How to hire a safety supervisor

How to hire a safety supervisor, step by step

Here's a step-by-step safety supervisor 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 supervisor job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new safety supervisor
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a safety supervisor do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring a safety supervisor, identify what type of worker you actually need. Certain positions might call for a full-time employee, while others can be done by a part-time worker or contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

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

   Yes

   No

   A safety supervisor's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, safety supervisors from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

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

   Type of Safety Supervisor	Description	Hourly rate
   Safety Supervisor	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.	$20-47
   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
   • Safety Procedures
   • Safety Program
   • Safety Training
   • Safety Audits
   • Patrol
   • Corrective Action
   • Safety Regulations
   • Site Safety
   • Safety Policies
   • ISO
   • CPR
   • EHS
   • Safety Issues

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage financial oversight and budget management including financial modeling and analysis, new products, travel, tools, and scheduling.
   • Evaluate and maintain site compliance with all OSHA, EPA, local state, federal, and corporate guidelines.
   • Conduct TPM and SMED projects on complex automate equipment.
   • Teach and instruct first aid, CPR, a, safety awareness and babysitting.
   • Operate machinery - asphalt, laid pipe, operate a sweeper broom, and rollers.
   • Ensure compliance to OSHA, NFPA, ANSI, and other local, state and federal regulatory agencies.

   More safety supervisor duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in the safety supervisor job description is a good way to get more applicants. A safety supervisor 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 supervisor in Florida may be lower than in Massachusetts, and an entry-level engineer typically earns less than a senior-level safety supervisor. Additionally, a safety supervisor with lots of experience in the field may command a higher salary as a result.

   Average safety supervisor salary

   $65,392yearly

   $31.44 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level safety supervisor salary

   $43,000 yearly salary

   Updated February 3, 2026

   Average safety supervisor salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Massachusetts	$88,351	$42
   2	District of Columbia	$87,955	$42
   3	North Dakota	$81,217	$39
   4	Michigan	$74,580	$36
   5	Utah	$74,523	$36
   6	New Jersey	$74,367	$36
   7	Virginia	$72,926	$35
   8	California	$72,277	$35
   9	New York	$71,089	$34
   10	Washington	$70,916	$34
   11	Pennsylvania	$70,514	$34
   12	Ohio	$67,195	$32
   13	Indiana	$65,747	$32
   14	Texas	$62,756	$30
   15	New Mexico	$62,357	$30
   16	Wyoming	$61,227	$29
   17	Colorado	$60,669	$29
   18	Maryland	$58,876	$28
   19	Tennessee	$57,285	$28
   20	Minnesota	$56,695	$27

   Average safety supervisor salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Cargill	$103,166	$49.60	1
   2	MDU Resources	$100,373	$48.26
   3	Amy's Kitchen	$92,418	$44.43	2
   4	The Wonderful Company	$91,270	$43.88	5
   5	Bimbo Bakeries	$89,347	$42.96
   6	Nucor	$89,344	$42.95	7
   7	Post Holdings	$87,028	$41.84	8
   8	Systemax	$85,046	$40.89
   9	University of California-Berkeley	$83,919	$40.35
   10	Wayfair	$82,200	$39.52
   11	University of California	$82,046	$39.45	3
   12	Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings	$80,824	$38.86
   13	Freeport-McMoRan	$80,720	$38.81	1
   14	The Doe Run Company	$79,983	$38.45	4
   15	The Walt Disney Company	$79,700	$38.32	3
   16	The Timken Company	$79,522	$38.23	1
   17	Covenant	$79,421	$38.18	2
   18	Inter-Con Security Systems	$79,285	$38.12	5
   19	Ahmad, Zavitsanos, Anaipakos, Alavi & Mensing P.c. Or Aza	$79,241	$38.10	2
   20	Veolia Water Tech	$79,236	$38.09	12

4. Writing a safety supervisor job description

   A safety supervisor job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. To help get you started, here's an example of a safety supervisor job description:

   Safety supervisor job description example

   The Field Supervisor is responsible for planning, coordinating, directing, and supervising the daily activities of the field personnel that maintains and services the facilities. This position reports to the Branch Manager or Branch Operations Manager.
   Essential Job Functions
   Maintains a safe, secure and healthy environment by adhering to Company/Customer safety standards and practices and to legal regulations, alerting others regarding potential hazards or concern Performs all duties as assigned and adheres to TEAM's Core Values.Plans, organizes and controls assigned operations in accordance with guidelines and schedules established by the Operations Manager or Branch Manager.Coordinates and supervises project related activities to include bid proposals and the effective execution of work to ensure job profitability.Maintains close surveillance over operations while performing company work to ensure proper use of manpower, skills, equipment and facilities.Provides instruction, guidance, and directions to assist employees having difficulties and procedural problems.Schedules Field Personnel for work assignments in cooperation with the Operations Manager or Branch Manager and may perform field work on occasion.Acts as the liaison between management and the workforce to keep production and maintenance supervisors informed, avoid breaches of contracts and maintain the highest possible level of employer/employee relationships. Performs administrative procedures including documentation, dissemination of information, and task management.
   Job Qualifications
   High school diploma, technical school or college credits preferred.Three (3) years of experience in industrial operations or maintenance preferred.Must have a current HAZWOPER Training Certificate.Must possess a valid driver's license.Must be highly proficient in Microsoft Word and Excel and have working knowledge of PowerPoint, Access, SharePoint, and Adobe.
   Work Conditions
   Position is based out of a branch or site location.Field duties require indoor and outdoor work in a plant atmosphere Interaction with other crew employees, as well as supervisors and client personnel Working in plant and/or shop areas around production machinery with extreme noise levels Must be able to wear safety equipment as required by the safety department for personal protection May be at more than one job site in a day and must be able to tolerate climate changes May be required to travel out of town on a periodic basis
   Physical and Mental Requirements
   Ability to lift and carry 75 pounds Must be able to walk and climb except when performing non-field duties Sufficient clarity of speech and hearing or other communication capabilities, with or without reasonable accommodation, which permits employee to communicate effectively Sufficient vision or other powers of observation, with or without reasonable accommodations, which permits employee to investigations Sufficient manual dexterity with or without reasonable accommodation, which permit the employee to perform routine office duties Sufficient personal mobility and physical reflexes, with or without reasonable accommodations to perform office duties and travel when necessary to off-site locations Sufficient personal mobility to maneuver within a refinery or plant environment to include the ability to gain access to elevated platforms via ladders and stairwells Ability to maintain focus and multitask effectively Excellent communication skills
   
   TEAM provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws.
   This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find the right safety supervisor 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 supervisors they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit safety supervisors 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 supervisor job on Zippia to find and recruit safety supervisor candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Recruiting safety supervisors requires you to bring your A-game to the interview process. The first interview should introduce the company and the role to the candidate as much as they present their background experience and reasons for applying for the job. During later interviews, you can go into more detail about the technical details of the job and ask behavioral questions to gauge how they'd fit into your current company culture.

   You should also ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match the ideal candidate profile you developed earlier. Candidates good enough for the next step can complete 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 supervisor

   Once you've decided on a perfect safety supervisor candidate, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, it should include benefits and perks available to the employee. Qualified candidates may be considered for other positions, so make sure your offer is competitive. Candidates may wish to negotiate. Once you've settled on the details, formalize your agreement with a contract.

   You should also follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that you've filled the position.

   Once that's done, you can draft an onboarding schedule for the new safety supervisor. Human Resources should complete Employee Action Forms and ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc. They should also ensure that new employee files are created for internal recordkeeping.

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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