Occupational Health and Safety Specialists
Also called Industrial Hygiene Consultant, Industrial Hygienist, Safety Consultant, or Safety Specialist
Updated · Source: O*NET 31.0
What Occupational Health and Safety Specialists do
You walk through factories, labs, and job sites looking for what could hurt someone, then change how the work is done.
Occupational health and safety specialists study workplaces to find things that can make people sick or injured: chemical fumes, loud noise, bad lighting, dust, awkward lifting, and asbestos, an old building material whose fibers can damage lungs. You inspect equipment and practices, collect samples of dust, gases, or vapors for testing, and check that the workplace follows government health and safety rules. When something goes wrong, you investigate the accident and figure out how to stop it happening again.
The job mixes science with people. You write reports and recommendations, run training sessions, and work alongside engineers and doctors on fixes. You also have real authority: if a job poses a serious threat, you can order the work stopped. Stopping work is not always popular in the moment, but it is part of the job. Some specialists work for governments, others for companies or as outside consultants.
A day in the life
You start at a desk, indoors and climate controlled, clearing email and finishing yesterday's inspection report. Then you put on safety gear and walk a work area with a supervisor, checking ventilation, lighting, and how people actually handle materials. You take air samples to send for analysis. A worker stops you with a complaint about a smell near the loading area, so you listen, take notes, and promise a follow-up. Back inside, you meet with an engineer about fixing an exhaust fan. In the afternoon you run a short training session and demonstrate how a respirator, a mask that filters out harmful air, should fit. You end by writing up recommendations in clear language so managers can act on them.
This could fit you if you…
- ✓Like figuring out why something went wrong and how to prevent it
- ✓Enjoy science, especially chemistry, without wanting to stay in a lab all day
- ✓Can explain rules to people calmly and hold your ground when it matters
- ✓Keep careful records and notice details others walk past
- ✓Want a mix of desk work, walking job sites, and talking to people
You might not like it if you…
- –Avoid conflict, since you sometimes have to stop work or tell managers no
- –Dislike writing reports and documenting everything you find
- –Need everyone on site to be happy with you every day
- –Prefer a job with no paperwork, rules, or regulations to read
How people get in
- 1Take science and math seriously in high school, especially chemistry, and get comfortable with writing clearly.
- 2Earn a bachelor's degree, the typical entry education. Common paths include occupational health and industrial hygiene (the study of keeping workplace air, noise, and materials safe), environmental health, occupational safety and health technology, or industrial safety technology.
- 3Look for internships or summer work at a manufacturing plant, construction company, hospital, or public health office to see real job sites.
- 4Consider starting as an occupational health and safety technician or a related inspection role to build field experience.
- 5Learn the specific rules and sampling methods your industry uses, often by working under an experienced specialist at first.
- 6Once working, many people add professional certifications in safety or workplace health as they gain experience.
Who tends to enjoy it
Curious
People who like figuring things out, research, science, and solving problems.
Organizing
People who like keeping things accurate, orderly, and running on schedule.
Hands-on
People who like building, fixing, working with tools, machines, plants, or animals.
Official task list
Occupational Health and Safety Specialists review, evaluate, and analyze work environments and design programs and procedures to control, eliminate, and prevent disease or injury caused by chemical, physical, and biological agents or ergonomic factors. May conduct inspections and enforce adherence to laws and regulations governing the health and safety of individuals. May be employed in the public or private sector. (O*NET)
- Recommend measures to help protect workers from potentially hazardous work methods, processes, or materials.
- Develop or maintain hygiene programs, such as noise surveys, continuous atmosphere monitoring, ventilation surveys, or asbestos management plans.
- Order suspension of activities that pose threats to workers' health or safety.
- Investigate accidents to identify causes or to determine how such accidents might be prevented in the future.
- Inspect or evaluate workplace environments, equipment, or practices to ensure compliance with safety standards and government regulations.
- Collect samples of dust, gases, vapors, or other potentially toxic materials for analysis.
- Collaborate with engineers or physicians to institute control or remedial measures for hazardous or potentially hazardous conditions or equipment.
- Investigate the adequacy of ventilation, exhaust equipment, lighting, or other conditions that could affect employee health, comfort, or performance.
A typical day involves
Skills that matter most
- Reading Comprehension
- Active Listening
- Writing
- Speaking
- Critical Thinking
- Social Perceptiveness
What you'll need to know
- English Language
- Chemistry
- Education and Training
- Mathematics
- Customer and Personal Service
How much Occupational Health and Safety Specialists make
The median pay for Occupational Health and Safety Specialists in the U.S. is $90,150 a year ($43.34 an hour). Most earn between $55,000 and $134,950. (Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025)
Pay depends a lot on where you live: the median is highest in District of Columbia ($111,530) and lowest in Puerto Rico ($45,630).
Pay by state and territory
| State | Median pay | Jobs |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $82,260 | 2,510 |
| Alaska | $99,270 | 370 |
| Arizona | $89,480 | 3,220 |
| Arkansas | $73,130 | 850 |
| California | $102,840 | 16,230 |
| Colorado | $101,400 | 3,080 |
| Connecticut | $96,110 | 1,090 |
| Delaware | $81,120 | 600 |
| District of Columbia | $111,530 | 280 |
| Florida | $88,820 | 6,760 |
| Georgia | $85,450 | 3,220 |
| Guam | $68,030 | 100 |
| Hawaii | $94,840 | 640 |
| Idaho | $86,920 | 730 |
| Illinois | $98,270 | 2,900 |
| Indiana | $83,470 | 3,870 |
| Iowa | $87,830 | 1,310 |
| Kansas | $86,300 | 1,350 |
| Kentucky | $83,730 | 2,480 |
| Louisiana | $89,560 | 2,380 |
| Maine | $97,640 | 600 |
| Maryland | $91,820 | 2,160 |
| Massachusetts | $103,970 | 3,390 |
| Michigan | $84,080 | 3,350 |
| Minnesota | $96,990 | 2,460 |
| Mississippi | $84,490 | 1,140 |
| Missouri | $83,090 | 2,660 |
| Montana | $81,330 | 720 |
| Nebraska | $83,990 | 630 |
| Nevada | $94,360 | 1,150 |
| New Hampshire | $101,260 | 610 |
| New Jersey | $90,610 | 3,830 |
| New Mexico | $84,510 | 840 |
| New York | $95,720 | 6,840 |
| North Carolina | $86,650 | 4,670 |
| North Dakota | $93,250 | 540 |
| Ohio | $91,460 | 6,820 |
| Oklahoma | $79,890 | 1,690 |
| Oregon | $95,240 | 1,820 |
| Pennsylvania | $87,050 | 4,890 |
| Puerto Rico | $45,630 | 1,430 |
| Rhode Island | $101,740 | 200 |
| South Carolina | $88,080 | 2,170 |
| South Dakota | $88,610 | 250 |
| Tennessee | $81,190 | 2,690 |
| Texas | $79,660 | 17,920 |
| Utah | $90,200 | 1,230 |
| Vermont | $87,210 | 170 |
| Virginia | $90,800 | 3,910 |
| Washington | $102,920 | 3,570 |
| West Virginia | $86,560 | 1,020 |
| Wisconsin | $84,750 | 2,250 |
| Wyoming | $94,030 | 580 |
Where to study for this
College programs that commonly lead to this career, and how many US colleges offer each.
- Occupational Safety and Health Technology / Technician 77 colleges
- Environmental Health 108 colleges
- Occupational Health and Industrial Hygiene 38 colleges
- Industrial Safety Technology / Technician 25 colleges
- Patient Safety and Healthcare Quality 13 colleges
- Environmental Toxicology 14 colleges
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Source: O*NET 31.0 Database (USDOL/ETA), occupation 19-5011.00, used under CC BY 4.0 and modified by Whittle. Pay: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2025), SOC 19-5011. Outlook and entry education: BLS Employment Projections 2025–35. Program links: NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk. How we build these pages.