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The differences between safety specialists and environmental health specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a safety specialist and an environmental health specialist. Additionally, a safety specialist has an average salary of $57,905, which is higher than the $54,789 average annual salary of an environmental health specialist.
The top three skills for a safety specialist include OSHA, develop corrective action and safety program. The most important skills for an environmental health specialist are environmental health, EHS, and OSHA.
| Safety Specialist | Environmental Health Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $57,905 | $54,789 |
| Hourly rate | $27.84 | $26.34 |
| Growth rate | 6% | 6% |
| Number of jobs | 16,355 | 69,497 |
| Job satisfaction | 5 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 60% | Bachelor's Degree, 73% |
| Average age | 45 | 45 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
Safety specialists examine various types of work procedures and environments. They observe if workplaces stick to the regulations on health, safety, and the environment. Also, they create programs to prevent injury or disease to workers and harm to the environment. Their duties include identifying hazards at the workplace and collecting samples of potentially toxic materials for examination. Another task they do is conduct training on emergency preparedness. Additionally, they explore and identify the causes of an accident to determine their preventative measures.
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.
Safety specialists and environmental health specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Safety Specialist | Environmental Health Specialist | |
| Average salary | $57,905 | $54,789 |
| Salary range | Between $38,000 And $87,000 | Between $38,000 And $77,000 |
| Highest paying City | Boston, MA | Santa Rosa, CA |
| Highest paying state | Alaska | Alaska |
| Best paying company | Chevron | ICU Medical |
| Best paying industry | - | Manufacturing |
There are a few differences between a safety specialist and an environmental health specialist in terms of educational background:
| Safety Specialist | Environmental Health Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 60% | Bachelor's Degree, 73% |
| Most common major | Business | Public Health |
| Most common college | San Diego State University | University of California, Berkeley |
Here are the differences between safety specialists' and environmental health specialists' demographics:
| Safety Specialist | Environmental Health Specialist | |
| Average age | 45 | 45 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 69.3% Female, 30.7% | Male, 62.8% Female, 37.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.0% Unknown, 6.2% Hispanic or Latino, 14.6% Asian, 5.7% White, 62.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2% | 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% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 7% |