Editor's Note: This story originally appeared on Trace One.
Workplace safety managers—often referred to as Environmental, Health, and Safety (EHS) managers—play a central role in preventing injuries, illnesses, and operational disruptions across the U.S. economy.
These workers review and analyze job sites, equipment, procedures, and safety programs to identify risks and recommend ways to control or eliminate hazards.
Their responsibilities can range from evaluating chemical, physical, biological, and ergonomic risks to helping employers design training programs, update workplace procedures, and comply with federal safety standards.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) defines these roles as focused on collecting data, analyzing work environments, and designing improvements to protect workers.
Their work is becoming more complex as OSHA advances regulatory changes affecting chemical hazard communication, heat illness prevention, emergency response, workplace violence, and other safety issues.
For safety managers, these changes can mean more audits, revised safety plans, new training requirements, and tighter documentation demands—often across multiple facilities, departments, and regulatory jurisdictions.
As a result, many employers are relying more heavily on centralized safety data sheet management, regulatory compliance tools, and other software systems to keep safety programs current, reduce manual administrative work, and enable safety managers to handle expanding workloads and responsibilities.
Researchers at Trace One—an SDS, regulatory compliance, and PLM software company—analyzed BLS employment and wage data to examine the safety workforce and where safety managers oversee the largest number of employees. For more details see the methodology section at the end.
Here are the 15 states where safety managers oversee the most workers.
15. New Jersey
- Workplace safety managers per 10k workers (2025): 9.6
- Total workplace safety managers (2025): 4,100
- Total workplace safety managers (2022): 3,410
- Percentage change in workplace safety managers (2022–2025): +20.2%
- Median annual wage (2025): $89,051
14. Minnesota
- Workplace safety managers per 10k workers (2025): 9.3
- Total workplace safety managers (2025): 2,730
- Total workplace safety managers (2022): 1,940
- Percentage change in workplace safety managers (2022–2025): +40.7%
- Median annual wage (2025): $94,756
13. Georgia
- Workplace safety managers per 10k workers (2025): 9.1
- Total workplace safety managers (2025): 4,430
- Total workplace safety managers (2022): 2,860
- Percentage change in workplace safety managers (2022–2025): +54.9%
- Median annual wage (2025): $79,397
12. Tennessee
- Workplace safety managers per 10k workers (2025): 9.1
- Total workplace safety managers (2025): 3,000
- Total workplace safety managers (2022): 2,890
- Percentage change in workplace safety managers (2022–2025): No significant change
- Median annual wage (2025): $78,493
11. Maryland
- Workplace safety managers per 10k workers (2025): 8.8
- Total workplace safety managers (2025): 2,440
- Total workplace safety managers (2022): 1,490
- Percentage change in workplace safety managers (2022–2025): +63.8%
- Median annual wage (2025): $88,704
10. Utah
- Workplace safety managers per 10k workers (2025): 8.7
- Total workplace safety managers (2025): 1,510
- Total workplace safety managers (2022): 1,700
- Percentage change in workplace safety managers (2022–2025): No significant change
- Median annual wage (2025): $84,107
9. Michigan
- Workplace safety managers per 10k workers (2025): 8.6
- Total workplace safety managers (2025): 3,800
- Total workplace safety managers (2022): 2,980
- Percentage change in workplace safety managers (2022–2025): +27.5%
- Median annual wage (2025): $82,094
8. New York
- Workplace safety managers per 10k workers (2025): 8.5
- Total workplace safety managers (2025): 8,250
- Total workplace safety managers (2022): 5,930
- Percentage change in workplace safety managers (2022–2025): +39.1%
- Median annual wage (2025): $91,263
7. Vermont
- Workplace safety managers per 10k workers (2025): 8.2
- Total workplace safety managers (2025): 250
- Total workplace safety managers (2022): 220
- Percentage change in workplace safety managers (2022–2025): No significant change
- Median annual wage (2025): $79,130
6. Nebraska
- Workplace safety managers per 10k workers (2025): 8.1
- Total workplace safety managers (2025): 830
- Total workplace safety managers (2022): 750
- Percentage change in workplace safety managers (2022–2025): +10.7%
- Median annual wage (2025): $78,012
5. Florida
- Workplace safety managers per 10k workers (2025): 7.8
- Total workplace safety managers (2025): 7,760
- Total workplace safety managers (2022): 6,140
- Percentage change in workplace safety managers (2022–2025): +26.4%
- Median annual wage (2025): $84,995
4. Illinois
- Workplace safety managers per 10k workers (2025): 7.7
- Total workplace safety managers (2025): 4,690
- Total workplace safety managers (2022): 3,920
- Percentage change in workplace safety managers (2022–2025): No significant change
- Median annual wage (2025): $85,938
3. Connecticut
- Workplace safety managers per 10k workers (2025): 7.2
- Total workplace safety managers (2025): 1,220
- Total workplace safety managers (2022): 1,110
- Percentage change in workplace safety managers (2022–2025): No significant change
- Median annual wage (2025): $93,148
2. South Dakota
- Workplace safety managers per 10k workers (2025): 5.5
- Total workplace safety managers (2025): 250
- Total workplace safety managers (2022): 180
- Percentage change in workplace safety managers (2022–2025): No significant change
- Median annual wage (2025): $88,610
1. Rhode Island
- Workplace safety managers per 10k workers (2025): 5.2
- Total workplace safety managers (2025): 260
- Total workplace safety managers (2022): 290
- Percentage change in workplace safety managers (2022–2025): No significant change
- Median annual wage (2025): $97,794
Methodology
Researchers at Trace One analyzed the latest data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics series.
To calculate the locations with the highest oversight burdens for workplace safety managers, the researchers divided the total number of workplace safety managers by the total number of employees and normalized per 10,000 employees for readability.
Workplace safety managers were defined as the combination of Occupational Health and Safety Specialists and Occupational Health and Safety Technicians, using the Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) codes 19-5011 and 19-5012, respectively.
For additional context, the researchers also calculated the total workplace safety managers in both 2025 and 2022, the percentage change in workplace safety managers from 2022 to 2025, and the median annual wage. Percentage change values were tested for statistical significance using a 90% confidence level.
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