The Board of Certified Safety Professionals (BCSP) has released the results of an expansive 2015 SH&E industry safety salary survey conducted in collaboration with the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE), American Board of Industrial Hygiene (ABIH), Alliance of Hazardous Materials Professionals (AHMP), American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA), and Institute of Hazardous Materials Management (IHMM). The results from the 2015 survey are available in a new SH&E Industry Salary Survey and Calculator.
“This latest salary survey further confirms that safety certification is valuable not only for individuals’ professional practice, but the value is often reflected in compensation,” said BCSP CEO, Dr. Treasa Turnbeaugh, CSP, ASP, CET.
Data for the survey was collected from March 26 to April 7, 2015, and the survey was closed for tabulation with 9,258 responses.
The survey results indicate that the median annual base salary of individuals holding the Certified Safety Professional (CSP), Certified Hazardous Materials Manager (CHMM), and/or Certified Industrial Hygienist (CIH) professional certification exceeds $100,000, about $20,000 greater than the median annual base salary of survey respondents who held no certification. The difference in this median annual salary is greater than $30,000 when compared to the median annual salary of the typical Occupational Health and Safety Specialist, according to the number reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
The numbers are similarly positive for certificants holding technician or technologist level certifications as well, with Occupational Health and Safety Technologists (OHST) and Construction Health and Safety Technicians (CHST) earning about $10,000 and $9,000 more in their median annual base salaries than respondents with no certifications, respectively. With median annual base salaries exceeding $92,000, there is an even greater contrast between these certificants and the $47,440 median annual salary the BLS reports for the typical Occupational Health and Safety Technician.
Results from this survey clearly indicate a growing recognition of the value of safety, and the reward that comes from proving your value with an accredited safety certification.
Further data can be read in the full report, with the interactive calculator accessed online at the SH&E Industry Safety Salary Survey and Calculator webpage.