Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
Job outlook for safety attendants in the United States
Safety attendant job growth summary. After extensive research, interviews, and analysis, Zippia's data science team found that:
The projected safety attendant job growth rate is 6% from 2018-2028.
About 7,500 new jobs for safety attendants are projected over the next decade.
Safety attendant salaries have increased -15% for safety attendants in the last 5 years.
There are over 5,360 safety attendants currently employed in the United States.
There are 57,879 active safety attendant job openings in the US.
The average safety attendant salary is $31,650.
Are safety attendant jobs in demand?
Safety attendant job and salary trends over time
Safety attendant jobs over time
Safety attendant job growth rate over time
| Year | # of jobs | % of population |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 5,360 | 0.00% |
| 2020 | 1,005 | 0.00% |
| 2019 | 2,527 | 0.00% |
| 2018 | 2,827 | 0.00% |
| 2017 | 2,601 | 0.00% |
Average safety attendant salary over time
Safety attendant salary by year
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $31,650 | $15.22 | +3.6% |
| 2024 | $30,551 | $14.69 | --20.3% |
| 2023 | $38,317 | $18.42 | +1.7% |
| 2022 | $37,666 | $18.11 | +1.2% |
| 2021 | $37,215 | $17.89 | +1.0% |
Safety attendant jobs by state
Most common states for safety attendants
| Rank | State | Population | # of jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Montana | 1,050,493 | 125 | 12% |
| 2 | Alaska | 739,795 | 81 | 11% |
| 3 | Vermont | 623,657 | 68 | 11% |
| 4 | Arizona | 7,016,270 | 726 | 10% |
| 5 | Colorado | 5,607,154 | 536 | 10% |
| 6 | Wyoming | 579,315 | 58 | 10% |
| 7 | Florida | 20,984,400 | 1,806 | 9% |
| 8 | Georgia | 10,429,379 | 890 | 9% |
| 9 | Virginia | 8,470,020 | 749 | 9% |
| 10 | Missouri | 6,113,532 | 522 | 9% |
| 11 | Oregon | 4,142,776 | 356 | 9% |
| 12 | Iowa | 3,145,711 | 282 | 9% |
| 13 | Utah | 3,101,833 | 274 | 9% |
| 14 | Nevada | 2,998,039 | 262 | 9% |
| 15 | New Hampshire | 1,342,795 | 122 | 9% |
| 16 | Rhode Island | 1,059,639 | 91 | 9% |
| 17 | District of Columbia | 693,972 | 61 | 9% |
| 18 | New Jersey | 9,005,644 | 677 | 8% |
| 19 | Massachusetts | 6,859,819 | 553 | 8% |
| 20 | Maryland | 6,052,177 | 491 | 8% |
Most common cities for safety attendants
| Rank | City | # of jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl | Avg. salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mason City | 4 | 15% | $28,328 |
| 2 | Saratoga Springs | 2 | 7% | $33,234 |
| 3 | Tyler | 4 | 4% | $27,633 |
| 4 | Aventura | 1 | 3% | $23,749 |
| 5 | Lewiston | 1 | 3% | $35,784 |
| 6 | Berwyn | 1 | 2% | $30,209 |
| 7 | Coeur dAlene | 1 | 2% | $32,524 |
| 8 | Dubuque | 1 | 2% | $28,281 |
| 9 | Flagstaff | 1 | 1% | $26,956 |
| 10 | Nampa | 1 | 1% | $31,909 |
| 11 | Overland Park | 1 | 1% | $27,205 |
| 12 | Sioux City | 1 | 1% | $27,631 |
| 13 | Phoenix | 1 | 0% | $26,926 |
Safety Attendant job outlook: Expert opinions
Our panel of safety attendant experts
University of Central Missouri
Southeastern Louisiana University
San Jose State University
NIOSH
NMSU/Dona Ana Community College
Wesley Tinker
Assistant Professor of SafetyUniversity of Central Missouri
Safety Sciences
What hard/technical skills are most important for Safety Attendants?
Wesley Tinker: -Risk assessment skills are a must; without them, the individual will be lost.
-Ventilation and noise calculations as well as monitoring procedures.
-How to calibrate hazard monitoring equipment.
-Instructional skills. The safety professional spends a large portion of their days training workers to perform their tasks safely either in a classroom setting or individually on site.
-Ability to perform thorough accident investigations and provide preventative control measures based on causal factors found.
-Ability to quantitate values of risk versus controls as well as cost/benefit analysis.
-The technical uses for analytical techniques to break down analysis' in several different functions of the job duties.
-Able to apply OSHA requirements to specific site functions, i.e., secondary containment, hot works, and elevated working surfaces.
What skills will help Safety Attendants earn the most?
Wesley Tinker: -Being a well-rounded safety professional is one of the absolute most important contributions to any organization. Being able to have several skill sets will make the professional highly marketable.
-Continuing education will advance one's pay range.
-An advanced degree will increase market salary.
-Professional certifications from the Board of Certified Safety Professionals such as the GSP, CHST, SMS, ASP, CSP, and CIH.
-Overall, there must be a good mesh of personable and technical skills to be a highly successful safety professional in almost any industry.
What skills stand out on Safety Attendant resumes?
Wesley Tinker: When reviewing an Occupational Health and Safety Professional resumes, specific items stand out from a viewer's standpoint.
-Whether the degree program they graduated from is ABET-accredited.
-Obtaining the Graduate Safety Practitioner (GSP) upon graduation from a qualified degree program shows that the candidate has been very well educated for the safety profession.
-The experience from their internships. Expect to be asked about their day-to-day duties while in their internship.
-Professional skills noted such as time management, customer service, technological abilities, and overall organizational skills.
-Affiliations with safety organizations as well as student chapter organizations, such as the American ---Society of Safety Professionals (ASSP).
-Limiting to a single page for a resume is important. Most entry-level safety professionals are hired knowing they do not possess all the skill sets that a seasoned safety professional might have. The average resume for most industries is viewed for approximately 6 to 7 seconds. Having high-profile information toward the top of the resume is critical if wanting to be brought in for an interview.
-Certifications in OSHA 10 and 30, CPR/First Aid, as well as CPR/First Aid Instructor certification, is a very large advantage. If one really wanted to stand out, an EMT-B license would help too.
What soft skills should all Safety Attendants possess?
Wesley Tinker: In the safety profession, one must be personable and know how to read the crowd and the individual.
-A strong work ethic is a standout for anyone, but effective multi-tasking in the safety profession will set you apart.
-As noted, time management is a professional trait all must possess to be successful in almost any industry.
Handling pressure and keeping composure under stressful situations shows your professionalism and handling most tasks presented to you.
Continuous improvement objectives so that the site safety culture is always advancing toward high worker morale and management support for what the safety professional is attempting to achieve.
Jared Reno
Undergraduate Coordinator of The Industrial and Engineering Technology DepartmentSoutheastern Louisiana University
Industrial and Engineering Technology
What soft skills should all Safety Attendants possess?
Jared Reno: In industrial and engineering technologies, I believe that the most important soft skill is critical thinking skills like designing aptitudes to fit specific needs, innovating using the resources available to your company, troubleshooting problems in equipment, logistics, and interpersonal disputes. This industry is all about solving problems in new and creative ways, and that is why I think critical thinking skills are the most important.
Christine Foster
Adjunct ProfessorSan Jose State University
Industrial Systems and Engineering Department
What skills stand out on Safety Attendant resumes?
Christine Foster: From a skills perspective, I look for strong written and verbal communication skills. This includes making sure that the resume is grammatically solid and free from spelling errors. This is a first impression, and one that may make the difference between getting an interview or not. Specific experience that is important includes risk assessment/analysis, regulatory interpretation, data analysis, and project management. So much of what we do in occupational safety is assessing risk and then translating that into recommendations that are then managed to execution. Today's safety professional needs to be able to do all of these things well.
Are there any particularly good places in the United States for Safety Attendants to find work opportunities?
Christine Foster: For geographic areas that will be best for jobs, I would say the jobs will follow the industry trends I mentioned above. Areas with a concentration of biopharma, including the Bay Area, New Jersey, Boston, North Carolina, and Seattle will likely continue to see high demand for safety professionals.
For those entering the field, consulting firms are a great place to begin a career, with many opportunities for new graduates and an ability to learn the field in a variety of industry applications.
Will there be an enduring impact of the coronavirus pandemic on Safety Attendants?
Dr. John Howard: Recent graduates beginning a career in occupational safety and health will find the COVID-19 pandemic has brought to light the critical role of workplace safety and the health and occupational safety and health practitioners - not just in health care but in industries nationwide. Workers are the backbone of our nation that keep us moving ahead, even in the face of unprecedented threats, such as the one we face today. The importance of taking proactive steps to ensure they have the safety equipment and the training they need to perform work safely and remain healthy is clearer than ever.
Alfred Lujan
Assistant ProfessorNMSU/Dona Ana Community College
Public Services Department, Fire Science Program
What type of skills will young Safety Attendants need?
Alfred Lujan: Most fire departments require or prefer candidates with a current Emergency Medical Technician-Basic license at a minimum.
Many fire departments require a minimum of a Firefighter I IFSAC or Pro Board certification, and it is a prerequisite Hazardous Materials Awareness and Operations certification.
Are there any particularly good places in the United States for Safety Attendants to find work opportunities?
Alfred Lujan: No, most municipalities and counties in the US have fire departments, and personnel is frequently hired due to regular attrition. Pay varies, however, depending on the area.