Retail Operations Officer

About the role

The Sanitarian III position within the Retail Food Safety Operations (RFSO) Branch Manager supports and functions as a member of the two primary teams inherent in RFSO—namely Training and Compliance. This role involves performing highly advanced retail food safety operations work.

Responsibilities

• Participation in RFSO training functions, to include (a) maintenance of digital standardization records, (b) joint field inspections and standardization exercises, (c) development of training materials such as field manuals and Power Point presentations, and (d) presentation of training to small and large groups of DSHS staff and regulated stakeholders;
• Detailed quality assurance review of retail food inspection reports in accordance with 25 TAC 228 Texas Food Establishment Rules, FDA Food Code, and program policies and procedures and development of cases for escalated enforcement action;
• Frequent interaction with Regional-Local Health Operations (RLHO) Field Staff, regulated stakeholders, and the general public to assist with questions and interpretation of statutes/rules, licensing procedures, and complaints;
• Retail food safety policy development and implementation and legislative rule writing;
• Primary coordination for RFSO's response to (a) requests under the Freedom of Information Act and (b) quarterly reports for the Legislative Budget Board;
• Emergency response and other duties as assigned.

Requirements

To be considered for this role, candidates must possess a valid and current driver’s license, a Bachelor's Degree from a U.S. accredited college/university (or foreign education that has been determined to be equivalent by an acceptable education evaluator) with at least 30 semester hours in basic science, natural science, or any combination thereof, and have acquired a minimum of two (2) years of experience in the field of sanitation or environmental health. Experience working in food safety and communicating with and serving the public is also required.

Qualifications

Candidates must be a currently-licensed Registered Sanitarian (RS) in the state of Texas.

Skills

• Understanding and ability to discuss principles and practices of public health and retail food safety;
• Knowledge of state and federal laws pertaining to public health;
• Thorough knowledge of the statutes and rules that pertain to Retail Food Safety, to include: Texas Food Establishment Rules (25 TAC 228 & 229), 2017/2022 FDA Food Code, Health and Safety Code Chapters 431, 437, 437B, and 438;
• Ability to communicate technical information at various levels of understanding;
• Ability to be tactful and diplomatic in adverse situations;
• Ability to interact with professionals at all levels of government and industry;
• Ability to use proper inspection and sampling procedures and logical pathways to determine the compliance status of licensees;
• Ability to interpret policy and procedures, and the ability to respond to inquiries regarding same from both internal and external customers;
• Ability to exercise extensive latitude and independent judgment to coordinate and prioritize workloads with minimal supervision;
• Ability to coordinate and supervise activities between Branches and Sections and make the best use of resources;
• Ability to travel (in-state and out-of-state), as necessary, to attend technical training courses, perform inspections, and conduct training and evaluations of Inspection unit field staff;
• Ability to climb and move up to 50 pounds during inspections;
• Ability to identify rodent and insect filth and read labels with 1/32” type size during inspections;
• Extensive experience using Microsoft Office, to include Word, Excel, and Power Point.

Benefits

DSHS offers insurance coverage and other benefits available through the State of Texas Group Benefits Plan administered by the Employee Retirement System of Texas (ERS).

Pay

$4,801.16 - $7,761.50 per month

Schedule

Monthly, Full time, Regular, Day, Eligible for Telework, Up to 10% Travel