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Industrial hygienist vs environmental, safety, & health engineer

The differences between industrial hygienists and environmental, safety, & health engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both an industrial hygienist and an environmental, safety, & health engineer. Additionally, an environmental, safety, & health engineer has an average salary of $69,638, which is higher than the $68,173 average annual salary of an industrial hygienist.

The top three skills for an industrial hygienist include OSHA, environmental health and indoor air quality. The most important skills for an environmental, safety, & health engineer are environmental health, OSHA, and EHS.

Industrial hygienist vs environmental, safety, & health engineer overview

Industrial HygienistEnvironmental, Safety, & Health Engineer
Yearly salary$68,173$69,638
Hourly rate$32.78$33.48
Growth rate4%4%
Number of jobs23,04875,881
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 71%Bachelor's Degree, 71%
Average age4242
Years of experience22

What does an industrial hygienist do?

An Industrial Hygienist plans and conducts health programs to educate employees about cleanliness, safety, and sanitation in the workplace. They investigate adequacy of ventilation, exhaust equipment, lighting, and other conditions that can affect employees' health, comfort, or efficiency.

What does an environmental, safety, & health engineer do?

An environmental, safety, and health engineer is responsible for developing procedures and designing systems to help prevent an injury, an illness, and property damage. You will perform a few tasks that include monitoring the conditions of the natural surroundings and the impact of humans, assessing potential hazards such as soil, water, and air contaminants, and developing solutions that will benefit the ecosystem and the community. You will also be responsible for developing structures that promote public safety, such as floodgates and bridges.

Industrial hygienist vs environmental, safety, & health engineer salary

Industrial hygienists and environmental, safety, & health engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.

Industrial HygienistEnvironmental, Safety, & Health Engineer
Average salary$68,173$69,638
Salary rangeBetween $45,000 And $102,000Between $50,000 And $95,000
Highest paying CityBerkeley, CAFoster City, CA
Highest paying stateLouisianaLouisiana
Best paying companyExxon MobilWestern Digital
Best paying industryEnergyTechnology

Differences between industrial hygienist and environmental, safety, & health engineer education

There are a few differences between an industrial hygienist and an environmental, safety, & health engineer in terms of educational background:

Industrial HygienistEnvironmental, Safety, & Health Engineer
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 71%Bachelor's Degree, 71%
Most common majorPublic HealthEnvironmental Science
Most common collegeDuke UniversitySUNY at Binghamton

Industrial hygienist vs environmental, safety, & health engineer demographics

Here are the differences between industrial hygienists' and environmental, safety, & health engineers' demographics:

Industrial HygienistEnvironmental, Safety, & Health Engineer
Average age4242
Gender ratioMale, 74.0% Female, 26.0%Male, 72.3% Female, 27.7%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 4.7% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 11.6% Asian, 9.8% White, 69.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%Black or African American, 4.8% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 11.8% Asian, 9.7% White, 69.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage4%4%

Differences between industrial hygienist and environmental, safety, & health engineer duties and responsibilities

Industrial hygienist example responsibilities.

  • Manage hazardous and special waste programs and profiles including audits/inspections, vendor compliance, documentation and recordkeeping.
  • Perform laboratory analysis of radiological product in support of company QA/QC protocol.
  • Conduct IAQ investigations for office buildings.
  • Perform internal audits for safety and ISO.
  • Escort MSHA compliance inspectors in the mine and help answer questions.
  • Conduct IAQ studies resulting in successful remediation by diagnosing HVAC deficiencies and developing moisture control strategies.
  • Show more

Environmental, safety, & health engineer example responsibilities.

  • Ensure compliance with OSHA, EPA and NJDEP regulations and manage site remediation program at a specialty chemical manufacturing facility.
  • Manage hazardous and special waste programs and profiles including audits/inspections, vendor compliance, documentation and recordkeeping.
  • Coordinate EPA sampling and testing to ensure compliance with storm water permits.
  • Maintain document files to comply with local, state and EPA regulations for radiation and hazardous waste disposal.
  • Complete training in ISO 14001 and OHSAS 18001 internal auditor training and assist with audits conduct on site.
  • Provide management & technical support to NASA and contractor facilities; includes development of OSHA and flight safety hazard analyses.
  • Show more

Industrial hygienist vs environmental, safety, & health engineer skills

Common industrial hygienist skills
  • OSHA, 10%
  • Environmental Health, 8%
  • Indoor Air Quality, 5%
  • Ventilation, 5%
  • Respirators, 4%
  • Corrective Action, 4%
Common environmental, safety, & health engineer skills
  • Environmental Health, 10%
  • OSHA, 9%
  • EHS, 8%
  • EPA, 4%
  • Corrective Action, 4%
  • Safety Regulations, 4%

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