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The Role of Safety Administrators

Written by Lance Roux | Mar 26, 2015 2:00:00 PM

If you are looking for an entryway into the safety profession, safety administration is a great way to begin your career path. Safety Administrators are the glue that holds the safety department of an organization together. Without them, many things in the safety department would fall through the cracks.  

Safety Administrators help develop safety policies and procedures, organize team meetings, solve safety issues, coordinate audits, and inspections, track corrective actions and incident data, review important safety documents, and many other duties that require a high degree of attention to detail. The role of safety administrators is one that should not be taken lightly in the workplace.  In our view, they are equal partners of a safety department’s team of safety professionals.

Administrative Responsibilities

As a Safety Administrator, it is typically your responsibility to support the written safety programs, procedures, and requirements of the organization. People on all levels of the company are dependent on your efforts to ensure the best safety practices are applied to safety policies and procedures.

This can be anything from:

  • -Creating safety manuals,
  • -Coordinating training,
  • -Developing safety meeting topics,
  • -Maintaining third-party procurement websites such as ISNetworld®, PICS®, PECS®, DISA®, Browz®, and Veriforce® accounts,
  • -Scheduling audits,
  • -OSHA 300 logs,
  • -Assist with workers compensation claims,
  • -Ensuring safety procedures are up to regulatory standards,
  • -Providing a safety resource to your fellow workers.

Safety administrators need to stay abreast of all applicable federal, state, and local safety regulations as well as their own company policies.  This knowledge can be acquired by working closely with an experienced safety professional.

What Credentials Do You Need?

Although a college degree is not a normal requirement, for safety administrators, a minimum of a two-four year degree is generally preferred. It also helps if you have coursework in safety or a degree in safety. At SafetyPro Resources, we provide for our safety administrators to become Certified Occupational Safety Specialist, or COSS, through the Alliance Safety Council. We believe this course gives students a good base for safety knowledge as well as hands-on instructor-led education. 

Other Skills

The Safety Administrator should demonstrate good writing and grammatical skills. In addition, being very personable in the workplace and on the phones are essential. Working as a safety administrator can also better improve your communication skills, which is important if you choose to further your career in any profession.

Why Become A Safety Administrator?

Safety Administrators play a key role in helping to keep workers from becoming injured on the job. If this appeals to you and you are considering a career in safety, a safety administrator is a great place to start.