Clarification from the agency

This vacancy is open to U.S. Citizens; Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP) eligible in the local commuting area. This is a standing register/open and continuous vacancy announcement with six cut-off dates. March 20, 2026; April 4, 2026; June 5, 2026; July 17, 2026; August 28, 2026; and October 9, 2026. Completed applications will be reviewed after each cut-off date. Applications may not be altered after submission.

Major Duties include, but are not limited to, the following:

GS-07:

• Participate as a member of an inspection team led by a higher-graded specialist and assist in the planning of and/or conduct a limited segment of a major investigation or a small investigation where the exposure and type of hazard and unsafe working conditions is predictable in advance.
• Researches and studies records and files covering mishaps, injuries, and equipment maintenance data.
• Audits employer occupational safety and health injury records, safety plans, and program documentation.
• Assists in the documentation of conducted portions of investigations to help support a legally sufficient case. Takes photographs and videos of apparent violations of occupational safety and health standards.
• Assists in preparing for opening and closing conferences and outreach activities. Responds to requests for information on OSHA policies, regulations, and programs.

GS-09:

• Assists in conducting and/or participates in opening and closing conferences with management officials, employees, and employee representatives reviewing hazards or unsafe working conditions.
• Conducts specific (targeted) outreach activities and provides information on OSHA legislation, regulations, and compliance activities to a variety of different audiences.
• Assists in planning and conducting portions or limited inspections or compliance reviews in establishments and worksites.
• Assists in conducting monitoring and evaluation by analyzing select portions of plan changes, programs, procedures, inspections, citations, and reports to determine compliance with approved occupational safety standards and programs.

GS-11:

• Conducts occupational safety and health inspections within a variety of agricultural, construction, general industry, and maritime business establishments to ensure employer compliance with federal OSHA standards.
• Conducts investigations involving one or more fatalities, injuries, serious accidents, or other unsafe conditions.
• Prepares for inspections to become familiar with work processes, operations, and standards applicable to the workplace to be inspected.
• Conducts opening conferences with management officials and employee representatives concerning the nature and purpose of the inspection, the procedures which will be followed, and employee discrimination rights.
• Participates in Agency efforts to obtain warrants and to subpoena witnesses and documents, if necessary.
• Analyses injury and illness data and reviews establishments' occupational safety and health programs.

GS-12

• Conducts opening conferences with management officials, employees, and employee representatives concerning the nature and purpose of the inspection and the procedures which will be followed.
• Conducts closing conference with employer, reviewing hazards identified and violations cited.
• Conducts specific (targeted) outreach activities and provides information on OSHA legislation, regulations, and compliance activities to a variety of different audiences.
• Conducts investigations of accidents which may involve one or more fatalities, a large number of injuries or serious accidents, or other unsafe conditions.
• Plans, schedules, and conducts inspections either individually-determined, as assigned or based on complaints received from employees and/or union representatives, in establishments and worksites where there is a strong probability of encountering Hazardous work processes and materials, and unsafe environmental conditions.
• Inspects worksites, machine and equipment operations, environmental conditions, work practices, protective devices and equipment, and safety procedures.
• Reviews safety activities for evidence of compliance with prescribed safety requirements.
• Proposes fiscal penalties.
• Assists agency attorneys in the preparation of contested cases for hearing before administrative law judges; testifies under examinations conducted by attorneys representing the agency and the employer.
• Conducts interviews, reviews documents, and researches various sources of information such as equipment manuals, consensus standards, interpretations of standards, court decisions.
• Identifies violations and hazards, and recommends abatement methods common to the work processes and operations.
• Documents inspections to support a legally sufficient case.

As the employee progresses, the assignments will become more difficult and complex with less supervision.

Conditions of employment

• Must be at least 16 years old.
• Must be a U.S. Citizen.
• Candidate required to obtain the necessary security/investigation level.
• Requires a probationary period if the requirement has not been met.
• Requires a valid driver's license and ability to operate a motor vehicle.
• Requires drug test prior to appointment at the GS-11 and GS-12.
• Requires medical exam and must maintain physical requirements.
• You will be required to lift items weighing up to 25 pounds.
• Requires the use of personal protective equipment (PPE).

Qualifications

You must meet the Basic Requirements listed in the Education Requirements section and the Specialized Experience to qualify for Safety and Occupational Health Specialist, as described below.

Education

For information about the Individual Occupational Requirement (IOR), please see Education section of this announcement.

Minimum Qualifications:

For the GS-07 level:
Specialized Experience: In addition to meeting the individual occupational requirement, applicants must demonstrate 52 weeks of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-5 grade level, in the Federal or Private Sector. Specialized Experience is described as experience that has equipped the applicant with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position. Examples of specialized experience are as follows:

• Applying a general knowledge of OSHA or related safety and occupational health standards or codes to advise on or resolve technical matters dealing with occupational safety and health requirements.
• Analyzing or evaluating new and existing safety inspection jobs, processes, products, or other systems to determine the existence, severity, probability, and outcome of 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.

or

Education: One full year of progressively higher-level graduate education.

or

Superior academic achievement in a bachelor's degree program. S.A.A. is based on (1) class standing, (2) grade-point average, or (3) honor society membership.

1. Class standing -- Applicants must be in the upper third of the graduating class in the college, university, or major subdivision, based on completed courses.
2. Grade-point average (G.P.A.)-- Applicants must have a grade-point average of:

a. 3.0 or higher out of a possible 4.0 ("B" or better) as recorded on their official transcript, or as computed based on 4 years of education, or as computed based on courses completed during the final 2 years of the curriculum; or
b. 3.5 or higher out of a possible 4.0 ("B+" or better) based on the average of the required courses completed in the major field or the required courses in the major field completed during the final 2 years of the curriculum.
3. Election to membership in a National Honor Society - membership in a freshman honor society cannot be used to meet the requirements of this provision.
or

A qualifying combination of education and competencies as described above.

For the GS-09: Applicants must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-07 that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the work of the position. Examples of specialized experience include:

• 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.
• Analyzing or evaluating new and existing jobs, processes, products, or other systems to determine the existence, severity, probability, and outcome of 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.

OR

Substitution of Experience: Two years of graduate education or a Master's degree in 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.

For the GS-11: Applicants must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-09 that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the work of the position. Examples of specialized experience include:

• 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.
• Designing or modifying workplaces, processes, products, or other systems to control or eliminate hazards.
• Training of workers, supervisors, managers, or other safety and occupational health personnel in safety or occupational health laws, regulations, principles, theories, practices, and procedures to advise on or resolve technical matters dealing with occupational safety and health requirements.

OR

Substitution of experience: Three years of progressively higher level related graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree in safety or occupational health or related fields.

For the GS-12: Applicants must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-11. Examples of specialized experience include:

• Applying safety and occupational health laws, regulations, principles, theories, practices, and procedures to advise on or resolve unusual and often complicated technical matters dealing with occupational safety and health requirements.
• Analyzing or evaluating new and existing safety inspection jobs, processes, products, or other systems to determine the existence, severity, probability, and outcome of 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.
• Designing or modifying workplaces, processes, products, or other systems to control or eliminate hazards, or

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

Your evaluation will be based on how well you meet the qualifications outlined in this vacancy announcement, as demonstrated through your resume and supporting documentation.
Click Application of Veterans Preference for more information.

You may preview application questions for this vacancy here: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12903552

Clickhere for Evaluation details.

If you meet the minimum qualifications, you will be evaluated against the evaluation factors below and will be placed into a category based on your vacancy question responses.

Category A - Meets the basic qualification requirements for the vacancy and has successful experience in the same or similar job that has demonstrated superior proficiency in applying critical competencies required by this position to work of increased levels of difficulty and complexity.

Category B - Meets the basic qualification requirements for the vacancy and demonstrates satisfactory proficiency in the critical competencies required by this position.

Category C - Meets the specialized experience described in the minimum qualification requirements section of this announcement and demonstrates proficiency in the basic competencies.

Clickhere for Evaluation details.

USA Hire

You will be assessed on the following competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics):

• Attention to Detail
• Customer Service
• Flexibility
• Influencing/Negotiating
• Integrity/Honesty
• Interpersonal Skills
• Learning
• Reading Comprehension
• Reasoning
• Self-Management
• Stress Tolerance
• Teamwork

Evaluation Factors (Competencies) - All qualified applicants will be evaluated on the following key competencies:

• Attention to Detail
• Customer Service
• Flexibility
• Influencing/Negotiating
• Integrity/Honesty
• Interpersonal Skills
• Learning
• Reading Comprehension
• Reasoning
• Self-Management
• Stress Tolerance
• Teamwork

The information you provide may be verified by a review of your paid, unpaid, volunteer, as it demonstrates the competencies or skills required for the position to be filled. Your evaluation may include an interview, reference checks, or other assessment conducted by HR specialists, subject matter experts, or panel members and may include other assessment tools (ex. interview, structured interview, written test, work sample, etc.).

INFORMATION FOR ICTAP/CTAP ELIGIBLE(S) ONLY: If you are eligible for special priority selection under ICTAP/CTAP, you must be well-qualified for the position to receive consideration. ICTAP/CTAP eligible(s) who are category B or higher will be considered well-qualified. Be sure to review the eligibility questions to reflect that you are applying as an ICTAP or CTAP eligible and submit supporting documentation.

When Occupational Safety and Health Administration completes its hiring, the remaining list of qualified candidates may be shared with additional federal agencies. You will have an opportunity to opt-in if you would like your name, application material, and assessment results shared to be considered for employment with additional agencies. There is no guarantee of further consideration, and you can continue to explore other job opportunity announcements.