EHS Manager
What this job does:
Leads the environmental health and safety program for an organization, ensuring that workplaces, especially laboratories and research facilities, meet all safety regulations and environmental standards. Develops safety policies, trains employees, conducts inspections and audits, investigates incidents, manages hazardous materials programs, and serves as the organization's primary liaison with regulatory agencies like OSHA and the EPA.
This job is similar to these lab/research tasks:
Chemical handling, biological safety protocols, radiation safety and waste management from bench work, serving on safety committees, conducting risk assessments, training others on safety procedures
Typical starting salary range
$90k to $145k
Salary estimate represented as 25th to 75th percentile. Gathered from recent job postings, Glassdoor.com, and Salary.com
Daily task breakdown
- Regulatory compliance and auditing: inspections, permits, reporting (25%)
- Safety program management: policy, metrics, continuous improvement (25%)
- Training and education: safety training, onboarding (20%)
- Incident investigation and emergency planning (15%)
- Team leadership and administration: supervising staff, budget (15%)
Skills you'll use in this job:
EHS regulatory compliance (OSHA, EPA, DOT, NRC); safety program development and management; risk assessment and hazard identification; audit and inspection expertise; incident investigation and root cause analysis; leadership and people management; training program design and delivery; hazardous materials management; emergency response planning; data analysis and metrics reporting; budget management; scientific writing
Talk about these PhD skills in your resume and interview:
Talk about your deep understanding of laboratory hazards and research processes - experience that gives you credibility with the researchers you will oversee. Emphasize familiarity with chemical handling, biological safety protocols, radiation safety, and waste management from your own bench work. If you served on safety committees, conducted risk assessments, maintained compliance documentation, or trained others on safety procedures, these apply directly. Your analytical skills also translate well to tracking safety metrics and conducting root cause analyses.
Alternative job titles to search:
Environmental Health and Safety Director; EHS Director; Safety Manager; EHS Program Manager; Occupational Health and Safety Manager; Health, Safety and Environment (HSE) Manager; Corporate EHS Manager; Site Safety Manager; Research Safety Manager; Laboratory EHS Manager
*Note:
-Job titles are inconsistent between companies. Try various keywords.
-PhDs tend to undershoot seniority level. Target higher than you think.
