What does an ehs specialist do?
Usually working for large industries, an environment and health safety (EHS) specialist's role is to ensure the implementation of the safety policies and regulations in the workplace. Typically, they spearhead programs such as fire and earthquake drills, train new employees, identify areas of vulnerabilities in the system, and organize conferences and workshops. An EHS specialist must also maintain documentation of processes, produce progress reports, prepare presentations, and develop new policies when necessary. Furthermore, it is essential to coordinate with all departments, ensuring safety compliance in all areas.
Ehs specialist responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real ehs specialist resumes:
- Assist with training, inspections, recordkeeping and reporting require for managing all wastes generate.
- Manage cross-functional teams/committees in development and implementation of robust proactive ergonomics program.
- Experience in environmental remediation, delineation and preparing reports for TXRRC, EPA.
- Monitor employees and equipment to ensure active compliance in following all ISO standards and procedures.
- Assist in obtaining ISO 14001 and OHSAS 18001 certification for a new factory in Canada.
- Skil in working with agencies such as EPA, and state and local environmental and regulatory authorities.
- Provide advice, assist, and audit line management to ensure that effective EHS is implemented and working.
- Plan and direct EHS activities and programs; establish priority for project execution base upon site resources and cost of implementation.
- Maintain recordkeeping as required by federal and local agencies.
- Develop OSHA written plans and requisite training and documentation programs in a warehouse / manufacturing operation.
- Perform instrumentation and calibration of air quality and industrial hygiene testing equipment, confirming equipment work in accordance with OSHA standards.
- Train employees on safety relate issues as well as CPR and a.
- Research and initiate OSHA, NFPA and other standard.
- Coordinate compliance for CPR/drug testing and HAZWOPER training.
- Develop testing and inspection protocol for the fire equipment in accordance with the appropriate NFPA standards and insurance company documents.
Ehs specialist skills and personality traits
We calculated that 9% of EHS Specialists are proficient in OSHA, Environmental Health, and Risk Assessments. They’re also known for soft skills such as Business skills, Collaboration skills, and Instructional skills.
We break down the percentage of EHS Specialists that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- OSHA, 9%
Performed instrumentation and calibration of air quality and industrial hygiene testing equipment, confirming equipment worked in accordance with OSHA standards.
- Environmental Health, 7%
Contracted by a manufacturing company to provide support and direction regarding environmental health and safety matters for critical compliance issues.
- Risk Assessments, 5%
Conduct risk assessments and activity review for management of change, document updates, procedure development, and facility documentation.
- Corrective Action, 5%
Developed and managed through completion Corrective Action Plans to address deficiencies found during facility regulatory and Management Systems audits.
- Ehs Management, 4%
Revise all EHS documentation in order to align and improve the EHS management system with ISO 14001 and OHSAS 18001.
- Hazardous Waste, 4%
Participated in strategic sourcing committee for hazardous and non-hazardous waste for Whitehall-Robins.
"osha," "environmental health," and "risk assessments" are among the most common skills that ehs specialists use at work. You can find even more ehs specialist responsibilities below, including:
Ability to use technology. Another crucial skill for an ehs specialist to carry out their responsibilities is "ability to use technology." A big part of what ehs specialists relies on this skill, since "occupational health and safety specialists and technicians must be able to use advanced technology." How this skill relates to ehs specialist duties can be seen in an example from an ehs specialist resume snippet: "performed various industrial hygiene monitoring for noise and indoor air quality. "
Detail oriented. Another skill commonly found on ehs specialist job descriptions is "detail oriented." It can come up quite often in ehs specialist duties, since "occupational health and safety specialists and technicians need to understand and follow safety standards and complex government regulations." Here's an example from a resume of how this skill fits into day-to-day ehs specialist responsibilities: "reviewed assigned safety programs by composing reports and documentation detailing them. "
The three companies that hire the most ehs specialists are:
- Amazon121 ehs specialists jobs
- Avantor37 ehs specialists jobs
- Tesla15 ehs specialists jobs
Choose from 10+ customizable ehs specialist resume templates
Build a professional ehs specialist resume in minutes. Our AI resume writing assistant will guide you through every step of the process, and you can choose from 10+ resume templates to create your ehs specialist resume.
Compare different ehs specialists
Ehs specialist vs. Safety engineer
The duties of a safety engineer depend on one's industry of employment. Typically, their responsibilities revolve around overseeing the implementation of the safety policies and regulations in a company by conducting regular inspections and maintenance checks, coordinating with department personnel to gather data, assessing risks, and arranging precautionary measures. A safety engineer must also address issues and concerns, responding to them in a timely and efficient manner. Furthermore, there are instances when they have to lead safety orientations and seminars to maintain a safe and productive environment for everyone.
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of an ehs specialist are more likely to require skills like "environmental health," "regulatory agencies," "continuous improvement," and "recordkeeping." On the other hand, a job as a safety engineer requires skills like "safety regulations," "ehs," "fmea," and "fault tree analysis." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
Safety engineers really shine in the technology industry with an average salary of $91,164. Comparatively, ehs specialists tend to make the most money in the health care industry with an average salary of $76,165.safety engineers tend to reach similar levels of education than ehs specialists. In fact, safety engineers are 0.1% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.3% more likely to have a Doctoral Degree.Ehs specialist vs. Safety officer
A safety officer specializes in maintaining a safe and healthy work environment for employees in a building or establishment. Aside from adhering to the safety standards and regulations within a company, a safety officer also has to craft and improve policies that prioritize the physical and mental health of workers. Furthermore, it is essential to implement safety programs by educating workers on various precautionary measures, performing regular inspections of equipment and machines, and ensuring the proper disposal of any hazardous waste materials.
In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, ehs specialist responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "environmental health," "ehs management," "safety culture," and "epa." Meanwhile, a safety officer has duties that require skills in areas such as "patients," "patrol," "risk management," and "safety regulations." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.
On average, safety officers earn a lower salary than ehs specialists. Some industries support higher salaries in each profession. Interestingly enough, safety officers earn the most pay in the government industry with an average salary of $59,274. Whereas ehs specialists have higher pay in the health care industry, with an average salary of $76,165.In general, safety officers achieve lower levels of education than ehs specialists. They're 6.0% less likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 0.3% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Ehs specialist vs. Safety trainer
The Safety Trainer ensures that all employees are safe from dangers and are educated well on handling threats and problems. Alongside this, the Safety Trainer properly educates and informs all company employees on the company's safety protocols and procedures. It is the safety trainer's discretion on how they will be able to conduct workshops and seminars for all employees. The safety trainer is an administrative task, and the position is open for people with relevant skills concerning office works.
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, ehs specialists are more likely to have skills like "environmental health," "risk assessments," "ehs management," and "hazardous waste." But a safety trainer is more likely to have skills like "cdl," "powerpoint," "safety regulations," and "training materials."
Safety trainers earn the best pay in the energy industry, where they command an average salary of $62,203. Ehs specialists earn the highest pay from the health care industry, with an average salary of $76,165.Most safety trainers achieve a lower degree level compared to ehs specialists. For example, they're 6.8% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.1% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Ehs specialist vs. Safety and training coordinator
A safety and training coordinator helps ensure that all employees, subcontractors, and vendors adhere to the safety protocols and safety behaviors. They oversee safety instructor's safety teachings, procedures, and implementation.
Types of ehs specialist
Updated January 8, 2025
