Safety Manager/Assistant Safety Director - Swing Shift

Jaquith Consulting Group Inc; New York (NY); On-site; USD 112,000 - 197,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

401(k)

Dental insurance

Health insurance

Paid time off

Profit sharing

Vision insurance

Job summary

Jaquith Consulting Group is seeking an experienced Safety Manager to support the Hudson Tunnel Project. The role focuses on implementing, monitoring, and managing safety across heavy civil construction operations and fostering a proactive safety culture.

Responsibilities include on-track safety, regulatory compliance, risk management, incident investigations, and leadership of a team of safety professionals across on-site locations in New York and New Jersey.

Qualifications

• Ten years of safety leadership in heavy civil construction programs.
• OSHA 30 certification and related safety credentials.
• Bachelor's degree or equivalent in safety, engineering, construction management.
• Experience in Behavior-Based Safety (BBS) across diverse workforce.

Responsibilities

• Enforce FRA Roadway Worker Protection and on-track safety protocols.
• Lead safety program compliance with FTA oversight and certifications.
• Develop and implement health and safety management for tunneling operations.
• Lead incident investigations and track corrective actions.
• Mentor safety professionals and coordinate with owners and contractors.
• Drill emergency response and rescue plans for underground work.

Skills

Safety program development

BBS program experience

OSHA standards knowledge

Incident investigation

Regulatory compliance

Leadership / mentoring

Education

Bachelor's degree in Occupational Safety and Health, Engineering, Construction Management, or related field

Tools

Project management software

Job description

Benefits:

• 401(k)
• Dental insurance
• Health insurance
• Paid time off
• Profit sharing
• Vision insurance

Client / Engagement: Hudson Tunnel Project

Location: New York and New Jersey (On-site)

Shift / Schedule: Afternoons/Evenings (Swing Shift)

Salary Range: $112,000-197,000 (depending on experience)

Employment Type: Full-time

Position Summary

The Hudson Tunnel Project is the busiest rail connection between New York, New Jersey, and the Northeast Corridor. The project will improve the capacity, reliability, and resiliency of commuter and intercity rail transit serving 800,000 daily passengers between Washington, D.C., New York, and New England. Supported by the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), the project is slated to receive nearly $12 billion in federal funding - the largest investment in a mass transit project in modern history.

Jaquith Consulting Group is seeking an experienced Safety Manager to support the Hudson Tunnel Project. The position is responsible for implementing, monitoring, and managing safety across heavy civil construction operations, and for building a safety culture that goes beyond baseline compliance.

Key Responsibilities

Rail- Specific & On-Track Safety

• Implement and enforce Federal Railroad Administration Roadway Worker Protection requirements (49 CFR Part 214) for all work, including on-track safety programs, job briefings, watchman/lookout and flagging protocols, and workers' good-faith challenge rights.

Federal Transit Program Compliance & Certification

• Ensure the project safety program satisfies FTA Capital Investment Grant oversight expectations, including support for the Project Management Oversight Contractor's reviews and the project's Safety and Security Management Plan.
• Lead or support the Safety and Security Certification process, maintaining the certifiable items list, verification records, and documentation required by the Gateway Development Commission and FTA.
• Apply Safety Management System (SMS) principles consistent with FTA's approach, and produce the safety metrics and reporting the federal funding agreement requires.

New York / New Jersey Regulatory Compliance

• Ensure compliance with OSHA construction and underground construction standards, which govern the private contractor workforce on both the New York and New Jersey sides.
• Meet site safety requirements, including Site Safety Training (SST) card verification for workers and supervisors, and coordinate with the required site safety roles where applicable.

Program Safety Leadership & Strategy

• Develop, implement, and continuously improve the project-wide health and safety management system for tunneling and heavy civil operations.
• Set standards for a multibillion-dollar program and lead the development of the safety culture for the program.
• Review the DB contractor’s submittals, including safety plans, permits, and other documents, for regulatory compliance, and monitor work activities accordingly.
• Work with the safety team to develop and report daily on observations, negative and positive, that impact worksite safety.

Risk Management & Operational Planning

• Lead task-based risk assessments and job hazard analyses for high-consequence tunneling activities: soft-ground and mixed-face excavation under the Hudson River, tunnel boring machine (TBM) operations, ground support, ventilation, confined-space entry, hoisting, and, where used, compressed-air work.
• Design error-tolerant controls.
• Identify ways to make safe work easier through innovative procedures, better tools, and alternative materials, and champion those with operations leadership.

Incident Management & Learning

• Lead incident, near-miss, and high-potential-event investigations.
• Track corrective and preventive actions to closure and feed findings back into risk assessments, procedures, and training.
• Respond to, report, and investigate incidents on a regular basis, and ensure the process is followed through to completion.

Workforce Engagement & Culture

• Deliver or oversee orientations, toolbox talks, and competency-based training for tunneling, heavy civil, and on-track hazards.

Team Leadership & Coordination

• Supervise, mentor, and develop project safety professionals, setting clear expectations and supporting their growth.
• Coordinate a single standard of care across the contractor, subcontractors, owner representatives, and the operating railroads.
• Maintain regular field presence through inspections and audits, adapting the program as work, personnel, and site conditions change.

Emergency Preparedness & Resilience

• Develop and drill emergency response, rescue, and evacuation plans specific to underground and confined-space work.
• Coordinate emergency planning.

Required Qualifications

• Ten (10) years’ experience implementing, monitoring, and managing safety for heavy civil construction programs/projects.
• OSHA 30 certification.
• Bachelor's degree in Occupational Safety and Health, Engineering, Construction Management, or a related field; equivalent experience may be considered in lieu of degree.
• Experience implementing a Behavior- Based Safety (BBS) program across a diverse workforce.
• Working knowledge of OSHA construction and general industry standards (29 CFR 1926 and 29 CFR 1910).
• Experience developing and implementing Accident Prevention Plans (APPs) and Activity Hazard Analyses (AHAs) consistent with federal safety standards such as USACE EM 385-1-1, applicable to federally funded construction projects.

Preferred Qualifications

• Tunneling experience.
• Experience supporting/supervising safety professionals.
• Experience in Federal Transit Agency projects.
• Relevant degree in Environmental, Health, and/or Safety Science.
• Familiarity with transit agencies (such as PANYNJ, NJT, MTA, LIRR, Amtrak).
• Experience delivering programs or portfolios of significant value (>$1 billion) is a significant advantage.
• Certified Safety Professional (CSP).
• Certified Industrial Hygienist (CIH).
• OSHA 500 certification.
• Proficiency in project management software and tools.
• Board of Certified Safety Professionals (BCSP) credential, such as Construction Health and Safety Technician (CHST), Safety Management Specialist (SMS), or Associate Safety Professional (ASP).
• Training in incident investigation methodology (e.g., TapRooT, Latent Cause Analysis, TOP-SET).
• Active Amtrak Roadway Worker Protection (RWP) / ROW card, or completion of Amtrak safety training.
• NYC Department of Buildings 40-Hour Site Safety Manager (SSM) license and current Site Safety Training (SST) Supervisor card, or equivalent New Jersey site safety certification.
• Completion of USACE EM 385-1-1 40-hour Safety and Health Requirements training, for experience on federally funded construction sites.
• Bilingual (English/Spanish), to support communication with a diverse, multi-shift workforce.

Working Conditions

Travel

• Must be able to travel locally and regionally to multiple project sites to perform field visits and monitor construction work in progress.
• This is a swing shift (afternoons/evenings) position requiring regular on-site presence during second-shift construction operations, with schedule flexibility to support 24/7 project activity as needed.
• This role involves regular site visits to construction sites or other project locations.
• May require working outdoors with exposure to varying weather conditions.
• Occasional travel for meetings, trainings, and project outreach events will be required at various locations when necessary.

Environment

• Must be able to work from an office setting with frequent fieldwork.
• Ability to perform in varying weather conditions as required to conduct site visits during all seasons.
• Ability to safely navigate construction sites, with responsibility for adhering to differing site safety, security, and PPE requirements.

Physical Requirements

• Ability to walk, stand, and safely navigate construction sites for extended periods.
• Capability to lift and carry materials or equipment up to a specified weight limit, if necessary.
• Responsible for adhering to all instructions regarding differing site conditions, site security, safety protocols, and PPE requirements.

Jaquith Consulting Group is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, age, veteran status, or any other protected characteristic.