Duties

Summary

This position is located in the United States Department of Labor (DOL) Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), Directorate of Standards and Guidance (DSG).

• This position is inside the bargaining unit.
• Additional selections may be made if authorized.
• Writing sample that would demonstrate your analytical writing skills is required during application submission. - Please reference the required documents section.

Learn more about this agency

Responsibilities

Major duties for this position include but are not limited to the following:

• Assists in the development of criteria for assuring compliance with safety standards and for assuring uniform application of safety and general industry standards.
  
• Reviews and evaluates national consensus standards and other Federal agency standards to ensure that they provide the greatest protection for employees.
  
• Serves as a project team member for safety standards and guidance development and modification within the Occupational Safety and Health Administration in the broad areas of fire protection, hazardous waste operations, flammable liquids, explosives, fall protection, confined spaces, process safety, mechanical and electrical hazards, personal protective equipment, maritime and agricultural work hazards, and related general industry operations.
  
• Participates in field studies and research activities; researches and reviews technical literature, including research reports, symposium papers, trade books, laboratory reports, and working papers.
  
• Upon request from senior staff, engineers, or occupational safety and health specialists, participates in providing technical assistance to State government agencies regarding fire protection, hazardous waste operations, flammable liquids, explosives, fall protection, confined spaces, process safety, mechanical and electrical hazards, personal protective equipment, maritime and agricultural work hazards, and related general industry operations; analyzes a variety of factors to identify causal relationships.
  
• Professional knowledge of the concepts, principles, and practices in physical sciences sufficient to serve as a technical authority for the development and interpretation of safety standards and guidance documents addressing fire protection, hazardous waste operations, flammable liquids, explosives, fall protection, confined spaces, process safety, mechanical and electrical hazards, personal protective equipment, maritime and agricultural workplace hazards, and related general industry operations.
  
• Assists with analyses, recommendations, and evaluations of scientific feasibility of proposed abatements, standards, and variances or in support of other safety or health projects that relate to safety issues.
  
• Evaluates technology used in general, maritime, and agricultural industries to recommend feasible approaches and techniques for handling safety and health problems.
  
• Researches and provides information on new science based methods or approaches for conducting investigations and studies for use in updating OSHA field operations directives; provides technical review of directives, reports, and other National Office publications that relate to general, maritime, and agricultural industry workplace safety problems.
  
• Assists with onsite investigations of work place safety hazards; conducts studies; surveys a wide range of work site operations that frequently involve unusual, complex, or obscure hazards for which there are little or no established procedures or practices.
  
• Studies proposed major abatement plans and agreements that involve complex and unique safety issues involving the control of hazards, the progress of their implementation for adequacy of technical solutions to compliance problems, and the effective establishment of schedules.
  

Travel Required

Occasional travel - Occasional travel may be required.

Supervisory status
No

Promotion Potential
12 - There is no obligation to provide future promotions to you if you are selected. Promotions are dependent on you ability to perform the duties at a higher level, the need for an employee promoted to the higher level, and supervisory approval.

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• Position requires Public Trust Background Investigation
• Requires a probationary period if the requirement has not been met.
• Must be at least 16 years old and a U.S. Citizen.
• Requires a probationary period if the requirement has not been met.

Applicants must meet all legal and regulatory requirements. A writing sample is required. Reference the "Required Documents" section for additional requirements.

Qualifications

Basic Requirements:

Degree: physical science, engineering, or mathematics that included 24 semester hours in physical science and/or related engineering science such as mechanics, dynamics, properties of materials, and electronics.
or

Combination of education and experience -- education equivalent to one of the majors shown in A above that included at least 24 semester hours in physical science and/or related engineering science, plus appropriate experience or additional education.

In addition to meeting the Basic Requirements above, applicants must also meet the Specialized Experience as described below:

GS-11: Applicants must have 52 weeks of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level, GS-09, in the Federal Service. Specialized experience is defined as experience in providing technical advice in assessing workplace safety hazards; writing documents or responses to inquiries in the field of occupational safety (such as maritime, agriculture, fire, hazardous waste, flammable liquids, explosives, fall protection, confined spaces, process safety, mechanical and electrical); and researching and providing responses to requests for information on occupational safety issues.

GS-12: Applicants must have 52 weeks of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level, GS-11, in the Federal Service. Specialized experience is defined as experience in technical writing and occupational safety and health standards and guidance development.

Education

Any applicant falsely claiming an academic degree from an accredited school will be subject to actions ranging from disqualification from federal employment to removal from federal service.

If your education was completed at a foreign college or university, you must show comparability to education received in accredited educational institutions in the United States and comparability to applicable minimum course work requirements for this position. Click Evaluation of Foreign Education for more information.

Additional information

DOL seeks to attract and retain a high performing and diverse workforce in which employees' differences are respected and valued to better meet the varying needs of the diverse customers we serve. DOL fosters a diverse and inclusive work environment that promotes collaboration, flexibility and fairness so that all individuals are able to participate and contribute to their full potential.

Refer to these links for more information: GENERAL INFORMATION , ADDITIONAL DOCUMENTATION , FORMER FEDERAL EMPLOYEES

How You Will Be Evaluated

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

Please review evaluations details here .

THIS ANNOUNCEMENT SERVES AS PUBLIC NOTICE FOR THE USE OF OPM'S DIRECT HIRE AUTHORITY. ALL APPLICANTS WHO MEET THE BASIC REQUIREMENTS WILL BE FORWARDED TO THE SELECTING OFFICIAL FOR CONSIDERATION. CATEGORY RATING, VETERAN'S PREFERENCE, AND TRADITIONAL RATING AND RANKING OF APPLICANTS DO NOT APPLY TO THIS POSITION.

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

Writing: Recognizes or uses correct English grammar, punctuation, and spelling; communicates information (for example, facts, ideas, or messages) in a succinct and organized manner; produces written information, which may include technical material, that is appropriate for the intended audience.

Technical Competence: Uses knowledge that is acquired through formal training or extensive on-the-job experience to perform one's job; works with, understands, and evaluates technical information related to the job; advises others on technical issues.

Research: Knowledge of the scientific principles, methods, and processes used to conduct a systematic and objective inquiry; including study design, collection, analysis, and interpretation of data; and the reporting of results.

Reasoning: Identifies rules, principles, or relationships that explain facts, data, or other information; analyzes information and makes correct inferences or draws accurate conclusions.

Problem Solving: Identifies problems; determines accuracy and relevance of information; uses sound judgment to generate and evaluate alternatives, and to make recommendations.

The information you provide may be verified by a review of your work experience and/or education, by checking references and through other means (ex. interview). The examining Human Resources Office (HRO) makes the final determination concerning applicant ratings. Your resume MUST provide sufficient information to substantiate your responses to the vacancy questions. If not, the HRO may amend your responses to more accurately reflect the level of competency indicated by the content of your resume. Your evaluation may also include a review by a Human Resources Specialist or panel and may include other assessments (ex. interview, panel review, written test, writing sample, etc.)

To preview questions please click here .

Background checks and security clearance

Security clearance
Other

Drug test required
No

Required Documents

The following documents must be submitted by 11:59 p.m. (ET) on the vacancy closing date. You are not required to submit a document if it does not apply to you. Warning: If you submit a document using the same document title, the 2nd submission will OVERWRITE the 1st submission. Also, do not upload password protected documents.

- Writing sample: Please submit a writing sample that would demonstrate your analytical writing skills. It should be no longer than 3-4 pages written by you personally. For example, position paper, decision memo, white paper, options paper, etc.

- Veterans Documents (if applicable): To be considered as a 5-point preference eligible, you must submit a copy of your Certificate of Release or Discharge From Active Duty, DD214. Your DD-214 must show the type of discharge and dates of active duty. To claim 10-point preference, you must submit a copy of your DD214; an Application for 10-point Veteran's Preference, SF15; and the proof of entitlement of this preference which is normally an official statement, dated 1991 or later, from the Department of Veterans Affairs certifying to the present existence of the service-connected disability and indicating the percentage of your disability. (For active duty service members expecting honorable or general discharge or release within 120 days, click Active Duty ). Without this documentation, you will not receive veteran's preference. For more information, go to: http://www.fedshirevets.gov/hire/hrp/vetguide/index.aspx

- Displaced Employee Placement Documents - Only required if requesting priority consideration under CTAP or ICTAP eligibility.

- Cover Letters are not mandatory and will not be used to verify experience, but may be submitted.

- A writing sample that would demonstrate your analytical writing skills is required during application submission, Please submit a writing sample that would demonstrate your analytical writing skills. It should be no longer than 3-4 pages written by you personally. For example, position paper, decision memo, white paper, options paper, etc.

- Unofficial Transcript(s) (in English) - submit if using education as a basis for qualifying for this position. If so, you must submit all applicable academic transcripts demonstrating that you meet the qualifying educational requirements (ex. BA/BS, MA, JD, PHD, etc). If specific course work is required to qualify, you must supply transcripts from each academic institution in which the required courses were taken in order to receive credit.

You may upload your transcript(s) as one document (3 MB size limit). If over 3 MB, please submit via fax feature.

OFFICIAL Transcripts MUST BE RECEIVED prior to selection and report date. Reference the "Education Section" for College Transcript and Evaluation of Foreign Education.

Applicants selected for employment who are not current DOL employees will be required to provide proof of citizenship , and the E-Verify system will be used to confirm the employment eligibility of all new hires.

If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:

Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education .

Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.