What You Need to Know About Industrial Safety and Health Engineer
Career Description Plan, implement, and coordinate safety programs, requiring application of engineering principles and technology, to prevent or correct unsafe environmental working conditions.
A Day in the Life of an Industrial Safety and Health Engineer
- Interview employers and employees to obtain information about work environments and workplace incidents.
- Install safety devices on machinery, or direct device installation.
- Recommend process and product safety features that will reduce employees’ exposure to chemical, physical, and biological work hazards.
- Maintain liaisons with outside organizations, such as fire departments, mutual aid societies, and rescue teams, so that emergency responses can be facilitated.
- Design and build safety equipment.
- Conduct or direct testing of air quality, noise, temperature, or radiation levels to verify compliance with health and safety regulations.
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Industrial Safety and Health Engineer Skills
When polled, Industrial Safety and Health Engineers say the following skills are most frequently used in their jobs:
Reading Comprehension: Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
Writing: Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
Speaking: Talking to others to convey information effectively.
Critical Thinking: Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
Active Listening: Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Systems Evaluation: Identifying measures or indicators of system performance and the actions needed to improve or correct performance, relative to the goals of the system.
Related Job Titles
- Safety, Health, and Environment Vice President
- Environmental Health and Safety Engineer (EHS Engineer)
- Health and Safety Professional
- Plant Safety Engineer
- Safety Engineer
Job Outlook for Industrial Safety and Health Engineers
In the United States, there were 25,900 jobs for Industrial Safety and Health Engineer in 2016. New jobs are being produced at a rate of 8.5% which is above the national average. The Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts 2,200 new jobs for Industrial Safety and Health Engineer by 2026. The BLS estimates 1,900 yearly job openings in this field.

The states with the most job growth for Industrial Safety and Health Engineer are North Dakota, Utah, and Nevada. Watch out if you plan on working in Alaska, Wyoming, or Vermont. These states have the worst job growth for this type of profession.
What is the Average Salary of an Industrial Safety and Health Engineer
The salary for Industrial Safety and Health Engineers ranges between about $53,170 and $142,970 a year.

Industrial Safety and Health Engineers who work in District of Columbia, New Mexico, or Delaware, make the highest salaries.
Below is a list of the median annual salaries for Industrial Safety and Health Engineers in different U.S. states.
State | Annual Mean Salary |
---|---|
Alabama | $97,260 |
Alaska | $83,460 |
Arizona | $74,580 |
Arkansas | $78,030 |
California | $107,290 |
Colorado | $103,940 |
Connecticut | $99,350 |
Delaware | $107,040 |
District of Columbia | $118,890 |
Florida | $80,170 |
Georgia | $78,780 |
Hawaii | $82,190 |
Idaho | $95,430 |
Illinois | $88,320 |
Indiana | $88,220 |
Iowa | $75,400 |
Kansas | $86,210 |
Kentucky | $85,560 |
Louisiana | $89,190 |
Maine | $79,700 |
Maryland | $96,670 |
Massachusetts | $99,090 |
Michigan | $88,980 |
Minnesota | $93,150 |
Mississippi | $67,720 |
Missouri | $92,890 |
Montana | $76,080 |
Nebraska | $85,490 |
Nevada | $102,030 |
New Hampshire | $87,960 |
New Jersey | $106,080 |
New Mexico | $116,350 |
New York | $95,530 |
North Carolina | $78,570 |
North Dakota | $73,820 |
Ohio | $92,710 |
Oklahoma | $94,550 |
Oregon | $86,700 |
Pennsylvania | $107,950 |
Rhode Island | $84,120 |
South Carolina | $80,980 |
South Dakota | $70,120 |
Tennessee | $83,960 |
Texas | $104,580 |
Utah | $80,070 |
Vermont | $83,770 |
Virginia | $96,810 |
Washington | $99,180 |
West Virginia | $78,490 |
Wisconsin | $67,360 |
What Tools & Technology do Industrial Safety and Health Engineers Use?
Although they’re not necessarily needed for all jobs, the following technologies are used by many Industrial Safety and Health Engineers:
- Microsoft Excel
- Microsoft Word
- Microsoft Office
- Microsoft PowerPoint
- Microsoft Access
- SAP
- Microsoft Project
- The MathWorks MATLAB
- Computer aided design CAD software
- Records management software
- Root cause analysis software
- Computational fluid dynamics CFD software
- Failure mode and effects analysis FMEA software
- Material safety data sheet MSDS software
- Electronic design automation EDA software
- Survey software
- Fault tree analysis FTA software
- Human modeling software
- Computer based training software
- Reliability analysis software
How do I Become an Industrial Safety and Health Engineer?
Education needed to be an Industrial Safety and Health Engineer:

What work experience do I need to become an Industrial Safety and Health Engineer?

Industrial Safety and Health Engineers Sector

The table below shows the approximate number of Industrial Safety and Health Engineers employed by various industries.

Related Careers
Those thinking about becoming an Industrial Safety and Health Engineer might also be interested in the following careers:
References:
Image Credit: U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Alesia Goosic via Public Domain
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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