What are the responsibilities and job description for the Safety & Occupational Health Specialist position at Northport VA Medical Center?
The Safety and Occupational Health Specialist works collaboratively with the Facility Management Service Chief in the Office of the Associate Medical Center Director on environmental matters as well as occupational safety and health at the Northport VA Medical Center. Will serve as the subject matter expert to address the entire range of environmental, occupational safety and health matters encountered.
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:
Individual Occupational Requirement: The Safety and Occupational Health Management Series, 0018, has an Individual Occupational Requirement that must be met in addition to the Specialized Experience.
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/.
Responsible for the total support of the Safety Program at this Medical Center. Includes the planning and coordination of activities to ensure that applicable regulations of the NFPA, JCAHO, OSHA. New York State and Suffolk County Codes are compliant and provide a safe environment for all patients, visitors and staff.
Identifies and eliminates safety hazards which frequently occur in such highly hazardous occupational fields such as Operating Room Suites, trade shops, food and laundry processing areas, Sewage Treatment and Boiler Plant Areas.
Design ongoing Environmental Testing Programs. Including testing for asbestos, PCB, Nitrous Oxide and other gasses or agents used, to insure levels of exposures are within acceptable limits. Must use data gather to modify or change existing work practices.
Responsible for overall planning and implementation of safety regulations into the standard work methods of employees in many highly specialized and potentially dangerous environments. This requires adapting established methods and work practices to comply with safety code requirements while not hindering the activity.
Plans and coordinates programs dealing with Disaster Drills, Safety Inspections, Community Home Inspections and various educational safety programs such as Driver Training and Employee Safety Orientation.
Responsible for insuring that all ongoing programs are in full compliance with the NFPA and JCAHO regulatory requirements.
Plans all actions required to correct cited or known deficiencies of the safety code. Including analyzing the solution to insure that it is practical and workable since any changes will directly affect the performance of employees throughout the Medical Center.
Incorporates the recommendations of the Radiation Safety Officer into working plans which are subsequently made policy. Inspects the Nuclear Medicine Program with RSO to ensure that all regulations are met.
Applies prescribed safety requirements to alter the working practices and procedures of employees in a variety of specialized fields.
Assist in enforcing established safety regulations, practices and standards to eliminate or control known hazards in specific work operations such as laboratories, Radiology, Nuclear Medicine and other areas unique to a Medical Center complex.
Monitors the Safety Inspection Program of the Fire Department to ensure all code requirements are met.
Work Schedule: Full-time, Monday - Friday, 8:00am to 4:30pm
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Position Description/PD#: Safety & Occupational Health Specialist/PD01257A
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized
Qualifications:
To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 06/11/2026.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:
Individual Occupational Requirement: The Safety and Occupational Health Management Series, 0018, has an Individual Occupational Requirement that must be met in addition to the Specialized Experience.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-09 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Experience and working knowledge of safety code regulations such as OSHA, JCAHO, NFPA, other state, city, and local county codes. Experience interpreting and adapting criteria to actual working conditions, practices, and various environments. Experience of safety and occupational health concepts. Experience working in the field of medical center facilities. Experience and skill in constantly updating environmental hazards to employees, identifying potentially hazardous agents, and skill in altering work procedures without hindering work activity. Ability to analyze, interpret policy, and apply policy.
- Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must 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 or LL.M., if related
- Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have an combination of specialized experience and education beyond a master's degree.
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/.
Responsibilities:
Duties include and are not limited to:Responsible for the total support of the Safety Program at this Medical Center. Includes the planning and coordination of activities to ensure that applicable regulations of the NFPA, JCAHO, OSHA. New York State and Suffolk County Codes are compliant and provide a safe environment for all patients, visitors and staff.
Identifies and eliminates safety hazards which frequently occur in such highly hazardous occupational fields such as Operating Room Suites, trade shops, food and laundry processing areas, Sewage Treatment and Boiler Plant Areas.
Design ongoing Environmental Testing Programs. Including testing for asbestos, PCB, Nitrous Oxide and other gasses or agents used, to insure levels of exposures are within acceptable limits. Must use data gather to modify or change existing work practices.
Responsible for overall planning and implementation of safety regulations into the standard work methods of employees in many highly specialized and potentially dangerous environments. This requires adapting established methods and work practices to comply with safety code requirements while not hindering the activity.
Plans and coordinates programs dealing with Disaster Drills, Safety Inspections, Community Home Inspections and various educational safety programs such as Driver Training and Employee Safety Orientation.
Responsible for insuring that all ongoing programs are in full compliance with the NFPA and JCAHO regulatory requirements.
Plans all actions required to correct cited or known deficiencies of the safety code. Including analyzing the solution to insure that it is practical and workable since any changes will directly affect the performance of employees throughout the Medical Center.
Incorporates the recommendations of the Radiation Safety Officer into working plans which are subsequently made policy. Inspects the Nuclear Medicine Program with RSO to ensure that all regulations are met.
Applies prescribed safety requirements to alter the working practices and procedures of employees in a variety of specialized fields.
Assist in enforcing established safety regulations, practices and standards to eliminate or control known hazards in specific work operations such as laboratories, Radiology, Nuclear Medicine and other areas unique to a Medical Center complex.
Monitors the Safety Inspection Program of the Fire Department to ensure all code requirements are met.
Work Schedule: Full-time, Monday - Friday, 8:00am to 4:30pm
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Position Description/PD#: Safety & Occupational Health Specialist/PD01257A
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized
Salary : $88,005