SANITATION AND SAFETY SPECIALIST - 79011364

Requisition No: 885930 

Agency: Business and Professional Regulation

Working Title: SANITATION AND SAFETY SPECIALIST - 79011364

 Pay Plan: Career Service

Position Number: 79011364 

Salary:  $1,788.53 Bi-weekly 

Posting Closing Date: 11/04/2026 

Total Compensation Estimator Tool

DIVISION OF HOTELS AND RESTAURANTS
Sanitation and Safety Specialist (Food & Lodging Health Inspector)

Position Number: 79011364
Hiring Salary: $1,788.53 Bi-weekly

**Open Competitive Announcement**

This position will be filled in Miami/Dade County with occasional day-travel to the district office in Doral.

***Applicants must complete all fields in the Candidate Profile.  Work history, hours worked, and formal education are required to qualify for this position.  Responses to Qualifying Questions must be verifiable in the Candidate Profile. Resumes and other documentation can be attached to provide additional information. ***

Our Organization and Mission

The Division of Hotels and Restaurants (H&R) licenses, inspects, and regulates public lodging and food service establishments in Florida under Chapter 509, Florida Statutes (FS). The division also licenses and regulates elevators, escalators and other vertical conveyance devices under Chapter 399, FS. The division’s three bureaus – Sanitation and Safety Inspections, Licensing, and Elevator Safety – comprise a team of approximately 360 personnel fulfilling the regulatory obligations of the division throughout the state.

Our Mission is to protect the health and safety of the public by providing the industry with quality inspections and fair regulation.

The Work You Will Do

This position is located with the Division of Hotels and Restaurants and conducts sanitation and safety inspections of hotels and restaurants and investigations of food-borne illness complaints.

• Conduct inspection and inspection related activities. 
• Conduct regulatory, standardized inspections of public food service establishments and lodging facilities for compliance with environmental health and sanitation regulations, and other safety or sanitation-related areas as deemed necessary.
• Investigate food borne illness and environmental sanitary nuisance complaints and investigate and take administrative action against unlicensed activity. Work with other city, county and state agency officials to secure compliance with state regulations.
• Participate in the inspection and licensing of temporary events.
• Conduct routine inspections using an iPad and prepare accurate facility inspection reports documenting safety, sanitation, and misrepresentation violations, as well as daily activity reports, timesheets, and travel reimbursement reports.
• Prioritize all assigned work according to department guidelines to ensure compliance with state laws and rules.
• Prepare and submit legal documents to secure compliance through administrative actions by following department guidelines and also attend and testify as needed in formal and informal hearings. Delivers legal documents in person to facility operators to secure “Good Service” as required.
• Communicate with the district office and supervisor as necessary or required.
• Maintain Continuing Education Units, Certified Food Manager Certification, FDA standardization and Florida driver’s license.
• Maintain state issued equipment in proper working condition.
• Participate in meetings and training sessions as required.
• Provide a high standard of customer service.
• Perform other work as required.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Knowledge of laws and rules pertaining to sanitation and safety inspections.
• Ability to work on a team and participate in team activities.
• Ability to stand for long periods, bend, lift, climb, stoop, and carry work equipment.

Minimum Requirements

• Valid driver license.
• Must be able to stand for long periods; bend, lift, climb, stoop, and carry work equipment.
• Must be willing and able to work weekends and evenings as required for routine or special inspection requirements and inspection/licensing of temporary events.
• Must be willing and able to drive a state vehicle or your personal vehicle (with reimbursement) to perform the duties of this position.
• Must be willing to accept employment at the advertised salary.
• Must be willing and able to work in high crime areas to inspect substandard housing and enter locations with vermin, sewage, or other sanitary hazards when necessary.
• Must be willing and able to work Monday through Friday, 8:00 am to 5:00 pm (with a one-hour lunch break).

Preferred Qualifications

• Preference will be given to applicants with two or more years of industry-related experience (food service and/or lodging experience).

• Preference will be given to applicants with an Associate or higher degree in culinary or hospitality management.

 **Industry-related experience is considered to be hotel or restaurant management, restaurant or lodging operations, field or laboratory experience in environmental or public health, food sanitation or quality control. 

The Benefits of Working for the State of Florida

Working for the State of Florida is more than a paycheck. The State’s total compensation package for employees features a highly competitive set of employee benefits including:

• State of Florida retirement package: 3% employee contribution required.
• Nine annual paid holidays and one personal holiday
• Ability to earn up to 104 hours of paid annual leave annually as a new employee with the State of Florida
• Ability to earn up to 104 hours of paid sick leave annually.
• The State of Florida offers health insurance coverage (i.e. individual and family coverage) to eligible employees.
• The State of Florida provides a $25,000 life insurance policy to eligible employees.
• Additional supplemental insurance policies are available for dental, vision, hospital supplement, cancer, etc.
• Tax deferred medical and childcare reimbursement accounts are available.
• Tuition waiver program to attend an approved State of Florida College or University

For additional benefit information, please visit the following website: http://www.mybenefits.myflorida.com

Applicant Note To maintain fairness and integrity in our hiring process, the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools to answer qualifying questions or participate in interviews is strictly prohibited. Applicants must provide their own, authentic responses during all stages of the evaluation and recruitment process. Any candidate found using AI to assist in their answers will be disqualified from consideration

If you are the selected candidate for this position and hold a current license through the Florida Department of Business & Professional Regulation, you may be required to place your license in an inactive status.

Applicants must complete all fields in the Candidate Profile.  Work history, hours worked, and formal education are required to qualify for this position.  Responses to Qualifying Questions must be verifiable in the Candidate Profile. Resumes and other documentation can be attached to provide additional information.
 
Background Screening Requirement:

The Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation requires all job applicants, interns, volunteers and contractors to pass a Level 2 background check as per Chapter 435, Florida Statutes which consists of fingerprinting and a check of local, state, and national law enforcement records. Employees will be retained in the state and national rap back program, providing real-time arrest hit notifications.  This check must be completed before you can start working or contracting.

Applicants are required to apply through the People First system by the closing date, by applying online.  All required documentation must be received by the closing date of the advertisement.  If you have any questions regarding your application, you may call 1-877-562-7287.

 
The Florida Department of Business & Professional Regulation is committed to increasing recruitment and hiring of individuals with disabilities and improving employment outcomes. 
 

Candidates requiring a reasonable accommodation, as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act, must contact the DBPR Human Resources (HR) Office at (850) 487-2074. DBPR requests applicants notify HR in advance to allow sufficient time to provide the accommodation.

SPECIAL REMINDERS:

Male applicants born on or after October 1, 1962, will not be eligible for hire or promotion unless they are registered with the Selective Services System (SSS) before their 26th birthday, or have a Letter of Registration Exemption from the SSS.  For more information, please visit the SSS website: http://www.sss.gov .

If you are a retiree of the Florida Retirement System (FRS), please check with the FRS on how your current benefits will be affected if you are re-employed with the State of Florida. Your current retirement benefits may be canceled, suspended or deemed ineligible depending upon the date of your retirement.

The Florida Department of Business & Professional Regulation values the sacrifices veterans, and their family members have given to our country and support the hiring of returning service members and military spouses.
 

A candidate for veterans’ preference who believes he or she was not afforded employment preference may file a complaint in accordance with Rule 55A-7.016, F.A.C., with the Florida Department of Veterans’ Affairs, Veterans’ Preference Coordinator, 11351 Ulmerton Road, Suite 311, Largo, FL, 33778. The Department of Veterans’ Affairs has also established an email where people can electronically file claims or ask questions. The email is veteranspreference@fdva.state.fl.us.

The Department of Business and Professional Regulation will only hire U. S. citizens and lawfully authorized alien workers. Our agency participates in the E-Verify System which is a federal government electronic database available for employers to use to verify the identity and employment eligibility of all persons hired to work in the United States.

Candidates requiring a reasonable accommodation, as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act, must notify the agency hiring authority and/or People First Service Center (1-866-663-4735). Notification to the hiring authority must be made in advance to allow sufficient time to provide the accommodation.

The State of Florida supports a Drug-Free workplace. All employees are subject to reasonable suspicion drug testing in accordance with Section 112.0455, F.S., Drug-Free Workplace Act.

VETERANS’ PREFERENCE.  Pursuant to Chapter 295, Florida Statutes, candidates eligible for Veterans’ Preference will receive preference in employment for Career Service vacancies and are encouraged to apply.  Certain service members may be eligible to receive waivers for postsecondary educational requirements.  Candidates claiming Veterans’ Preference must attach supporting documentation with each submission that includes character of service (for example, DD Form 214 Member Copy #4) along with any other documentation as required by Rule 55A-7, Florida Administrative Code.  Veterans’ Preference documentation requirements are available by clicking here.  All documentation is due by the close of the vacancy announcement.