An official State of Ohio site. Here’s how you know
Contact

Welcome,
New User

Occupational Health and Safety Specialists

Review, evaluate, and analyze work environments and design programs and procedures to control, eliminate, and prevent disease or injury caused by chemical, physical, and biological agents or ergonomic factors. May conduct inspections and enforce adherence to laws and regulations governing the health and safety of individuals. May be employed in the public or private sector.

View All

    Work Activities

    Work Activities

    • Inspect specified areas to ensure the presence of fire prevention equipment, safety equipment, or first-aid supplies.
    • Analyze incident data to identify trends in injuries, illnesses, accidents, or other hazards.
    • Maintain or update emergency response plans or procedures.
    • Analyze incident data to identify trends in injuries, illnesses, accidents, or other hazards.
    • Investigate health-related complaints and inspect facilities to ensure that they comply with public health legislation and regulations.
    • Collect samples of hazardous materials or arrange for sample collection.
    • Develop or maintain medical monitoring programs for employees.
    • Inspect or evaluate workplace environments, equipment, or practices to ensure compliance with safety standards and government regulations.
    • Perform laboratory analyses or physical inspections of samples to detect disease or to assess purity or cleanliness.
    • Collaborate with engineers or physicians to institute control or remedial measures for hazardous or potentially hazardous conditions or equipment.
    • Coordinate "right-to-know" programs regarding hazardous chemicals or other substances.
    • Collaborate with engineers or physicians to institute control or remedial measures for hazardous or potentially hazardous conditions or equipment.
    • Develop or maintain hygiene programs, such as noise surveys, continuous atmosphere monitoring, ventilation surveys, or asbestos management plans.
    • Investigate the adequacy of ventilation, exhaust equipment, lighting, or other conditions that could affect employee health, comfort, or performance.
    • Conduct safety training or education programs and demonstrate the use of safety equipment.
    • Provide new-employee health and safety orientations and develop materials for these presentations.
    • Provide new-employee health and safety orientations and develop materials for these presentations.
    • Maintain inventories of hazardous materials or hazardous wastes, using waste tracking systems to ensure that materials are handled properly.
    • Recommend measures to help protect workers from potentially hazardous work methods, processes, or materials.
    • Conduct audits at hazardous waste sites or industrial sites or participate in hazardous waste site investigations.
    • Write reports.
    • Maintain inventories of hazardous materials or hazardous wastes, using waste tracking systems to ensure that materials are handled properly.
    • Analyze incident data to identify trends in injuries, illnesses, accidents, or other hazards.
    • Write reports.
    • Conduct audits at hazardous waste sites or industrial sites or participate in hazardous waste site investigations.

    Skills

    • Programming

      Writing computer programs.

    • Technology Design

      Making equipment and technology useful for customers.

    • Writing

      Writing things for co-workers or customers.

    • Monitoring

      Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.

    • Repairing

      Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.

    • Service Orientation

      Looking for ways to help people.

    • Time Management

      Managing your time and the time of other people.

    • Active Listening

      Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.

    • Persuasion

      Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.

    • Operations Monitoring

      Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.

    • Equipment Selection

      Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.

    • Critical Thinking

      Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.

    • Troubleshooting

      Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.

    • Active Learning

      Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.

    • Systems Evaluation

      Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.

    • Coordination

      Changing what is done based on other people's actions.

    • Operations Analysis

      Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.

    • Quality Control Analysis

      Testing how well a product or service works.

    • Management of Financial Resources

      Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.

    • Operation and Control

      Using equipment or systems.

    • Social Perceptiveness

      Understanding people's reactions.

    • Speaking

      Talking to others.

    • Judgment and Decision Making

      Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.

    • Mathematics

      Using math to solve problems.

    • Management of Personnel Resources

      Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.

    • Equipment Maintenance

      Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.

    • Management of Material Resources

      Managing equipment and materials.

    • Negotiation

      Bringing people together to solve differences.

    • Science

      Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.

    • Installation

      Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.

    • Reading Comprehension

      Reading work-related information.

    • Systems Analysis

      Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.

    • Instructing

      Teaching people how to do something.

    • Complex Problem Solving

      Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.

    • Learning Strategies

      Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.

    WorkKeys®

    Applied Math
    N/A
    Workplace Documents
    N/A
    Graphic Literacy
    N/A

    Abilities

    • Trunk Strength

      Using your lower back and stomach.

    • Response Orientation

      Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.

    • Reaction Time

      Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.

    • Wrist-Finger Speed

      Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.

    • Arm-Hand Steadiness

      Keeping your arm or hand steady.

    • Far Vision

      Seeing details that are far away.

    • Category Flexibility

      Grouping things in different ways.

    • Speed of Closure

      Quickly knowing what you are looking at.

    • Written Comprehension

      Reading and understanding what is written.

    • Problem Sensitivity

      Noticing when problems happen.

    • Time Sharing

      Doing two or more things at the same time.

    • Sound Localization

      Noticing the direction that a sound came from.

    • Depth Perception

      Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.

    • Extent Flexibility

      Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.

    • Auditory Attention

      Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.

    • Fluency of Ideas

      Coming up with lots of ideas.

    • Deductive Reasoning

      Using rules to solve problems.

    • Visualization

      Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.

    • Oral Comprehension

      Listening and understanding what people say.

    • Near Vision

      Seeing details up close.

    • Hearing Sensitivity

      Telling the difference between sounds.

    • Dynamic Flexibility

      Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.

    • Stamina

      Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.

    • Multilimb Coordination

      Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.

    • Rate Control

      Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.

    • Static Strength

      Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.

    • Number Facility

      Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.

    • Manual Dexterity

      Holding or moving items with your hands.

    • Written Expression

      Communicating by writing.

    • Glare Sensitivity

      Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.

    • Information Ordering

      Ordering or arranging things.

    • Dynamic Strength

      Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.

    • Gross Body Coordination

      Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.

    • Speed of Limb Movement

      Quickly moving your arms and legs.

    • Finger Dexterity

      Putting together small parts with your fingers.

    • Inductive Reasoning

      Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.

    • Perceptual Speed

      Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.

    • Peripheral Vision

      Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.

    • Gross Body Equilibrium

      Keeping your balance or staying upright.

    • Night Vision

      Seeing at night or under low light.

    • Visual Color Discrimination

      Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.

    • Speech Recognition

      Recognizing spoken words.

    • Oral Expression

      Communicating by speaking.

    • Mathematical Reasoning

      Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.

    • Memorization

      Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.

    • Explosive Strength

      Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.

    • Selective Attention

      Paying attention to something without being distracted.

    • Originality

      Creating new and original ideas.

    • Flexibility of Closure

      Seeing hidden patterns.

    • Speech Clarity

      Speaking clearly.

    • Control Precision

      Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.

    • Spatial Orientation

      Knowing where things are around you.

    Knowledge

    • Mechanical

      Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.

    • Economics and Accounting

      Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.

    • Education and Training

      Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.

    • Communications and Media

      Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.

    • History and Archeology

      Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.

    • Engineering and Technology

      Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.

    • Design

      Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.

    • English Language

      Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.

    • Medicine and Dentistry

      Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.

    • Psychology

      Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.

    • Physics

      Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.

    • Administrative

      Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.

    • Sales and Marketing

      Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.

    • Computers and Electronics

      Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

    • Mathematics

      Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.

    • Customer and Personal Service

      Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.

    • Transportation

      Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.

    • Therapy and Counseling

      Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.

    • Public Safety and Security

      Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.

    • Personnel and Human Resources

      Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.

    • Geography

      Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.

    • Administration and Management

      Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.

    • Building and Construction

      Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.

    • Sociology and Anthropology

      Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.

    • Fine Arts

      Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.

    • Law and Government

      Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.

    • Production and Processing

      Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.

    • Biology

      Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.

    • Telecommunications

      Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.

    • Foreign Language

      Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.

    • Philosophy and Theology

      Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.

    • Food Production

      Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.

    • Chemistry

      Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.

    Career Video

    Video not available
    Additional videos and more information available on CareerOneStop

    Pay

    • Ohio Annual Salary 76960/yr
    • Typical Salary
    • Ohio Hourly Wage 37/hr
    • Typical Hourly Wage

    Ohio Employment Trends

    • Currently Employed 5,760
    • Yearly Projected Openings 630

    Typical Education

    Personality

    Investigative: People interested in this work like activities that include ideas, thinking, and figuring things out.They do well at jobs that need:
    • Integrity
    • Attention to Detail
    • Concern for Others
    • Dependability
    • Analytical Thinking
    • Cooperation

    Tools

    • Acoustic ear muffs or defenders
    • Air pollutant samplers
    • Air samplers or collectors
    • Air sampling pumps
    • Air velocity and temperature monitors
    • Anemometers
    • Audiometers
    • Barometers
    • Chemical absorption gas analyzers
    • Chromatographic detectors
    • Colorimeters
    • Compressed air gun
    • Decontamination shower
    • Desktop computers
    • Dissolved oxygen meters
    • Dosimeters
    • Eyewashers or eye wash stations
    • Fire extinguishers
    • Flame ionization analyzers
    • Flowmeters
    • Gamma counters
    • Gas chromatographs
    • Gas detector tubes
    • Gas detectors
    • Geiger counters
    • Goggles
    • Handheld thermometer
    • Hazardous material protective apparel
    • Laboratory balances
    • Laboratory flasks
    • Leak testing equipment
    • Liquid leak detectors
    • Lux or light meter
    • Manometers
    • Medical tape measures
    • Moisture meters
    • Multi gas monitors
    • Notebook computers
    • Pasteur or transfer pipettes
    • Peristaltic pumps
    • Personal computers
    • Photometer
    • Pressure indicators
    • Psychrometers
    • Respiration air supplying self contained breathing apparatus or accessories
    • Respirators
    • Rotameters
    • Safety shoes
    • Sample holders
    • Sampling syringes
    • Single gas monitors
    • Soil testing kits
    • Spectrofluorimeters or fluorimeters
    • Spirometers
    • Toxicology test kits or supplies
    • Turbidimeters
    • Vibration testers
    • pH meters

    Technology

    • Cloud-based data access and sharing software
    • Compliance software
    • Data base user interface and query software
    • Electronic mail software
    • Enterprise resource planning ERP software
    • Internet browser software
    • Office suite software
    • Operating system software
    • Presentation software
    • Project management software
    • Spreadsheet software
    • Web platform development software
    • Word processing software

    Tags

    • Apprenticeships are available for this occupation. These programs can help you get hands-on experience and build your skills.
    Need help on researching occupations and careers? Download the Guide to Researching Occupations (PDF).

    Need help on how to research education and training programs? Download the Guide to Higher Education (PDF).

    Budget Calculator

    Answer a few questions to determine your target salary. Use this target salary to help choose the right occupation for you.

    Lifestyle Calculator

    Answer a few questions to determine your target salary. Use this target salary to help choose the right occupation for you.

    Workforce Supply Tool

    Workforce Supply Tool

    The Workforce Supply Tool provides statistics for the occupations in highest demand throughout Ohio.

    You can view statewide statistics as well as more region specific information.

    Visit Site
    Powered By: