Associate Biological Safety Officer

Company Description

Join us and make YOUR mark on the World!

Are you interested in joining some of the brightest talent in the world to strengthen the United States’ security? Come join Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) where our employees apply their expertise to create solutions for BIG ideas that make our world a better place.

We are dedicated to fostering a culture that values individuals, talents, partnerships, ideas, experiences, and different perspectives, recognizing their importance to the continued success of the Laboratory’s mission.

Pay Range: $84,576 - $188,880 Annually

$84,576 - $157,464 Annually for the TSS.2 level
$101,376 - $188,880 Annually for the TSS.3 level

This is the lowest to highest salary range in good faith we would pay for this role at the time of this posting. An employee’s position within the salary range will be based on several factors including, but not limited to, specific competencies, relevant education, qualifications, certifications, experience, skills, seniority, geographic location, performance, and business or organizational needs.

Job Description

We have an opening for an Associate Biological Safety Officer who will play a key role in supporting LLNL’s biological safety programs under the direction of the Institutional Biosafety Officer.  You will assist the Institutional Biosafety Officer in ensuring the biosafety program at LLNL is comprehensive and compliant and provide support and guidance in the area of biosafety.  This position is in the Biosafety and Biogovernance Functional Area within the Environment, Safety and Health (ES&H) Directorate.

This position will be filled at either level based on knowledge and related experience as assessed by the hiring team. Additional job responsibilities (outlined below) will be assigned if hired at the higher level. 

This position offers a hybrid schedule, blending in-person and virtual presence. You will have the flexibility to work from home one or more days per week

You will 

• Independently conduct periodic inspections of BSL-1/ABSL-1 and BSL-2/ABSL-2 laboratories following established inspection checklists to identify and evaluate potential hazards, assess compliance with federal, state and local regulations and institutional requirements and recommend appropriate corrective actions.
• Assist research personnel in developing Biological Use Authorizations (BUAs) for proposed moderate to complex biological research including identification of appropriate biosafety containment levels, practices, procedures and controls to mitigate biological hazards using established biosafety regulations (e.g., NIH Guidelines) and guidelines [e.g., Biosafety in Microbiological and Biomedical Laboratories (BMBL)].
• Serve as an alternate voting member for the Institutional Biosafety Officer on the Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBC), Biological Review Committee (BRC), Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) and other committees, as appropriate. 
• Evaluate work activities to identify hazards and recommend controls and observe work being performed to ensure controls are adequate.
• Assist with the development, maintenance, and review of current policies, procedures and documentation for regulatory compliance and continuous improvement.
• Present formal classroom training in biological safety and animal biological safety.
• Assist with the response to, and investigation of, incidents involving biological materials following established emergency and incident response protocols.
• Cultivate strong, collaborative relationships with principal investigators (PIs), researchers, staff and line managers in directorates authorizing biological research to enhance biosafety practices, increase biosafety awareness and foster proactive risk management.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Additional job responsibilities, at the TSS.3 level 

• Serve as an Alternate Responsible Official (ARO) for the LLNL Select Agent Program and in the absence of the Responsible Official (RO), carry out all responsibilities of the RO to ensure compliance with the Federal Select agent Program; assist the RO with maintaining detailed records necessary to provide a complete accounting of all activities related to the use and/or transfer of select agents and perform audits and inspections of the BSL-3/ABSL-3 laboratories.
• Respond to incidents and emergencies involving biological materials on site; investigate incidents involving biological materials and make recommendations to all levels of management to prevent a recurrence.   
• Develop and implement comprehensive biosafety training programs based on industry best practices, adult learner theory and the latest training tech