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Summary The Supervisory Industrial Hygienist serves as the technical authority and expert Industrial Hygiene Program Advisor in a complex, diverse, multidisciplinary, affiliated medical center that has in-depth and specialized teaching, patient care, and research functions within its operation. The incumbent provides leadership, guidance, policy and program management expertise to managers, supervisors, community organizations, and serves as liaison with numerous other agencies. Responsibilities DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES The Supervisory Industrial Hygienist performs on a routine and recurring basis a wide variety of program management and advisory functions including but not limited to the following tasks: Provides technically expert advisory and policy direction on Industrial Hygiene matters such as: Health surveys to assess, analyze, and correct workplace conditions, equipment, and procedures. Identify, recommend, design, and/or implement sampling programs to assess known or suspected industrial hygiene conditions, and sampling programs, equipment and analytical tests performed on workplace samples taken. R&D Lab inspections, reviewing principal investigators Bio-Safety protocols for grants compliance. Procurement, storage, use, and disposal of toxic and hazardous materials/substances. Policies and control measures for dealing with hazardous exposures. Policies and applications of Federal Occupational Health standards and employment hazards. Provides technical assistance, program direction, guidance, and coordinative support to area industrial hygiene and occupational safety program personnel in such matters as: Program design and policy development. Equipment, equipment calibration, industrial supplies, and other technical program requirements. Advice on sampling techniques, equipment, and testing analysis procedures. Interpretation of health standards. Ensuring legal and technical sufficiency of program operations such that agency and program requirements are met, as well as facility compliance with standards for the workplace. Represents and acts on behalf of the facility and/or other facilities, upon request at professional committees and boards, and serves as a community resource on application of standards, and/or occupational health matters. Integrates new policy issuances, occupational standards, or other industry requirements into facility operations, policy, procedure, and advises on appropriate follow-up and/or testing mechanisms that meet standards. Participates in, coordinates, or may independently perform special field surveys, investigations, etc. as related to exposures, suspected exposures, determining safe limits and/or thresholds for toxic materials, determine compliance, etc. Provide training to program staff, managers, and/or supervisory personnel with the area (other facilities, community organizations, business concerns, etc.) in such matters. Serves as a member of the Medical Center Safety Committee, the Radiation Safety Committee, the Biohazards Committee, and other committees as required. Assigns work checks work-in-progress, and reviews final products. Ensures long range goals are taken into consideration when assigning or shifting workload. Work Schedule: Monday- Friday, 8:00am-4:30pm Position Description Title/PD#: Supervisory Industrial Hygienist/PD073050 Physical Requirements: Facility inspections, audits, surveys, and fact-finding investigations may require moderate physical exertion, including walking, standing, climbing stairs and ladders, and carrying light items such as manuals or briefcases. Periodic travel to Medical Center divisions and clinics is required (typically by government vehicle) to conduct program audits or to perform other focused survey activities. Work Environment: Most of the work is conducted in an office setting. Some field work may expose the incumbent to physical hazards, i.e., heat, cold, noise, and occupational health hazards such as exposure to toxins. Occasional use of personal protective equipment, including respiratory protection may be required, such as in a hazardous waste management area. Requirements Conditions of Employment Qualifications To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement. This occupational series has an Individual Occupational Requirement (IOR) which is a minimum qualification requirement. To be considered for the position, you must ensure that the experience is reflected in your resume and/or if applicable, transcripts must be uploaded to support education requirement or substitution. Basic Requirements: A bachelor's or graduate/higher level degree in industrial hygiene, occupational health sciences, occupational and environmental health, toxicology, safety sciences, or related science; -OR- A bachelor's degree in a branch of engineering, physical science, or life science that included 12 semester hours in chemistry, including organic chemistry, and 18 additional semester hours of courses in any combination of chemistry, physics, engineering, health physics, environmental health, biostatistics, biology, physiology, toxicology, epidemiology, or industrial hygiene; -OR- Certification from the American Board of Industrial Hygiene (ABIH). Evaluation of Education: All science or engineering courses offered in fulfillment of the above requirements must be acceptable for credit toward the completion of a standard 4-year professional curriculum leading to a bachelor's degree in science or engineering at an accredited college or university. For engineering degrees to be acceptable, the curriculum must be in a school of engineering with at least one curriculum accredited by the ABET (Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology) as a professional engineering curriculum. NOTE: Courses in the history or teaching of chemistry are not acceptable. Evaluation of Experience: Qualifying experience involves the recognition, evaluation, corrective actions, and elimination of environmental conditions in the workplace that causes sickness, impaired health, or illness. This experience must demonstrate a professional knowledge of the theory and application of the principles of industrial hygiene and closely related sciences such as physics and engineering controls.Such work must have involved experience in all of the following areas: the acquisition of quantitative and qualitative data, and the measurement of exposures for a variety of chemical, physical, and biological stresses; the analysis of the data acquired and the prediction of probable effects of exposures on the health and well-being of workers; and the selection and recommendation of appropriate controls, including management, medical, engineering, education or training, and personal protective equipment. 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-13 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-12. 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.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-12 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization.Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Professional knowledge of industrial health and industrial hygiene concepts, principles, practices, and theories that enables the employee to serve as technical authority and advisory expert in a broad range of industrial hygiene matters, including monitoring, policy development, and inspections of the most complex operations and processes. Broad operational knowledge of facility functions, reporting channels, levels of authority, resources for technical and operations information, etc. such that the most complex and detailed multi-disciplinary issues may be efficiently dealt with and managed. Current knowledge of industry advances, occupational health standards, and laboratory operations sufficient to define, conduct, analyze, and interpret the most complex, in-depth, and sensitive sampling and survey situations. The most current and up-to-date practical and theoretical knowledge related to testing processes, standard development, and compliance monitoring sufficient to maintain program integrity arid environmental (industrial hygiene) quality. Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religions; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Education There is no educational substitution for the GS-13 level. 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. Participation in the seasonal influenza program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP). It is a requirement that all HCP to receive annual seasonal influenza vaccination or obtain an exemption for medical or religious reasons. Wearing a face mask is required when an exemption to the influenza vaccination has been granted. HCP in violation of this directive may face disciplinary action up to and including removal from federal service. HCP are individuals who, during the influenza season, work in VHA locations or who come into contact with VA patients or other HCP as part of their duties. VHA locations include, but are not limited to, VA hospitals and associated clinics, community living centers (CLCs), community-based outpatient clinics (CBOCs), domiciliary units, Vet centers and VA-leased medical facilities. HCP include all VA licensed and unlicensed, clinical and administrative, remote and onsite, paid and without compensation, full- and part-time employees, intermittent employees, fee basis employees, VA contractors, researchers, volunteers and health professions trainees (HPTs) who are expected to perform any or all of their work at these facilities. HPTs may be paid or unpaid and include residents, interns, fellows and students. HCP also includes VHA personnel providing home-based care to Veterans and drivers and other personnel whose duties put them in contact with patients outside VA medical facilities. 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 well-qualified, applicants must possess experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors if applicable, and must be proficient in most of the requirements of the job. Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website which can be found at https://www.opm.gov/. 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. If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement.