Senior Health & Safety Advisor

Apex Water Ltd; Auckland; Hybrid; NZD 120,000 - 160,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health Insurance

Health & Activity Allowance

Job summary

Apex Water Ltd is seeking an experienced Health & Safety Lead to drive H&S across projects in New Zealand, with a regular presence on site and in offices and warehouses. You will coach safe practices, manage risk controls and maintain our Mango H&S system.

You will report to the General Manager, support audits, and provide clear reporting to senior leaders while collaborating with the wider Citycare Group on shared H&S initiatives. Regular travel to project sites is expected.

Qualifications

• 7+ years’ H&S experience in a similar industry.
• Ideally hold a recognised H&S-related tertiary qualification.
• Sound knowledge of site health and safety, the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015, and hazardous substance risks relevant to water and wastewater operations.
• Experience coaching teams and delivering frontline training.
• Strong written communication, reporting, administration and computer skills.
• The confidence to influence, constructively challenge unsafe practices and follow actions through to completion.

Responsibilities

• Building trusted relationships with teams and contractors through regular site visits, toolbox talks and practical coaching.
• Conducting inspections and audits, checking critical controls and supporting teams to address risks and close corrective actions.
• Supporting safe planning and delivery of high-risk work, including confined space entry, trenching, live water connections and plant operations.
• Leading or supporting incident investigations and turning findings into practical improvements.
• Maintaining Mango H&S management system, including risk registers, training records and incident information.
• Working with our Quality function to support ISO 45001 and ISO 14001 compliance and audit preparation.
• Providing accurate reporting on H&S performance, incident trends, audit findings and improvement priorities.
• Coordinating inductions, training and H&S committee activities, and contributing safety advice to tenders and project planning.
• Experience with ICAM investigations, ISO systems, environmental compliance and auditing within the water sector would be an advantage.

Skills

H&S experience

Coaching teams

Audit & inspections

Incident investigations

Risk management

ISO standards

Communication

Education

H&S-related qualification

Job description

Apex Water is an industry leader in water and wastewater treatment, helping New Zealand grow sustainably while protecting our environment for future generations.

We provide end-to-end solutions, taking responsibility for the design, construction, commissioning and operation of water and wastewater treatment plants. Our people work on meaningful, technically challenging projects that make a lasting difference to communities across New Zealand.

About the role

Reporting to the General Manager, you’ll lead operational health and safety across Apex Water, with a regular, visible presence on our project sites and across our offices and warehouses.

You’ll work alongside project teams, site crews and contractors to understand how work happens, coach safe practices and ensure risk controls are effective. You’ll also maintain our H&S management system, support audit readiness and provide clear reporting to senior leaders, working with the wider Citycare Group on shared H&S requirements and initiatives where relevant.

This role will suit someone who is equally comfortable joining a site pre-start, discussing critical risks with contractors and presenting findings and recommendations to management.

Your key responsibilities will include:

• Building trusted relationships with teams and contractors through regular site visits, toolbox talks and practical coaching.
• Conducting inspections and audits, checking critical controls and supporting teams to address risks and close corrective actions.
• Supporting safe planning and delivery of high-risk work, including confined space entry, trenching, live water connections and plant operations.
• Leading or supporting incident investigations and turning findings into practical improvements.
• Maintaining our Mango H&S management system, including risk registers, training records and incident information.
• Working with our Quality function to support ISO 45001 and ISO 14001 compliance and audit preparation.
• Providing accurate reporting on H&S performance, incident trends, audit findings and improvement priorities.
• Coordinating inductions, training and H&S committee activities, and contributing safety advice to tenders and project planning.

We are open to candidates in both Auckland and Waikato regions. Regular travel to project sites is part of the role.

About you

You bring practical experience in an operational environment such as construction, engineering, water or wastewater. You understand the realities of site work and can translate health and safety requirements into clear, workable advice.

Alongside your operational credibility, you’re organised and confident working within a corporate environment. You can maintain reliable records, prepare professional reports and communicate effectively with managers and senior leaders.

• 7+ years’ H&S experience in a similar industry.
• Ideally hold a recognised H&S-related tertiary qualification
• Sound knowledge of site health and safety, the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 and hazardous substance risks relevant to water and wastewater operations.
• Experience coaching teams and delivering frontline training.
• Strong written communication, reporting, administration and computer skills.
• The confidence to influence, constructively challenge unsafe practices and follow actions through to completion.

Experience with ICAM investigations, ISO systems, environmental compliance and auditing within the water sector would be an advantage.

Why join Apex Water?

This is an opportunity to join a growing business where you can work across the full breadth of health and safety, from practical site support and coaching to systems, reporting and continuous improvement. You’ll take ownership of day-to-day H&S activities while working closely with teams and leaders to strengthen our safety culture, build capability and support the safe delivery of our projects.

Apex Water offers a range of employee benefits to support a good work/life balance and wellbeing, including Health Insurance and an annual Health & Activity Allowance.

If you are a practical and proactive H&S professional who enjoys variety, takes pride in getting the details right and wants to make a meaningful contribution, we would like to hear from you.

Note: Successful candidates must have the right to live and work in New Zealand.