Safety Manager – Manufacturing Operations

Client Overview:

Our client is a well-established manufacturing organization serving a diverse customer base across North America. The company operates multiple production facilities and is committed to maintaining high standards in operational excellence, employee safety, quality, and continuous improvement. Our client is seeking an experienced Safety Manager
- Manufacturing Operations to lead environmental health and safety initiatives for a manufacturing facility in the Chicago area. This role offers the opportunity to make a significant impact by leading and enhancing site-wide safety initiatives within a dynamic manufacturing environment.

$120k - $150k Annually

The Safety Manager
- Manufacturing Operations will be responsible for developing and executing safety programs, ensuring regulatory compliance, driving a strong safety culture, and partnering with operational leaders to reduce risk and improve workplace safety performance. The ideal candidate will bring deep manufacturing safety experience, strong leadership capabilities, expertise in workers' compensation management, incident investigation, root cause analysis, employee training, and OSHA compliance. While environmental experience is valued, the primary focus of this role is safety leadership.

• Develop, implement, and maintain safety policies, procedures, and programs that meet federal, state, and local regulatory requirements.
• Ensure compliance with OSHA standards through audits, inspections, recordkeeping, and corrective action planning.
• Lead safety training programs for employees and leadership teams, promoting safe work practices and hazard awareness.
• Conduct risk assessments, job hazard analyses, and routine facility inspections to identify and mitigate workplace hazards.
• Manage incident investigations, near-miss reporting, and root cause analysis efforts to prevent recurrence.
• Oversee workers' compensation claims, return-to-work programs, and injury management processes.
• Facilitate safety meetings and lead site-wide safety communication initiatives.
• Support process safety management activities and continuous improvement projects related to employee health and safety.
• Partner with operational leadership to strengthen employee engagement and reinforce a culture of accountability and safety.
• Mentor and develop safety team members while serving as the site's subject matter expert for safety-related matters.

• 10+ years of health and safety experience within a manufacturing environment.
• Demonstrated leadership experience managing facility-wide safety programs.
• Strong knowledge of OSHA regulations, compliance requirements, and workplace safety best practices.
• Experience conducting incident investigations and root cause analysis.
• Proven success developing and delivering safety training programs.
• Experience managing workers' compensation claims and return-to-work initiatives.
• Ability to influence leaders and employees at all levels of an organization.
• Strong written, verbal, and interpersonal communication skills.

• Experience with in chemical, food, industrial manufacturing, or process manufacturing environments.
• Certified Safety Professional (CSP) certification.
• Knowledge of Process Safety Management (PSM) principles and programs.
• Environmental compliance experience.
• Experience leading safety culture transformation and continuous improvement initiatives.

• Bachelor's degree in Environmental Health & Safety, Engineering, Industrial Safety, Occupational Health, or a related technical field is preferred.

• Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage.
• Performance-based annual bonus opportunity.
• Health Savings Account (HSA) and Flexible Spending Account (FSA) options.
• 401(K) with company match and immediate vesting.
• Paid vacation, holidays, personal days, and sick time.
• Company-paid life and disability insurance.
• Paid parental leave.
• Wellness and fitness reimbursement programs.
• Tuition reimbursement and professional development assistance.