Safety Specialist

Apply Job Type Full-time Description The Safety Specialist supports Ascentec Engineering’s mission, brand, and values by leading workplace safety across the company’s Tualatin and Dallas, Oregon facilities. The role manages occupational injury and illness prevention, incident response, employer-side workers’ compensation administration, return-to-work and light-duty processes, regulatory recordkeeping, safety performance reporting, training, and continuous improvement. Working collaboratively with employees and leaders across Manufacturing, Engineering, Quality, Sustainable Engineering, and People & Culture, the Safety Specialist establishes measurable safety objectives and promotes consistent accountability. The role also serves as the company’s primary safety representative during internal and third-party audits, including audits related to AS9100, and during regulatory inspections conducted by Oregon OSHA, federal OSHA, or other authorities. Requirements Core Responsibilities: Safety Management and Risk Reduction · Build collaborative relationships with Manufacturing, Operations, Engineering, Quality, and other internal partners to strengthen safety and reduce risk and injuries across both facilities with a goal of zero injuries. · Facilitate Safety Committee recruiting, meetings, and management for the Tualatin and Dallas, maintain meeting minutes (within required SMS or QMS filing system), and communicate recommendations, decisions, and follow-up actions to relevant stakeholders. · Administer the company’s drug-testing policy in coordination with People & Culture, when relative to on-the-job reasonable suspicion. · Establish and maintain baseline safety requirements for each work area, machine, and job task, including required procedures, controls, signage, and protective equipment. · Maintain an inventory of safety equipment, PPE, and first aid supplies and track purchase dates, service life, inspection status, expiration dates, and wear or damage that may affect effectiveness. · Conduct documented safety walks and workplace audits at both facilities on a regular schedule, at least twice weekly, and coordinate timely corrective action with responsible leaders. · Conduct safety orientation for newly hired and transferred manufacturing employees. · Serve as the primary point of contact for company safety questions, concerns, and needs. Represent Ascentec Engineering in safety communications with employees, insurers, auditors, and regulatory authorities, and support safety-related elements of AS9100 audits and associated workflows. · Provide on-site safety leadership and coordination following workplace accidents, incidents, or other safety events, and coordinate immediate response, appropriate first aid or emergency services, timely internal and external notifications, and prompt investigation for workplace safety incidents and near misses. · Assess safety conditions at both Oregon facilities through regular inspections of manufacturing and office areas, including signage, egress routes, emergency action plans, and building-safety needs. · Maintain a documented coverage plan for essential Safety Specialist responsibilities during vacations and other absences. · Establish and implement a strategy for achieving measurable safety outcomes through education, training, hazard control, and accountability. · Develop, deliver, or coordinate required safety courses and certifications, including First Aid, CPR, AED, equipment-specific training, and other programs identified through regulatory or operational needs in coordination with Learning and Development Specialist. · Manage employee safety-training and certification records in HRIS and/or LMS. · Maintain professional network with safety practitioners, industry groups, and other strategic contacts and support Ascentec Engineering’s professional reputation. · Maintain and implement a consistent accountability strategy that reinforces safe behavior and addresses noncompliance in accordance with company standards, policies, and procedures. · Serve as Ascentec Engineering’s subject-matter expert for occupational safety and health by maintaining current knowledge of applicable Oregon OSHA and federal OSHA requirements, workers’ compensation coordination practices, recognized manufacturing safety practices, and safety-related intersections with AS9100. · Establish and, where required, implement standards for routine shop-floor safety activities, including safety huddles, job hazard and pre-task planning, equipment-specific procedures, machine guarding, lockout/tagout, and documented corrective-action follow-up; assess adherence and address identified gaps. Safety Administrative Responsibilities Workers’ Compensation and Claims Management · Manage the employer-side workers’ compensation program in partnership with People & Culture, including injury reporting, claim intake, claim documentation, status tracking, return-to-work coordination, and follow-up with employees and supervisors. · Serve as Ascentec Engineering’s primary operational liaison with SAIF Corporation or the company’s workers’ compensation insurer, including communication with claims adjusters, return-to-work consultants, loss-control staff, and other authorized parties. · Coordinate temporary modified-duty and light-duty assignments. Work with supervisors, People & Culture, the employee, medical providers as appropriate, and SAIF to prepare job descriptions and written offers, monitor assignments, and revise duties when restrictions change. · Protect the confidentiality of medical and workers’ compensation information. · Maintain and report TRIR, DART, recordable case counts, lost-time and restricted-duty days, and other leading and lagging safety indicators. · Maintain a separate OSHA 300 Log for each covered establishment; prepare the OSHA 300A annual summary for required certification and posting; complete or coordinate DCBS Form 801 or OSHA 301-equivalent records; and coordinate required electronic submissions. · Evaluate injury and illness recordability and classification using applicable Oregon OSHA requirements, consulting People & Culture or qualified external resources when needed. · Coordinate required reporting of fatalities, catastrophes, in-patient hospitalizations, amputations or avulsions, and losses of an eye to Oregon OSHA within the applicable reporting period. Reporting and Document Management · Maintain the source documentation supporting OSHA recordkeeping and safety metrics, including hours worked, case classifications, days away, restricted-duty days, job-transfer days, and changes in case status; reconcile records with People & Culture and Payroll as needed. · Prepare safety reports for leadership as scheduled/required. · Develop and maintain safety-related portions of the Ascentec Engineering Team Handbook in coordination with People & Culture. · Maintain current safety data sheets (SDSs) and make them readily available to employees, emergency responders, and regulatory authorities as required, managed in coordination with QMS document control processes managed by Quality Control according to AS9100 standards. · Create and maintain safety documentation and risk-reduction materials, including job hazard analyses, pre-task plans, equipment training cards, and related procedures for applicable work areas, job tasks, and equipment. · Track safety expenditures and prepare an annual safety budget proposal for review by the financial team. · Coordinate with Purchasing to obtain required safety equipment. All purchases require approval and due process. · Maintain accurate safety records and data, including incidents, injuries, near misses, training certifications, attendance, inspections, corrective actions, workers’ compensation claim status, and disciplinary documentation, within the company’s designated HRIS, LMS, or safety management systems. Cultural Responsibilities · All Ascentec Engineering team members are expected to: - demonstrate their commitment to the company’s mission, brand, and values in every aspect of their work; - contribute their unique strengths, skills, and experience to the company’s development by participating in dialogue and planning; - model their strengths in support of the team, and learn actively from others; - use effective communication practices to remove barriers to collaboration and team development; - All Ascentec Engineering team members are expected to demonstrate respect for colleagues, supervisors, customers, vendors, and others with whom they work.