Clarification from the agency

ALL US CITIZENS DIRECT HIRE AUTHORITY: This position is being filled using Direct-Hire Authority (5 CFR 337.205) for this occupation.

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Duties of the position include but are not limited to:

• Oversees/performs inspections of the facility to identify potential occupational health hazards, the need for further investigative studies and surveys, and to ensure compliance with regulatory agencies.
• Determines compliance with various established criteria, evaluating exposures, and advises on control measures and changes in work procedures or schedules to comply with established health requirements.
• Handles work situations that cover a wide variety of hazards, work activities, and environments, and involve numerous types and quantities of exposure to chemical, biological, physical, and radiological hazards.
• Conduct studies of work operations and processes, examine work environments and analyzes findings.
• Performs analysis to determine nature and degree of toxic materials present.
• Recommends procedures that will be suitable and effective for the work environment.
• Receives and disposes of hazardous waste and maintains appropriate records in accordance with existing Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) standards, state law, and facility regulations.
• Participate on national level committees to ensure that consistent and appropriate industrial hygiene practices and measures are followed.
• Develops industrial hygiene policies, procedures, and detailed reports.
• Possesses knowledge of of industrial hygiene requirements for an organization and oversight agencies to successfully develop and implement an industrial hygiene program for a large facility.
• Oversees/performs inspections of the facility to identify potential occupational health hazards, the need for further investigative studies
• and surveys, and to ensure compliance with regulatory agencies.
• Determines compliance with various established criteria, evaluating exposures, and advises on control measures and changes in work procedures or schedules to comply with established health requirements.

Preferred Experience: High level of accomplishment or complexity in past performance and has held the same position or a similar one and should be able to assume the duties of the position with very little, if any training.

Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 7:00 AM - 3:30 PM
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Position Description/PD#: Supervisory Industrial Hygienist/PD242290
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
• A pre-placement physical examination is required
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• Physical Requirements: Investigations and surveys involve moderate physical exertion, including carrying equipment, climbing, standing, walking, and bending, using personal protective devices and occasionally working in hot or cold areas, and confined spaces.
• Subject to background/security investigation
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP)

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider:

• your performance and conduct;
• the needs and interests of the agency;
• whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and
• whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.

Upon completion of your probationary period period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 11/02/2026.

Basic Requirements: The education must be accredited by an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education at the time the degree was obtained. Applicants must meet one of the following 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; NOTE: Transcripts Required.

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; NOTE: Transcripts Required.

OR

• Certification from the American Board of Industrial Hygiene (ABIH). NOTE: Proof of Certification Required.

Courses in the history or teaching of chemistry are not acceptable. 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.

Driver's License Requirement: Must possess a current, valid state-issued driver's license for this position. Please DO NOT submit a copy of your license with your application package. You will be required to show your valid driver's license at the time of your interview.

In addition to meeting the Basic Requirements above you must meet the following specialized experience to qualify for this position at the GS-12 grade level.

Specialized Experience GS 12: At least one (1) year of specialized experience that equipped you with the knowledge, skills and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the Supervisory Industrial Hygienist position, and that is typically in or related to the duties of this position. To be credible, specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the GS-11 level in the Federal service. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Demonstrated technical experience and knowledge of industrial hygiene concepts, principles, and practices applicable to the conduct of industrial hygiene inspections in health care facilities; knowledge of medical facility operations and processes, materials and equipment used, and by-products generated; skill in the use of a variety of sampling instrumentation; knowledge of sampling strategies and knowledge of the type and limitations of analytical methods; knowledge of methods of control for a wide variety of health hazards, including toxic chemicals and noise; and ability to organize material and speak in front of groups sufficient to conduct training.

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-12 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-11. 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.

For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.

How you will be evaluated

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

Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), your responses on the application questionnaire, and your responses to all assessments required for this position. You will be assessed on the following Competencies for this position:

• Analytical Thinking
• Communications
• Computers
• Decision Making
• Project Management
• Technical Competence

Your experience must be fully documented on your resume and must include job title, duties, month and year start/end dates AND hours worked per week. A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. Cheating on the online assessment may also result in your removal from consideration.

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.

During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions.

Special Employment Consideration: VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply, including those eligible for hiring under 5 CFR 213.3102(u), Schedule A, Appointment of persons with disabilities [i.e., intellectual disabilities, severe physical disabilities, or psychiatric disabilities], and/or Disabled veterans with a compensable service-connected disability of 30% or more. Contact the Agency Contact for information on how to apply under this appointment authority via the Selective Placement Coordinator.