Safety & Occupational Health Specialist

This position is located in the Department of Health and Human Services, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, with duty locations in Cincinnati, Ohio; Morgantown, West Virginia; or Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Responsibilities

• Lead, coordinate, conduct, or provide technical support for occupational safety and health projects, programs, or investigations.
• Conduct or participate in investigations of occupational fatalities, serious injuries, or workplace hazards.
• Prepare technical reports, products, or presentations to disseminate safety recommendations to diverse audiences.
• Collaborate with federal, state, local, academic, industry, labor, or professional organizations to advance workplace safety.
• Manage safety or occupational health program elements.
• Develop and recommend safety and occupational health policy to higher levels of management.
• Apply safety and occupational health laws, regulations, principles, theories, practices, and procedures to advise on or resolve technical matters.
• Develop safety and occupational health standards, regulations, practices, and procedures to eliminate or control potential hazards.
• Develop or implement programs to reduce the frequency, severity, and cost of accidents and occupational illnesses.
• Analyze or evaluate new and existing jobs, processes, products, or other systems to determine the existence, severity, probability, and outcome of hazards.
• Design or modify workplaces, processes, products, or other systems to control or eliminate hazards.
• Inspect or survey workplaces, processes, products, or other systems for compliance with safety and occupational health policies or standards and to identify potential new hazards.
• Train 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.

Requirements

Basic Qualifications

Applicants must meet one of the following:

• Education: Undergraduate or graduate degree in safety or occupational health fields (e.g., safety, occupational health, industrial hygiene), or a degree in other related fields supplemented by at least 24 semester hours of study in disciplines such as safety, occupational health, industrial hygiene, occupational medicine, toxicology, public health, mathematics, physics, chemistry, biological sciences, engineering, or industrial psychology.
• Experience: Specialized experience in or related to safety and occupational health that provided the knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform the duties of the position.
• Certification: Certification as a Certified Safety Professional (CSP), Certified Industrial Hygienist (CIH), Certified Health Physicist (CHP), or similar certification that included successful completion of a written examination (meets requirements for GS-5).

Minimum Qualifications

One year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-11 grade level in the Federal service, performing all of the following:

• Leading, coordinating, conducting, or providing technical support for occupational safety and health projects, programs, or investigations.
• Conducting or participating in investigations of occupational fatalities, serious injuries, or workplace hazards.
• Preparing technical reports, products, or presentations to disseminate safety recommendations to diverse audiences.
• Collaborating with federal, state, local, academic, industry, labor, or professional organizations to advance workplace safety.

Documentation of experience must be clear and specific, including exact dates of employment (MM/YY to MM/YY) and hours worked per week if part-time. Federal employees may receive credit for experience not part of their official series or grade level if documented by a signed memorandum from their supervisor or an SF-50/SF-52.

Experience includes paid and unpaid work, such as volunteer service through national programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) or other organizations (e.g., professional, philanthropic, religious, community, student, social).