Starting out in a health and safety career, starts with gaining the right knowledge and choosing the right health and safety qualification.
CMI Career Qualifications , has set out a career guide for the key roles of the Occupational Health and safety profession to help you decide. The type of qualification you choose will largely reflect your previous work experience and prior qualifications achieved so far.
‘Over 84% of Employers recruit Occupational Health & Safety staff that have achieved a minimum of Certificate or Diploma level.’
Many employers will hire candidates who have recently gained a Certificate or Diploma in Occupational Health and Safety at an appropriate level. Some knowledge of the sector that you are applying is an advantage. The biggest employers in Occupational Health and Safety in Ireland is the Pharma, Construction, Healthcare, Telecommunications and manufacturing sectors.
‘Over 92% of Employers expect to provide some on-the-job training to the right candidate.’
This means that if you are applying for health and safety jobs in these sectors, that more often that not, they will be including on-the-job training to support the qualification you have completed. The more work experience you have gained while studying the better. This blend of achieving a health and safety qualification combined with the relevant work experience will make you a very valuable employee.
The Career guide in Occupational Health and Safety provides a pathway to working, gaining work experience while doing a part-time evening qualification.
Choosing the correct level of health and safety jobs course to reflect the type of role is part of your career planning. Studying while working in health and safety will enormously help and support your personal development and success. Part time courses, one night per week, compliments on-the-job training and supports further health and safety knowledge.
Choosing the right organization and sector you wish to work can be daunting but researching can help you find answers to what sector is most suitable for your career goals . Different sectors have different degrees of challenges. There is obviously higher demand for qualified health and safety professionals in the Construction, Pharma and Manufacturing sectors but you will find each sector has it own processes and unique health and safety culture.
There is currently a big demand for health and safety graduates in the market place and employers are struggling to find suitable candidates. Graduates who have recently completed a health and safety Diploma or Certificate are in an excellent position to capitalise on job opportunities.
The key career roles are as follows:
Health and Safety Job Courses and role – Career Pathway
Health & Safety Assistant/Trainee or Apprentice
A shortage of qualified health and safety professionals has forced employers to provide on-the-job training. Many health and safety roles offer a type of apprenticeship/traineeship although many organisations don’t call it that. When hired as a Occupational Health and Safety trainee, a large part of the first 6 months involves being assigned a mentor. A mentor could be a health and safety manager or health and safety officer who has more than 5 years’ experience working in occupational health and safety. Their knowledge and support will prove invaluable.
In the first few months, you will learn from your mentor how health and safety procedures are being carried out. You will learn quickly how things are being done within the organization and how risk and hazards are identified. A large part of the first 6 months of working as a Health and Safety trainee/apprentice is keeping records, doing tasks delegated by your mentor and learning on the job.
Newly hired health and safety trainees or apprentices are usually assessed against core criteria after 6 months. Research conducted by CMI Career Qualifications shows the following attributes as the most important while working as a health and safety trainee:
Personal Performance: How you performed in the trainee health and safety role largely depends on your own self-motivation and discipline. Being self-aware of your strengths, weaknesses and opportunities for development is a key aspect of learning any new profession and working as a health and safety professional, is no different. Your health and safety mentor will respond well to any trainee who shows high levels of self-motivation, enthusiasm and willingness to learn.
Communication skills: A large part of working in trainee health and safety roles is about good communication skills whether through verbal or non-verbal methods. It is essential to show empathy to injured workers, active listening, be assertive and influence, and inspire others to act safely. Good communication skills helps’ achieve the health and safety goals in any organisation.
Working with others: Your mentor will observe how you interact and work with others. To work in health and safety you must get ‘buy-in’ from staff and senior management, that you are a person who ‘says what they do’. A good positive, can-do attitude, being able to get cooperation and have positive work relations is essential as a health and safety apprentice.
Accountability and responsibility: Admitting where and when mistakes were made is an essential part of the role. Being honest and sincere helps gain respect from fellow workers. All health and safety systems are based on learning from mistakes and continual improvement. So as you learn new health and safety tasks, it is just as important to admit to your health and safety manager when mistakes have been made. Taking responsibility will help you earn respect from your mentor and fellow workers.
Safety meetings: As a health and safety trainee, your mentor will ask you to attend safety meetings, initially as an observer and later as an active participant. You will be expected to take safety meeting minutes and write up reports on hazards identified.
Accident investigations: One of the most significant aspects of gaining new responsibility is being asked to participate in accident investigations. Health and safety apprentices are initially involved as an observer and later your mentor will ask you to go further and write up reports on incidents, near misses or actual injuries experienced in the workplace. A big part of the job is analysing data, for example, near misses and injuries and coming up with solutions to unsafe work practices.
Performance Appraisal: As your experience and confidence grows as a Health and safety apprentice/ trainee, your health and safety manager may give you more responsibility. After 6 months, your mentor/ health and safety manager will sit down and appraise your personal performance. A decision will be made as to whether they will promote you from a trainee to a health and safety assistant.
Learning about the relevant health and safety legislation, codes of practice, types of risk assessments and what to do, where and when, requires patience and study. A formal qualification will compliment your apprenticeship and lead you on a great career. It will also indicate to your mentor, that you are serious about a career in occupational health and safety.
Some environmental health and safety courses in Ireland, also known as ehs courses in Ireland, integrate the environmental function into the health and safety role. Not all health and safety courses in Ireland, include environmental studies. Occupational health and safety courses online are still far more popular than ehs courses in Ireland.
Health and Safety Trainee/ Apprentice Qualifications and Courses
Most health and safety trainees admit that they don’t acquire enough health and safety knowledge in their role in the first year to progress from trainee to a health and safety assistant role. They feel they need to do study outside of normal working hours to compliment what they are learning during the day. A sure way to succeed and progress, is to do a part time level 3 Occupational Health and Safety Certificate qualification, which will ensure you have the knowledge needed to become a fully qualified health and safety assistant within one year.
The level 3 Technical Occupational Safety and health Certificate qualification (comparable to level 5 in Ireland) is designed for trainees and apprentices. At technical level, you are learning about the technical fundamentals of working in health and safety and acquiring knowledge about health and safety legislation and risk and incident management. Consider becoming Tech Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Certified today with a level 3 occupational safety and health qualification.
The following Health and Safety job courses guide explains what qualification leads to what role. All these health and safety courses in Ireland come with career badges which is instantly recognisable to employers.
Role: Health & Safety Executive/Trainee/Apprentice
Experience: None required, entry level role
Qualification needed: Level 3 Technical Certificate in Occupational Health & Safety (comparable to level 5 )
Accredited: IOSH Accredited programme Salary : 35K ; Ideal entry level 3 health and safety certificate Ireland for those starting an apprenticeship in Health and Safety.
Role: Health & Safety Officer
Experience: 0-2 years
Qualification needed: Level 6 Certificate in Occupational Health & Safety (comparable to level 8 in Ireland)
Salary : 40-50K ; Ideal Occupational Health and safety certificate Ireland for those wishing to learn the basics of the Health and Safety practitioner role .
Role- Health & Safety Manager/Safety Advisor/OHS Consultant Experience: 10 + years
Qualification needed: Level 7 Diploma in Occupational Health & Safety Management (Comparable to level 9 in Ireland)
Accredited: IOSH Accredited programme Salary : 80-135K ; An excellent post graduate diploma with a focus on health and safety management for those wishing to work as a health and safety manager, health and safety director, Occupational health and well being manager.
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