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The differences between environmental health specialists and safety inspectors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both an environmental health specialist and a safety inspector. Additionally, an environmental health specialist has an average salary of $54,789, which is higher than the $48,765 average annual salary of a safety inspector.
The top three skills for an environmental health specialist include environmental health, EHS and OSHA. The most important skills for a safety inspector are OSHA, safety procedures, and safety inspections.
| Environmental Health Specialist | Safety Inspector | |
| Yearly salary | $54,789 | $48,765 |
| Hourly rate | $26.34 | $23.44 |
| Growth rate | 6% | 6% |
| Number of jobs | 69,497 | 30,193 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 73% | Bachelor's Degree, 47% |
| Average age | 45 | 45 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
An Environmental Health Specialist is responsible for determining the existence of possible health hazards and taking measures to prevent or corect them. They monitor health and safety conditions in resedential, industrial, commercial, and recreational settings.
A safety inspector is in charge of performing inspections to ensure that workplaces comply with the company or government's safety standards and regulations. Their responsibilities include inspecting tools and equipment, reviewing documents and specifications, assessing the workforce performances and conditions, observing facilities, and ensuring that employees have protective gear and safety measure knowledge. Moreover, a safety inspector utilizes the findings of their observation to recommend methods that will help workplaces maintain a safe and healthy environment for everyone. They may also investigate workplace incidents to keep them from happening again.
Environmental health specialists and safety inspectors have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Environmental Health Specialist | Safety Inspector | |
| Average salary | $54,789 | $48,765 |
| Salary range | Between $38,000 And $77,000 | Between $34,000 And $69,000 |
| Highest paying City | Santa Rosa, CA | Sacramento, CA |
| Highest paying state | Alaska | Alaska |
| Best paying company | ICU Medical | Volkert |
| Best paying industry | Manufacturing | Energy |
There are a few differences between an environmental health specialist and a safety inspector in terms of educational background:
| Environmental Health Specialist | Safety Inspector | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 73% | Bachelor's Degree, 47% |
| Most common major | Public Health | Business |
| Most common college | University of California, Berkeley | - |
Here are the differences between environmental health specialists' and safety inspectors' demographics:
| Environmental Health Specialist | Safety Inspector | |
| Average age | 45 | 45 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 62.8% Female, 37.2% | Male, 82.1% Female, 17.9% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.6% Unknown, 6.2% Hispanic or Latino, 14.5% Asian, 5.7% White, 62.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2% | Black or African American, 10.1% Unknown, 6.2% Hispanic or Latino, 14.3% Asian, 5.7% White, 62.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 7% |