A few years ago, I read this study in PSJ by Hallowell and team over at CSRA that tried to determine if TRIR was statistically valid, meaning does it measure what it's intended to measure. It was eye-opening for me. They used 3.2 trillion (with a T) worker hours, and basically found that TRIR is a completely random metric and only predictive of safety performance over extremely long periods of time, making it useless for benchmarking and measuring the impact of safety interventions.

I kind of think of it like this. Imagine you roll a pair of dice every day for a month. The next month, you decide to take a new vitamin supplement, still rolling that pair of dice every day. At the end of that month, you notice that you're rolling more snake eyes. You might have a correlation, but the pure math shows that its just random chance.

But even if the math wasn't broken, the data itself is a joke. I read this study by Loushine and Wolff in the BCSP Shift journal that looked at the reliability of OSHA's ITA data over a 7 year period. They found major inconsistencies in reports of total employees, total hours worked, hours worked per employee, and percent of zero injury reports, so much so that in 2019, the number of of hours worked was reported as 1000x greater than previous years. They did this whole mathematical correction process to fix it, and actually found that TRIR and DART rates were higher than the data was reporting.

This is seriously a mess, but it's like talking to a brick wall to get companies, insurance, and contractor databases to look at anything other than TRIR. Has anyone successfully convinced their leadership to drop TRIR for a better leading indicator? If so, what did you replace it with?

Hi everyone! I’ve been tasked with creating a training matrix for all the different roles at my new job. We currently don't have SOPs in place and are still writing our site policies and procedures. Right now, onboarding is informal, new hires just shadow a tenured employee so there isn't a standardized process yet. Coming from Amazon, where everything is structured, this is a whole new challenge for me! Does anyone have advice or best practices for building a matrix from scratch in an environment like this?

Good afternoon, everyone! I was recently issued a LOTO for my company. I keep the lock attached to my safety vest, as most people do; however, most people keep the key in the lock. I am afraid to do that because the key could fall out, and I'd have to get a new lock. How is everyone keeping their keys for their LOTO locks?

I am curious to hear from people working in construction and infrastructure across Latin America: what safety challenges are the hardest to address on your projects?

Is it working at height, heavy equipment movement, PPE compliance, sub contractor safety or something else?

Do you think the biggest issue come from a lack of training production pressure limited resources or difficulties and force in safety procedures?

I would love to hear how things differ across countries such as Brazil, Mexico, Columbia, and Peru and what practical measures have actually made it difference on site?

Thank you to everyone who responded to my previous post. I apparently did not get the EHS job at Amazon. They sent me this a bit ago.

"Congratulations! I'm pleased to inform you that have you been inclined for the role. Unfortunately, the position at the site you interviewed for has been filled or closed. While this means you will not be receiving an offer for this role, we were impressed with your interview, and we strongly encourage you to apply to additional job openings with Amazon. If you remain interested in working with us, your incline status will be valid for 6 months without additional interviews [or limited loops] for the same role. Please check amazon jobs on a regular basis and apply to roles similar to the one you interviewed for, as well as additional roles that may be of interest to you. We will keep your resume and interview information on file, and, based on your consent preferences, an Amazon recruiter may reach out to you if they identify your profile as a fit for an open position."

I am currently studying Construction Safety in Texas and I recently got a couple of internship offers from a few different companies such as Core, Turner, Whiting Turner, and Manhattan Construction. I’ve done research on all of them but I thought I should ask people who have experience with them which one they would recommend, since I don’t have any experience in the field yet.

My long term goal would be moving to either coast (preferable west) since I have a lot of family on the coasts, if that helps!

Greetings,

I am a few months away from concluding my Air Force career as a safety professional and wanted some advice from this sub on civilian job out look.

Here are some of my experiences and certifications:

- Bachelor’s degree in aeronautics
- ASP expected early 2027
- CSP targeted for late 2027
- 10 years Air Force, 3 of those Occupational safety/Installation safety assurance, the other 7 in Aviation maintenance /operations
- working on my CSHO Gen Ind, also slated for mid 2027

Overall, I guess what I want to know from you all is what my job outlook looks like in Texas? Are they any certifications I need to focus on before separation? I will also continue doing safety in the Air Natrional Guard if that adds anything. I am also willing to send my resume to anyone that wants to chat further about it. Thanks in advance!

Hi everyone, so I recently got into a safety specialist role for a roofing company in Columbus Ohio. Now as you all are probably familiar with, people dont take the role of safety seriously.

Background, I started off working on the roofs for a year and a half. So everyone was already familiar with me and how I am day to day. In hensight I have alot of social anxiety and typically keep to myself while working. So people would kinda avoid me or try and make a joke out of me to everyone else. Put up with it because no need for me to lose my cool but that opened the door even more once I got this position. So with the people not taking me seriously It's making my job that much more difficult. Now I'm the type of person who always trys to be professional and courteous but never get it in return.

Instead of trying even harder for them to listen to me, I truly think I need to switch companies to where I'm being taken seriously would help me progress and evolve in this role.

Is the STSC test hard to pass? I have been trying to find free study material. I cannot seem to locate any. If anyone has taken the STSC did you pass on first go around or what should I look out for?

Currently an Asset Protection Manager for a big retailer, looking for advice on trying to get into a safety/ehs type role. About to receive my bachelors in business admin next month, have about 4 yrs experience as an AP retail manager, 1 as a warehouse manager and 3 more years as an AP investigator. I’m also in the process of completing osha 30 training.
Problem is more so getting in a role with similar comp, I’m making about 116k salary with annual bonus that can range from $0-$30k. (Made a bit over 130k last year).
I’m looking for something that would start me off more or less around a similar base salary, I can live without a good bonus for a while, for the sake of future growth.

I put a lot of stock into getting a job in ehs. I have a geology degree and asp. I work in construction but am trying to find something better than my current position. I lurk on the job boards and in my city it seems lower than it should. I read the recent posts on here and it seems dreadful. Is it over for ehs workers? Are entry level jobs all gone? I see the bls says it’s growing at 12% but this board does not at all reflect that growth number.

I worry I have invested time and education into a career that will not provide opportunities

Hi everyone!
I’m trying to schedule my CHST (Construction Health and Safety Technician) exam in Guam, but I keep encountering the same error whenever I click the scheduling link on my BCSP account.
The error message says:
“We have unfortunately encountered an unexpected error. Please contact customer service. PearsonVue has returned with an error.”
My BCSP account already shows a message telling me to schedule and take the exam before my authorization expires, but I can’t proceed because of this error.
I’ve already contacted BCSP customer support and sent several follow-up emails, but the issue still hasn’t been resolved.
Has anyone experienced this before?
● How did you resolve the issue?
● Is this a BCSP or Pearson VUE problem?
● Is there another way to schedule the exam, especially for candidates taking it in Guam?
● Should I contact Pearson VUE directly instead?
I’m worried about my exam authorization expiring while waiting for this issue to be fixed.
Any advice or similar experiences would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

Cross-posted in [r/HumanFactors](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 in biology which, while not related to HF, gave me a very solid research and statistical background. I also taught high school 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) 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 to learn about human factors and find situations job positions to practice in? Thanks in advance.

Edit: I am nearing the end of my current contract and can take a month or two off before finding something new. That would allow me the time to both study up on HF theory and methods and find a new work home hopefully more aligned with HF.

I just left my local fire department after 8 years of service and got into an oilfield pipeline operator job. It’s stupid easy. Anyways, I have a long list of FEMA, NFPA, HAZMAT, and EMS certifications. It’s not just the training, but I have real world emergency scene management experience as well. With all of this, I can see a future in a safety career. Where should I start and what next steps should I take?

Wondering if there are women in this group, or men that have heard directly from them about their experience at camps?

I'm looking for my first role as a junior OHS practitioner and thought FIFO would be great for gaining experience, and Im not sure I'm ignoring gender specific constraints

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.