How to hire a safety consultant

How to hire a safety consultant, step by step

Here's a step-by-step safety consultant hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a safety consultant job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new safety consultant
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a safety consultant do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you post your safety consultant job, you should take the time to determine what type of worker your business needs. While certain jobs definitely require a full-time employee, it's sometimes better to find a safety consultant for hire on a part-time basis or as a contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

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   You should also consider the ideal background you'd like them a safety consultant to have before you start to hire. For example, what industry or field would you like them to have experience in, what level of seniority or education does the job require, and how much it'll cost to hire a safety consultant that fits the bill.

   The following list breaks down different types of safety consultants and their corresponding salaries.

   Type of Safety Consultant	Description	Hourly rate
   Safety Consultant	Health and safety engineers develop procedures and design systems to prevent people from getting sick or injured and to keep property from being damaged. They combine knowledge of systems engineering and of health and safety to make sure that chemicals, machinery, software, furniture, and other consumer products will not cause harm to people or damage to buildings.	$22-53
   Industrial Hygienist	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.	$21-49
   Manager, Environmental And Safety	An Environmental and Safety manager is responsible for overseeing environmental sustainability concerning production and manufacturing processes and mitigating nature's hazardous effects. Environmental and Safety managers evaluate the methods and resources used to produce and eliminate procedures that violate safety laws and internal regulations... Show more	$30-56

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • OSHA
   • EHS
   • Safety Procedures
   • Safety Audits
   • Safety Program
   • Corrective Action
   • Risk Management
   • Safety Training
   • Safety Regulations
   • Fall Protection
   • Safety Inspections
   • Safety Issues
   • Occupational Safety
   • EPA

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Maintain and manage air and water permits for multiple industrial and commercial sites in accordance with EPA regulations.
   • Manage financial oversight and budget management including financial modeling and analysis, new products, travel, tools, and scheduling.
   • Perform facility and construction site audits confirming OSHA regulatory compliance, and ensuring occupational exposure limits are not exceed.
   • Provide regulatory compliance expertise for various customer markets in regard to EHS programs including industrial hygiene, environmental and safety programs.
   • Maintain require NFPA and OSHA certifications.
   • Experience with emergency responses such as first aid, CPR, spills and fire.

   More safety consultant duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in the safety consultant job description is a good way to get more applicants. A safety consultant salary can be affected by several factors, such as the location of the job, the level of experience, education, certifications, and the employer's prestige.

   For example, the average salary for a safety consultant in Nebraska may be lower than in New Jersey, and an entry-level engineer typically earns less than a senior-level safety consultant. Additionally, a safety consultant with lots of experience in the field may command a higher salary as a result.

   Average safety consultant salary

   $72,011yearly

   $34.62 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level safety consultant salary

   $46,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 14, 2025

   Average safety consultant salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$103,695	$50
   2	Massachusetts	$96,677	$46
   3	District of Columbia	$96,531	$46
   4	Nevada	$83,444	$40
   5	Oregon	$79,073	$38
   6	New York	$78,478	$38
   7	Minnesota	$76,797	$37
   8	New Mexico	$73,886	$36
   9	Ohio	$70,125	$34
   10	Texas	$69,828	$34
   11	Washington	$68,133	$33
   12	Colorado	$64,724	$31
   13	Pennsylvania	$64,287	$31
   14	Illinois	$59,636	$29
   15	North Carolina	$59,631	$29
   16	Wisconsin	$57,136	$27
   17	Arizona	$53,984	$26
   18	Oklahoma	$53,614	$26
   19	Iowa	$52,391	$25
   20	Georgia	$49,799	$24

   Average safety consultant salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Phillips 66	$116,424	$55.97	2
   2	Veeva Systems	$104,377	$50.18
   3	LinkedIn	$101,946	$49.01
   4	QuintilesIMS	$93,063	$44.74
   5	Aurora Innovations	$92,008	$44.23	3
   6	ICW Group	$87,839	$42.23	2
   7	American Electric Power	$86,027	$41.36
   8	WESCO Distribution	$85,718	$41.21	5
   9	Rockwell Automation	$83,446	$40.12
   10	J. J. Keller & Associates	$82,076	$39.46	4
   11	Xcel Energy	$78,142	$37.57	10
   12	HORIBA	$77,491	$37.26
   13	Atkins	$74,527	$35.83
   14	Premier Inc.	$73,907	$35.53	2
   15	Pinnacol Assurance	$73,511	$35.34
   16	MSC Industrial Direct Co	$72,852	$35.02
   17	TRICOR Insurance	$72,148	$34.69
   18	ERM	$71,851	$34.54	41
   19	HonorHealth	$71,817	$34.53
   20	Universal Engineering Sciences	$70,731	$34.01	2

4. Writing a safety consultant job description

   A job description for a safety consultant role includes a summary of the job's main responsibilities, required skills, and preferred background experience. Including a salary range can also go a long way in attracting more candidates to apply, and showing the first name of the hiring manager can also make applicants more comfortable. As an example, here's a safety consultant job description:

   Safety consultant job description example

   • Perform on-site consultations to advise clients on ways to reduce risk.
   • Evaluate risks and provide information needed to make acceptability and pricing decisions.
   • Develop, apply, and maintain working knowledge of Company risk management technical policies and procedures and demonstrate understanding of the property/casualty insurance business.
   • Manage workload in assigned territory.

   Minimum Qualifications

   • A four-year degree.
   • Prefer experience with insurance, risk management and relationship building.
   • Obtain and maintain state required accreditation or certification.
   • Strong computer, time management, written and verbal communication skills.
   • Willingness to relocate.
   • Overnight travel up to 7 nights per month.
   • Valid driver's license and acceptable driving record.

   About Us

   At Federated Insurance, we do life-changing work, focused on our clients' success. For our employees, we provide tremendous opportunities for growth. Over 95% of them believe our company has an outstanding future. We make lives better, and we're looking for employees who want to make a difference in others' lives, all while enhancing their own.

   You will have opportunities to grow in your career. Our employees are encouraged to ask questions and learn on the job, and we are committed to promoting from within. We recognize your contributions with an exceptional rewards package that includes competitive pay and bonus programs, incredibly affordable health insurance, generous pension and 401(k) benefits, and gift matching and paid volunteer time to support your involvement in the community. Learn more about our Benefits.

   All candidates must be legally authorized to work in the United States for any employer. Federated will not sponsor candidates for employment visa status, such as an H1-B visa. Federated does not interview or hire students or recent graduates with J-1 or F-1 visas or similar temporary work authorization.

   If California Resident, please review Federated's enhanced Privacy Policy.

   #LI-Remote

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5. Post your job

   To find the right safety consultant for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important sources of talent for any company is its existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and current employees and ask if they know or have worked with safety consultants they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit safety consultants who meet your education requirements.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter now have more than 3.5 billion users, and you can use social media to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your safety consultant job on Zippia to find and recruit safety consultant candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   During your first interview to recruit safety consultants, engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. During the following interview, you'll be able to go into more detail about the company, the position, and the responsibilities.

   Remember to include a few questions that allow candidates to expand on their strengths in their own words. Asking about their unique skills might reveal things you'd miss otherwise. At this point, good candidates can move on to the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new safety consultant

   Once you have selected a candidate for the safety consultant position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize the agreement with a contract.

   It's also good etiquette to follow up with applicants who don't get the job by sending them an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   To prepare for the new employee's start date, you can create an onboarding schedule and complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9 forms, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Human Resources should also ensure that a new employee file is created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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How much does it cost to hire a safety consultant?