Skip to main content
U.S. flag
Back to results
 

Summary

The Smithsonian Institution is the world’s largest museum, education, and research complex, with 21 museums and the National Zoo.  This position is located in the Office of Safety, Health and Environmental Management (OSHEM). The employee serves as the Associate Director of Safety and provides overall management and direction over the Safety Division.

More than one selection may be made from this announcement.

Overview

Help
Accepting applications
Open & closing dates
12/10/2025 to 12/24/2025
Salary
$142,488 to - $195,200 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 14 - 15
Location
Washington, DC
FEW vacancies
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
No
Travel Required
Occasional travel - Some travel will be required.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent - Federal
Work schedule
Full-time - Full-Time, Permanent
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
15
Supervisory status
Yes
Security clearance
Confidential
Drug test
No
Position sensitivity and risk
Noncritical-Sensitive (NCS)/Moderate Risk
Trust determination process
Bargaining unit status
No
Announcement number
26R-MP-313189-MPA-OSHEM
Control number
852082900

Duties

Help

The Safety and Occupational Health Manager provide overall management and direction over the Safety Division.

In this position, you will: 

  • Plan and carry out the full range of supervisory and managerial authorities.
  • Oversee the development of occupational safety and health policies and procedures and advises the Director and other top-level officials of operational impact of new or proposed legislation and policies and directives issued by higher authority and recommends SI positions and/or courses of action. 
  • Provide expert, authoritative professional advice, technical leadership, support and consultation to all levels of management within the SI and Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) units in various organizations.
  • Serve as a technical expert in safety and occupational health and related program planning, implementation, administration, and evaluation.  Supports and consults with all levels of SI management, staff, occupational safety and health (OSH) professionals, and collateral duty safety officers.
  • Provide professional advice and consultation regarding facilities system safety, to include safety training program management.

Requirements

Help

Conditions of employment

  • Pass Pre-employment Background Investigation
  • May need to complete a Probationary Period
  • Maintain a Bank Account for Direct Deposit/Electronic Transfer
  • Males born after 12/31/59 must be registered with Selective Service.

Conditions of Employment

Qualification requirements, including one year time-in-grade at the next lower grade level for promotion candidates, must be met within 30 days of the job announcement closing date. See the 'Required Documents' section for additional information.

For information on qualification requirements, see Qualification Standards Handbook for General Schedule Positions viewable on OPM Website.

Qualifications

Basic Education Requirement: (You must submit transcripts)

Undergraduate and Graduate Education: Major study -- 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.

Or

Experience

General Experience (for GS-5 positions): Experience in scientific or technical work that provided an understanding of the basic principles and concepts of the safety and occupational health field. Creditable general experience must have demonstrated the achievement of knowledge equivalent to the education described above.

Specialized Experience (for positions above GS-5): Experience in or related to safety and occupational health that provided the specific knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position. Examples of qualifying specialized experience include:

  • Managing safety or occupational health program elements.
  • Developing and recommending safety and occupational health policy to higher levels of management.
  • 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.
  • Developing safety and occupational health standards, regulations, practices, and procedures to eliminate or control potential hazards.
  • Developing or implementing programs to reduce the frequency, severity, and cost of accidents and occupational illnesses.
  • Analyzing or evaluating new and existing jobs, processes, products, or other systems to determine the existence, severity, probability, and outcome of hazards.
  • Designing or modifying workplaces, processes, products, or other systems to control or eliminate 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.
  • Training of 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.

OR

Certificates

Certification as a Certified Safety Professional (CSP), Certified Industrial Hygienist (CIH), or Certified Health Physicist (CHP), or similar certification that included successful completion of a written examination meets the requirements for GS-5. Applicants may also qualify for higher grade levels based on their education and/or experience.

Experience:

GS-14: You qualify for this position if you possess one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-13 level in the Federal Service or comparable pay band system.  For this position specialized experience is defined as experience administering, implementing, evaluating, and providing oversight for a comprehensive safety and occupational health program that supports geographically dispersed worksites, complex work environments, and a wide variety of staff who perform research, laboratory, museum collections care, animal care, remote field, industrial, construction, maintenance, and administrative work. In addition, experience must also include application of data management systems, interpretation and application of safety and occupational health standards and regulations, and policy development.

GS-15: You qualify for this position if you possess one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-14 level in the Federal Service or comparable pay band system.  For this position specialized experience is defined as experience supervising a staff of professionals engaged in administering, implementing, evaluating, and providing oversight for a comprehensive safety and occupational health program that supports geographically dispersed worksites, complex work environments, and a wide variety of staff who perform research, laboratory, museum collections care, animal care, remote field, industrial, construction, maintenance, and administrative work. In addition, experience must also include application of data management systems, interpretation and application of safety and occupational health standards and regulations, and policy development.

Your resume must be no more than two (2) pages and should clearly demonstrate how your experience aligns with the responsibilities and specialized experience required for this position. Do not copy language directly from the vacancy announcement, as you will be deemed ineligible for consideration. Instead, provide detailed, descriptive information about your actual experience.

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; religious; 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.

Part-time and/or unpaid experience related to this position will be considered to determine the total number of years and months of experience. Be sure to note the number of paid or unpaid hours worked each week.

Important Note: Your resume and supporting documentation will be compared to your responses to the occupational questionnaire or other assessment tool for consistency. If a determination is made that you have rated yourself higher than is supported by your resume, you will be assigned a rating commensurate to your described experience. Your resume should provide sufficient information regarding how your education and experience relate to this position, including the major duties and qualifications criteria listed.

Education

You must meet the Basic Education Requirement above.

Additional information

This position is not included in the bargaining unit.

Recruitment Incentive: Recruitment incentive(s) may be authorized for this position.  However, approval for incentives are contingent upon various availability. If authorized, certain incentives will require the incumbent to sign a service agreement to remain in the Federal government for a certain time period.

Note: This statement does not imply nor guarantee an incentive will be offered and paid.

Selections may be made for vacancies across the Smithsonian Institution (SI). By applying to this position, you agree to allow your application and other personal information to be shared with one or more SI hiring officials for employment consideration for same/similar positions within the location(s) identified in this announcement.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

How you will be evaluated

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

Your application will be evaluated first for the basic qualifications described above.  The applications that meet the basic qualifications will be evaluated further against the following criteria:

  1. Knowledge of supervisory responsibilities sufficient to carry out the full range of supervisory duties.
  2. Knowledge of safety and occupational health concepts, principles, laws, regulations, and precedent decisions sufficient to plan, develop and administer an SI-wide program for a geographically dispersed workforce many of whom are engaged in high-hazard, high risk occupations.
  3. Knowledge and demonstrate experience with improving complex occupational safety and health programs that include comprehensive programs and safety training, inspections, and audits, reporting/ investigation/    mitigation of injuries, illnesses, and hazards.
  4. Knowledge, in training, and extensive on-the-job experience with occupational safety and health standards conducting inspections and audits and performing incident investigations for a wide variety of general industry and construction worksites.
  5. Ability to communicate in writing to prepare and present briefings to management.
  6. Ability to communicate orally to represent SI in meeting and conference.

BASIS OF RATING:  Once the announcement closes, your application will be automatically evaluated and rated by the system and a Human Resources Specialist. To determine if you are qualified for this job, a review of your application and supporting documentation will be made and compared against your responses to the occupational questionnaire. The numeric rating you receive is based on your responses to the questionnaire. The score is a measure of the degree to which your background matches the knowledge, skills, and abilities required of this position. If, after the Human Resources Specialist reviews your resume and/or supporting documentation, a determination is made that the score you have received is not a true reflection of your qualifications and/or experience, your score can and will be adjusted to more accurately reflect the information you provided that support your abilities. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your rating. Your resume should provide detailed information regarding how your education and experience relate to this position, including the major duties and qualifications criteria listed.

Veterans Employment Opportunities Act (VEOA):  If you are applying for a VEOA appointment, you must be a veteran and must be honorably separated and either a preference eligible or have substantially completed 3 or more years of active service. ("Active Service" under this law means active duty in a uniformed service and includes full-time training duty, annual training duty, full-time National Guard duty, and attendance, while in the active service, at a school designated as a service school by law or by the Secretary concerned.) A veteran who is released under honorable conditions shortly before completing a 3-year tour is also eligible.

Noncompetitive Appointment Authorities:  The following links contain information on the eligibility requirements to be considered under a noncompetitive appointing authority:


You may preview questions for this vacancy.

Your session is about to expire!

Your USAJOBS session will expire due to inactivity in 8 minutes. Any unsaved data will be lost if you allow the session to expire. Click the button below to continue your session.