Medical safety director vs safety manager

The differences between medical safety directors and safety managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become a medical safety director, becoming a safety manager takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a medical safety director has an average salary of $148,525, which is higher than the $74,754 average annual salary of a safety manager.

The top three skills for a medical safety director include safety data, signal detection and safety reports. The most important skills for a safety manager are OSHA, safety program, and safety procedures.

Medical safety director vs safety manager overview

	Medical Safety Director	Safety Manager
Yearly salary	$148,525	$74,754
Hourly rate	$71.41	$35.94
Growth rate	6%	4%
Number of jobs	64,360	16,155
Job satisfaction	-	5
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 43%	Bachelor's Degree, 55%
Average age	45	42
Years of experience	6	2

Medical safety director vs safety manager salary

Medical safety directors and safety managers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Medical Safety Director	Safety Manager
Average salary	$148,525	$74,754
Salary range	Between $77,000 And $286,000	Between $48,000 And $115,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	Alaska	California
Best paying company	Covance	NVIDIA
Best paying industry	-	Energy

Differences between medical safety director and safety manager education

There are a few differences between a medical safety director and a safety manager in terms of educational background:

	Medical Safety Director	Safety Manager
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 43%	Bachelor's Degree, 55%
Most common major	Medicine	Business
Most common college	Duke University	Stanford University

Medical safety director vs safety manager demographics

Here are the differences between medical safety directors' and safety managers' demographics:

	Medical Safety Director	Safety Manager
Average age	45	42
Gender ratio	Male, 76.3% Female, 23.7%	Male, 81.6% Female, 18.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.0% Unknown, 5.9% Hispanic or Latino, 14.2% Asian, 5.7% White, 63.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2%	Black or African American, 4.9% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 12.2% Asian, 9.6% White, 69.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	7%	4%

Differences between medical safety director and safety manager duties and responsibilities

Medical safety director example responsibilities.

Manage interaction and oversight of insurance brokerage, insurance company and third party resources and services.
Manage HSE programs for a national corporation specializing in concrete product manufacturing.
Investigate accidents and report to MSHA and CAL-OSHA.
Distinguish for successfully representing Becton Dickinson through multiple FDA and NSAI audits.
Secure ISO certification -developed by internal resources and culture, not outsource.
Monitor compliance with EPA standards, conduct all employee-training sessions for compliance with safety and HazCom standards.

Safety manager example responsibilities.

Train and lead industrial Hazmat response team.
Manage consultants to complete air permit application and SPCC plan reviews.
Coordinate and conduct JHA, safety stand downs, accident investigation and manage individual WC claims.
Meet with PPE vendors and manage PPE inventory and PPE use compliance on the production floor.
Train and manage a team of competent persons and gas-free technicians under the direction of NFPA standards and marine chemist.
Manage financial oversight and budget management including financial modeling and analysis, new products, travel, tools, and scheduling.

Medical safety director vs safety manager skills

Common medical safety director skills

Safety Data, 14%
Signal Detection, 11%
Safety Reports, 10%
Safety Issues, 10%
Clinical Development, 10%
Risk Management, 9%

Common safety manager skills

OSHA, 13%
Safety Program, 6%
Safety Procedures, 4%
Safety Training, 4%
Safety Policies, 4%
Safety Regulations, 3%

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Medical Safety Director
Medical Safety Director vs Safety Manager

Updated January 8, 2025

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