Senior safety specialist vs safety representative

The differences between senior safety specialists and safety representatives can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a senior safety specialist and a safety representative. Additionally, a senior safety specialist has an average salary of $70,067, which is higher than the $50,717 average annual salary of a safety representative.

The top three skills for a senior safety specialist include OSHA, corrective action and EHS. The most important skills for a safety representative are OSHA, safety procedures, and corrective action.

Senior safety specialist vs safety representative overview

	Senior Safety Specialist	Safety Representative
Yearly salary	$70,067	$50,717
Hourly rate	$33.69	$24.38
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	15,706	15,531
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 66%	Bachelor's Degree, 51%
Average age	45	45
Years of experience	6	6

What does a senior safety specialist do?

A senior safety specialist is in charge of designing and developing safety measures and protocols in a company. Their responsibilities revolve around understanding every procedure and operations, identifying and assessing risks, examining existing safety policies to determine areas needing improvement, and implementing the company's safety policies and regulations. They may also investigate incidents and devise strategies to prevent them from happening again. Furthermore, as a senior safety specialist, it is essential to serve as a mentor to other safety officers, assisting them in creating programs to maintain a safe and productive work environment.

What does a safety representative do?

A safety representative is responsible for reiterating safety protocols and regulations in the workplace to prevent potential hazards and operational delays. Safety representatives facilitate training and programs for the employees and inform them of any communications related to their safety and wellbeing. They also submit incident reports to the safety manager and provide recommendations to minimize risks and practice emergency drills. A safety representative must have excellent communication and organizational skills to create a safe environment for operations.

Senior safety specialist vs safety representative salary

Senior safety specialists and safety representatives have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Senior Safety Specialist	Safety Representative
Average salary	$70,067	$50,717
Salary range	Between $45,000 And $108,000	Between $32,000 And $78,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	New York, NY
Highest paying state	Alaska	New York
Best paying company	Arkema	ConocoPhillips
Best paying industry	-	Energy

Differences between senior safety specialist and safety representative education

There are a few differences between a senior safety specialist and a safety representative in terms of educational background:

	Senior Safety Specialist	Safety Representative
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 66%	Bachelor's Degree, 51%
Most common major	Occupational Safety And Health	Business
Most common college	San Diego State University	San Diego State University

Senior safety specialist vs safety representative demographics

Here are the differences between senior safety specialists' and safety representatives' demographics:

	Senior Safety Specialist	Safety Representative
Average age	45	45
Gender ratio	Male, 73.1% Female, 26.9%	Male, 77.5% Female, 22.5%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.1% Unknown, 6.2% Hispanic or Latino, 14.4% Asian, 5.7% White, 62.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2%	Black or African American, 10.0% Unknown, 6.1% Hispanic or Latino, 14.2% Asian, 5.6% White, 62.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between senior safety specialist and safety representative duties and responsibilities

Senior safety specialist example responsibilities.

Manage all asbestos relate incidents/clean-ups.
Assist all pump stations in interpretation of OSHA regulations and implementation of proper safety procedures.
Create electrical procedures and training both classroom and hands on to comply with NFPA 70E.
Participate in internal and external audits including FDA audits and preparing complaint files/records for the audits, accordingly.
Collaborate with the university bio-safety officer to ensure timely training of new OSHA and human safety concepts.
Key management and operations lead focuse on plant functional and tactical EHS operations in chemical manufacturing environment.

Safety representative example responsibilities.

Complete HAZMAT training and manage squadrons HAZMAT program.
Manage the development/execution of the EHS communication and program strategy for this diversify global technology and industrial leader.
Maintain the CPR kit program.
Administer first-aid and CPR when need.
Skil in hazard communication, LOTO, machine guarding, and contractor safety.
Insure permits and LOTO procedures are as followed for commissioning, pumps, motors, turbines.

Senior safety specialist vs safety representative skills

Common senior safety specialist skills

OSHA, 10%
Corrective Action, 4%
EHS, 4%
Regulatory Agencies, 3%
Training Programs, 3%
Safety Policies, 3%

Common safety representative skills

OSHA, 13%
Safety Procedures, 6%
Corrective Action, 5%
Safety Program, 5%
Safety Training, 4%
Safety Audits, 4%

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Senior Safety Specialist
Senior Safety Specialist vs Safety Representative

Updated January 8, 2025

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