OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY TECHNICIAN

Job Definition:

Job Description:

• Collect data on work environments for analysis by occupational health and safety specialists. Implement and conduct evaluation of programs designed to limit chemical, physical, biological, and ergonomic risks to workers.

Duties and Tasks:

• 1) Examine credentials, licenses, or permits to ensure compliance with licensing requirements.
• 2) Help direct rescue and firefighting operations in the event of a fire or an explosion.
• 3) Maintain all required records and documentation.
• 4) Maintain logbooks of daily activities, including areas visited and activities performed.
• 5) Plan emergency response drills.
• 6) Prepare and calibrate equipment used to collect and analyze samples.
• 7) Prepare and review specifications and orders for the purchase of safety equipment, ensuring that proper features are present and that items conform to health and safety standards.
• 8) Prepare documents to be used in legal proceedings, testifying in such proceedings when necessary.
• 9) Provide consultation to organizations or agencies on the application of safety principles, practices, and techniques in the workplace.
• 10) Review physicians’ reports, and conduct worker studies in order to determine whether specific instances of disease or illness are job-related.
• 11) Supply, operate, and maintain personal protective equipment.
• 12) Report the results of environmental contaminant analyses, and recommend corrective measures to be applied.
• 13) Review records and reports concerning laboratory results, staffing, floor plans, fire inspections, and sanitation in order to gather information for the development and enforcement of safety activities.
• 14) Test workplaces for environmental hazards such as exposure to radiation, chemical and biological hazards, and excessive noise.
• 15) Verify that safety equipment such as hearing protection and respirators is available to employees, and monitor their use of such equipment to ensure proper fit and use.
• 16) Conduct fire drills, and inspect fire suppression systems and portable fire systems to ensure that they are in working order.
• 17) Conduct interviews to obtain information and evidence regarding communicable diseases or violations of health and sanitation regulations.
• 18) Confer with school and state authorities and community groups to develop health standards and programs.
• 19) Educate the public about health issues, and enforce health legislation in order to prevent disease, to promote health, and to help people understand health protection procedures and regulations.
• 20) Evaluate situations where a worker has refused to work on the grounds that danger or potential harm exists, and determine how such situations should be handled.

Activities:

• 1) Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates — Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
• 2) Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards — Using relevant information and individual judgment to determine whether events or processes comply with laws, regulations, or standards.
• 3) Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships — Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time.
• 4) Getting Information — Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
• 5) Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Material — Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials to identify the cause of errors or other problems or defects.
• 6) Making Decisions and Solving Problems — Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
• 7) Training and Teaching Others — Identifying the educational needs of others, developing formal educational or training programs or classes, and teaching or instructing others.
• 8) Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge — Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job.
• 9) Documenting/Recording Information — Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form.
• 10) Interacting With Computers — Using computers and computer systems (including hardware and software) to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information.
• 11) Provide Consultation and Advice to Others — Providing guidance and expert advice to management or other groups on technical, systems-, or process-related topics.
• 12) Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events — Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.
• 13) Processing Information — Compiling, coding, categorizing, calculating, tabulating, auditing, or verifying information or data.
• 14) Monitor Processes, Materials, or Surroundings — Monitoring and reviewing information from materials, events, or the environment, to detect or assess problems.
• 15) Analyzing Data or Information — Identifying the underlying principles, reasons, or facts of information by breaking down information or data into separate parts.
• 16) Communicating with Persons Outside Organization — Communicating with people outside the organization, representing the organization to customers, the public, government, and other external sources. This information can be exchanged in person, in writing, or by telephone or e-mail.
• 17) Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work — Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work.
• 18) Coaching and Developing Others — Identifying the developmental needs of others and coaching, mentoring, or otherwise helping others to improve their knowledge or skills.
• 19) Interpreting the Meaning of Information for Others — Translating or explaining what information means and how it can be used.
• 20) Resolving Conflicts and Negotiating with Others — Handling complaints, settling disputes, and resolving grievances and conflicts, or otherwise negotiating with others.
• 21) Selling or Influencing Others — Convincing others to buy merchandise/goods or to otherwise change their minds or actions.
• 22) Estimating the Quantifiable Characteristics of Products, Events, or Information — Estimating sizes, distances, and quantities; or determining time, costs, resources, or materials needed to perform a work activity.
• 23) Thinking Creatively — Developing, designing, or creating new applications, ideas, relationships, systems, or products, including artistic contributions.
• 24) Developing Objectives and Strategies — Establishing long-range objectives and specifying the strategies and actions to achieve them.
• 25) Developing and Building Teams — Encouraging and building mutual trust, respect, and cooperation among team members.
• 26) Performing Administrative Activities — Performing day-to-day administrative tasks such as maintaining information files and processing paperwork.
• 27) Guiding, Directing, and Motivating Subordinates — Providing guidance and direction to subordinates, including setting performance standards and monitoring performance.
• 28) Scheduling Work and Activities — Scheduling events, programs, and activities, as well as the work of others.
• 29) Judging the Qualities of Things, Services, or People — Assessing the value, importance, or quality of things or people.

Abilities:

• 1) Oral Expression — The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
• 2) Oral Comprehension — The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• 3) Written Comprehension — The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
• 4) Problem Sensitivity — The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
• 5) Inductive Reasoning — The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
• 6) Deductive Reasoning — The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
• 7) Speech Clarity — The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
• 8) Written Expression — The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
• 9) Speech Recognition — The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
• 10) Near Vision — The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
• 11) Flexibility of Closure — The ability to identify or detect a known pattern (a figure, object, word, or sound) that is hidden in other distracting material.
• 12) Perceptual Speed — The ability to quickly and accurately compare similarities and differences among sets of letters, numbers, objects, pictures, or patterns. The things to be compared may be presented at the same time or one after the other. This ability also includes comparing a presented object with a remembered object.
• 13) Information Ordering — The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
• 14) Category Flexibility — The ability to generate or use different sets of rules for combining or grouping things in different ways.

Knowledge

• 1) Public Safety and Security — Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
• 2) Education and Training — Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
• 3) English Language — Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• 4) Law and Government — Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
• 5) Engineering and Technology — Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
• 6) Building and Construction — Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
• 7) Customer and Personal Service — Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
• 8) Mathematics — Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
• 9) Mechanical — Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
• 10) Psychology — Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
• 11) Chemistry — Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
• 12) Administration and Management — Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
• 13) Computers and Electronics — Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
• 14) Clerical — Knowledge of administrative and clerical procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office procedures and terminology.