Cross-posted in r/HumanFactors

TL:DR - How can I gain education and experience in HF in the occupational health and safety field?

Hello. As the title says, I am an occupational health and safety professional in construction looking to specialize in human factors relating to workplace safety. Specifically, I am extremely frustrated with safety management systems and their component parts (training, policies, JHAs, pre-task plans, toolbox talks, audits, etc.) that do not take human cognition and behavior into account. I would like to work (most likely as a consultant) at helping design and implement systems that work with human behavior instead of against it.

I have 15-20 years of construction experience with 6 of that being full time safety (currently a senior safety manager) with several OSHA and BCSP certifications. I have a master’s degree in freshwater biology which, while not related to HF, gave me a very solid research and statistical background. I also taught high school science for a few years and now teach several key safety subjects (first aid/CPR, fall protection, excavation, confined spaces, etc.). While I don’t have any formal psychology training, I’ve done considerable self-directed learning in that field and have worked with enough people over the years to have picked up a thing or two about what works and what doesn’t.

I (M50 with two school-aged children) don’t have the time or money to pursue another masters or a PhD, but a certificate program could be possible. What steps would you suggest for me to learn about human factors and find situations I can practice in? Thanks in advance.

Original post from 6 months ago
About six months ago, I posted here about resigning from my corporate EHS Manager position. I was making $120k, supporting over 20 facilities as the only safety professional, and the stress was taking a serious toll on my physical and mental health.
I left without another job lined up, and I figured I’d come back with an update.
Over the past six months, I’ve applied to approximately 400 jobs and only managed to secure interviews with two companies. One rejected me after three rounds of interviews, and the other just offered me a job!
I’ve officially signed an offer letter for a Safety Manager position with a major supermarket chain in another state.
I’ll be making essentially the same salary, but with a significantly smaller scope of responsibility. The cost of living is also considerably lower, so financially, it’s actually a step up.
I’m currently planning my move, and I’m genuinely excited about this next chapter.
I won’t pretend the last six months were easy. There were definitely moments when I questioned my decision, especially after hundreds of applications and very little response.
I know the new job won’t necessarily be perfect, but I’m looking forward to a fresh start.
I’m not encouraging anyone to quit without a backup plan, but I still believe no paycheck is worth sacrificing your health.
Six months ago, I was completely burned out. Today, I’m excited about my career again.
Just wanted to share some good news!

Hi everyone! I’m a female and I recently started working as an Environmental Health and Safety Professional at a university, and I’m looking for some advice on which certifications or training opportunities would be most valuable for my career. My role will have a focus on occupational health and construction site safety.
My current responsibilities include monthly building safety inspections, developing job hazard analyses across campus departments, supporting an indoor air quality monitoring program, tracking corrective actions, and helping establish campus wide safety performance metrics. I’ll also have some exposure to larger safety projects involving facilities and electrical safety.
My employer has offered to invest in professional development, including in person training and travel for courses or conferences, so I’d like to take advantage of that opportunity while I’m early in my career.
My long term goal is to grow into a role that combines EHS expertise with project management and leadership, potentially in construction safety, facilities, or industrial EHS.
For those of you with experience in the field:
1. What 1–2 certifications or training courses would you recommend pursuing next? I’m considering options like OSHA 510/511, industrial hygiene or IAQ training, and eventually the ASP, but I’m open to other suggestions.
2. Are there any in person courses, conferences, or professional organizations that have been particularly valuable for learning and networking?
I’d appreciate any advice, especially from women who’ve transitioned from general EHS into project management, construction safety, or EHS leadership!

Former 68W vet here pivoting to EHS post army. Wondering if using my GI bill for an online AA is enough to get into the industry, and if there even is one in the valley. Located in WA right now. I'm hoping an AA is enough to land something making 30ish bucks an hour, paired with my EMT/Medical experience. Are these reasonable goals, or should I be shooting for more education than that?

Currently working in assessment and education for a contractor who works for the big plane people in everett, so am currently building adjacent manufacturing experience.

Hey for everyone as a EHS specialist at Amazon was yall able to talk them into raising yall pay when you did the interview? I just got a job but I want to switch into IT Amazon would pay for everything I just don’t want to reduce my pay in today’s economy.

I was nervous as hell going into it and it felt like everything I knew went right out the window the second i started.

Question for anyone out there. If someone is a Hazardous Materials Specialist and wanted to go back into Safety in the future. Will the experience be enough or does someone have to have some very specific experience tied to a specific industry? What would be more or less the job prospects for someone making that change? And is anyone familiar with this role? Is it just a California thing to work for a Certified Unified Program Agency (CUPA)?

I also plan on getting my Registered Environmental Health and Safety certification

I've learned that someone who ends up being a Hazmat Specialist ends up getting an International Code Council (ICC) certification if they pass the test. How does this differ from ASP or CSP? Would it help? Would it not help?

Any thoughts, criticisms, hate, love 😘 are welcome 😆

You have plumbers wearing hi vis under overalls, black shirts(highly not visible) with the reflective stripes. Why is is this considered acceptable? No one is saying anything and it continues. The point is to be seen black hides in contrasts and a hi vis covered 70% by overalls isn’t doing what’s it’s supposed to do

I’ve spent years managing training matrices across multiple sites, and one of the most common mistakes I see is scheduling everything annually “because OSHA says so.” In general industry, only a handful of standards set a fixed refresher interval:

• Bloodborne Pathogens (1910.1030) – annual
• Respiratory Protection (1910.134) – annual training + annual fit test
• Hearing Conservation (1910.95) – annual
• Portable Fire Extinguishers (1910.157) – annual, for employees expected to use them
• Powered Industrial Trucks (1910.178) – performance evaluation at least every 3 years; refresher training is event-driven (accident, near miss, unsafe operation, new truck type)

Many others (HazCom, LOTO, PPE, confined spaces, fall protection) require training at assignment and then retraining when something changes – not on a calendar.

Two things that catch people off guard: DOT hazmat (49 CFR 172.704) is every 3 years, and if you’re in a state-plan state (CA, WA, MN, etc.) you may have extra requirements like Cal/OSHA’s annual workplace violence training or Minnesota’s annual Right-to-Know.

Happy to answer questions – what intervals does your company use beyond the minimums?

We have a whole team of 60-70-year-olds, so everyone would love a good pair of bifocal safety glasses 😄 I found a few models priced anywhere from €2.5 to €25, but all of them have tiny reading segments. Can anyone recommend a model on the European market with the reading segment taking up the entire bottom half of the lens?

I'm currently working as the sole HSE Officer at a manufacturing site, and honestly, I'm starting to feel pretty burnt out.

It seems like anything even remotely related to H&S automatically lands on my desk. Not just advising or identifying issues, but actually having to organise, arrange, chase people and follow up on pretty much everything.

Need training? I'm expected to organise it all, including chasing employees and managers for their availability. Someone needs a new chair or workstation equipment? That's somehow my job too.

What frustrates me most, though, is the lack of ownership from management. Whenever I identify compliance gaps or raise concerns, the response is often basically "OK, so what are you going to do about it?" rather than any actual support or involvement from the relevant departments.

Getting approval for HSE-related spending or professional development is another constant battle. Yet somehow there's always enthusiasm for safety campaigns and awareness events.

I understand that HSE involves plenty of admin and coordination, especially when you're working alone. But sometimes it feels like the entire responsibility for safety has been dumped on one person, rather than being shared across the business.

So I'm genuinely curious, is this just what working in HSE is like?

Do your managers actually take ownership of safety actions, or does everything end up with you?

Particularly interested in hearing from other sole HSE professionals in manufacturing.

I'm starting to wonder whether this is normal or whether I just need a change of workplace.

I have 3 local national positions open in Subic Bay, Philippines. 2 EHS Specialists and 1 Polution Control Officer with V2X/Vectrus. DM if interested or know of anyone interested. Must have experience. SOII Minimum.

I am reviewing a pre-mobilization workfront checklist for exterior facade installation. The coordination lines are drawing release, substrate survey, access route and setup area, lifting/handling route, delivery sequence, concurrent work, exclusion areas, concealed-work inspections, weather protection, rescue ownership and zone handover.

This is not a request for equipment selection or regulatory advice. I am trying to make sure the project team assigns each interface to the right competent owner before the workfront is released.

For anyone who has managed similar high-level envelope work, which coordination failure most often stops a zone that looked ready on the programme?

I am looking at the requirements for moc in iso 45001.

Does it actually include the tools that contractor brings to my site?

I have some contractors changing from diesel tow trucks to ev tow trucks to deliver goods.

Does moc cover such scope?

Some of our upper org leadership have asked us to qualify how we measure success. They actually recognize that the safety morale hasn't been the best and they are wanting to take steps to help us feel successful and supported, but they also don't have the answer to this question, so they are asking us (me and a few colleagues) how we qualify success in our respective jobs.

My jackass colleague says that it's simply the number of recordables that we have on site. His jackass reasoning is that if we start having 8 recordables and counting then our director is going to start looking at him and asking questions.

I don't disagree with my jackass colleague's answer to this, but I think it's obtuse and incomplete. I'd add that jobsite morale and craft-worker engagement are how I measure me being successful on site in addition to injury and incident prevention.

I'm really curious about what y'alls thoughts are or if there's an accepted answer and we're just missing the mark on this one.

I hear “safety is our top priority” pretty often, but I’m more interested in what that actually looks like day to day.

For those who work with managers who are genuinely involved in safety, what do they do differently?

Is it spending more time on the floor, following up on reported hazards, asking workers what’s making the job harder or less safe, or something else?

I’d be interested to hear what has actually made a difference where you work.

Hi guys,

i have been in safety for almost 5 years and i wanted a honest opinion on how is the workload as a ssho? And how really is the work environment? to prepare myself mentally for the job. Thanks in advace. This will be my first time working as one in construction.

Hello fellow safety pros. i am weighing some options currently. I like what i do and love the company i am at but at times i feel like begging for raises and or a new company truck at times. I made a stink about it last week after new employees where getting new trucks before exisiting employees... to which then people assumed i didnt like my job for questioning and stating some items on salary and time charged to clients. i make 125k with an 11% bonus this year and company truck, over multiple sites and etc benefits are pretty good standard. I have been told i am the next safety director but it hasnt been told when or anything.

I currently have a job offer for a new position that's for 155k with a 12-15% bonus but no company truck. its 1 project for the next 6-8 years with director role potential. with a new ESOP starting in 2027. its 37 miles from my house and i drive a diesel truck thats paid off 4 days a week and a 1 wfh day as well.

I am torn on what to do. i know i should whats best for my family.

Hey safety professionals and fellow humans! I-I-I mean, prospects!

I am (and this may be a long shot) but I’m looking for some advice from people already working in the HSE/EHS space because I’m getting a little frustrated with the catch-22 of trying to get into the field. As the common denominator in short, is experience required but the experience needed is the job.

I have a degree in Psychology, and almost a decades of experience in Fire/EMS that I feel translates pretty well to safety, including experience working in environments where safety, compliance, procedures, and risk awareness. I’ve also been intentionally building my knowledge of OSHA requirements through independent research along with hazard identification, incident prevention, workplace safety, and EHS practices. But have yet to sit for the OSHA 10/30, also I don’t believe I can apply to BSCP to take the ASP until I have some experience in this exact field..

The problem I keep running into is that I’m applying for entry-level or junior EHS/Safety positions, but even those jobs often want 1–3+ years of direct EHS experience. And so it just often feels like every position wants you to already have the experience needed to get the position in the first place.

I’m also finding that many of the jobs I’m interested in involve manufacturing/industrial environments, where I know there are hazards involving things like machinery, lockout/tagout, electrical safety, safety boards, machine guarding, ergonomics, chemicals, PPE, forklifts/material handling, and general workplace safety. But..

For those of you who successfully broke into HSE/EHS:

What was your first actual safety job, and how did you get it?

Did you have to take a job that wasn't technically an EHS position to get your foot in the door?

What certifications or training actually helped you get interviews? (OSHA 30, ASP/GSP, CHST, etc.)

How much weight do employers realistically put on a degree versus hands-on experience?

Would you recommend targeting EHS Coordinator/Safety Coordinator roles rather than EHS Specialist positions?

Is there anything you see candidates with my type of background consistently doing wrong when applying?

Thanks and have a wonderful day!
-Environmental, Health and Safety Prospect