazardous materials (HAZMAT) Manager, Emergency Manager, and others as appropriate to ensure that employees, veterans, and others are protected from life safety hazards. Evaluates and corrects risk potentials arising from fire, occupational, and construction safety, and environmental hazards at the Medical Center and related off-site medical areas, residential homes, nursing homes, and offices. Assures the validity of data collected, accurate documentation of occurrences and data summaries, and maintenance of program information. exams available data to identify possible sources of losses experienced, determining critical factors prior to occurrence, and recommendation of alternative adjustments to eliminate or minimize losses from injuries and illnesses. Provides technical assistance for construction projects and life safety audits to resolve environmental problems. Defining terminology, writing summaries and preparing documentation related to safety and occupational health. Conducts in-depth surveys and evaluations of working conditions/environments to determine the nature and magnitude of life safety hazards and the effectiveness of existing control measures. Conferences with managers and employee representatives to explain the purpose and scope of inspections and the pertinent regulations as well as reviews of hazards noted and ways to abate identified hazards. Schedules surveys, fire drills, life safety code inspections, construction safety inspections (where applicable) of numerous Medical Center areas, workplace facilities, patient care environments, community based outpatient clinics (CBOC), shops, nursing homes, residential homes, to identify and evaluate risk potential, safety hazards, involving a wide variety of work environments and occupations Develops goals and objectives, prioritizes work activities based on organizational structure, prepares safety policies, procedures and guidelines, develops safety training curriculum and reviews. Other duties as assigned Work Schedule: 0730-1600 Monday-Friday Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Safety & Occupational Health Specialist/PD028490 Requirements Conditions of Employment You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job. Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959 Physical Requirements: See VA Handbook 5019 Subject to background/security investigation Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment. Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP) Driver's License Requirement. Driving may be necessary for this position. You must: a. Possess a valid, unrestricted State driver's license, b. Have a safe driving record, and c. Demonstrate that you are medically qualified to operate the appropriate motor vehicle safely. As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider: your performance and conduct; the needs and interests of the agency; whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service. Upon completion of your probationary period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest. Qualifications To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 03/30/2026. 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-11 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-9. 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. You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-9 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Ensures that fire drills are conducted throughout the facility according to VA and local policies, assists management in developing a comprehensive Disaster Plan, and conducts disaster drills. Develops training plans for employees in fields of fire protection, workplace safety, and occupational health, including accomplishment and documentation of training. Conducts inspections for safety and fire protection measures. Makes recommendations and follow-up inspections when necessary to assure compliance. Ability to interpret design criteria sufficient to review construction drawings and specifications for compliance with applicable codes and standards. Knowledge of all standards applicable to safety, occupational health, and fire protection. Conducts administrative inspections of medical facility for hazards and Life Safety Code violations. . OR, 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, Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. 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/. Additional Information Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act. Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a RA, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments. Receiving Service Credit for Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. VA may offer newly-appointed Federal employee's credit for their job-related non-federal experience or active duty uniformed military service. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be qualified you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified for this vacancy. To be well-qualified: applicants must possess experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in most of the required competencies of the job. Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/.
