Supervisory Environmental Care Specialist

About the role

This position is in the Environmental Management Service (EMS) at the George E. Wahlen VA Medical Center, Salt Lake City, Utah within the Salt Lake City Health Care System (VASLCHCS). The position serves as a Supervisory Environmental Care Specialist responsible for planning, directing, coordinating, and evaluating environmental care and housekeeping operations that support the safe, sanitary, and efficient operation of the Medical Center.

Responsibilities

• Performs technical and administrative work involving managing, Administering, Operating and/or Supporting services and programs related to the operation and safety of Federal Facility.
• Plans, develops, organizes, staffs, controls, directs and evaluates a complex Environmental Management Service program.
• Develops and implements organizational structures, operating plans and procedures to achieve program goals, monitoring effectiveness and efficiency of operations within the established framework and making adjustment as necessary.
• Develops and implements procedures, policies, and practices that meet requirements of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), Joint Commission (JC), American Hospital Association (AHA), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and any other applicable accrediting bodies.
• Ensures that effective procedures, in accordance with medical center policy and procedures, are implemented for minimizing patient, employee or visitor exposure to infectious disease.
• Develops and implements standards for cleanliness and sanitation, including frequency of cleaning; methods, procedures and safety precautions to be followed selection, measurement and proper use of housekeeping and cleaning supplies; and use and maintenance of housekeeping equipment.
• Makes continuous inspections of the medical center to monitor housekeeping techniques, procedures, products, and adherence to infection control standards.
• Assigns work to subordinates based on priorities, selective consideration of the difficulty and requirements of assignments and the capabilities of employees.
• Provides guidance and support in possible problem areas and defines objectives.
• Possesses the analytical ability to research, assemble and compile information and data.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 07/09/2026. 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.

To qualify based on 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: Planning, coordinating, directing, evaluating, and improving a variety of environmental care and housekeeping program operations within a complex healthcare environment, including environmental sanitation, laundry and linen operations, waste management, pest control, patient assistance services, bed services, Environment of Care activities, and oversight of contracted housekeeping services; coordinating environmental care activities; monitoring program operations; identifying operational deficiencies; implementing corrective actions; ensuring compliance with regulatory, accreditation, and organizational requirements OR, Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have 3 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree or LL.M., if related. OR, Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have an combination of specialized experience and education beyond 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree.

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-qualifications/.

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.

Additional Information

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/.