Safety Manager

Location

• Berkeley, IL
• SUMMARY:
• The Safety Manager is one of the designated safety authorities responsible for day-to-day administration overseeing and coordinating Whitsons’ workplace safety programs across two Culinary Centers, two Distribution locations, Corporate Offices and over 1300 kitchens and/or cafeterias where we provide food services on-site at client locations (On-Site Locations). This role serves as an operational safety authority for assigned locations, ensuring compliance with OSHA and company standards while driving a proactive, prevention-focused safety culture. This position also plays a critical employee-facing role, providing outreach and support to injured team members, ensuring appropriate care, clear communication, and timely return-to-work whenever possible.
• The Safety Manager functions as a highly autonomous, field-facing leader who conducts inspections, investigates incidents, and manages safety initiatives. While this role has no direct reports, it exercises significant influence and leadership across all On-site services, Culinary services and Corporate operations. This role will also serve as a back-up to the Workers Compensation Specialist, whose role serves as the primary liaison between the company and our Third-Party Administrator (TPA) in overseeing workers’ compensation claims and administration.
• ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS, RESPONSIBILITIES AND DUTIES:
• Safety Program Oversight
• Oversee the implementation, execution, and continuous improvement of Whitsons’ safety programs across Culinary Centers, Distribution Depots, On-Site Locations, and Corporate Offices.
• Drive consistent adoption of safety policies, procedures, and best practices across all supported sites.
• Monitor safety performance metrics and identify trends, risks, and opportunities for improvement.
• Manage and support all Safety Programs across the organization.
• Provide guidance, communication, training support, and accountability to safety representatives.
• Serve as the escalation point for safety issues, compliance gaps, and high-risk incidents.
• Serve as the primary liaison for the Nurse Triage Program and ReEmployability Program.
• Inspections, Audits & Compliance
• Conduct routine and ad-hoc safety inspections and compliance audits at Culinary Centers, Distribution Depots, On-Site Locations, and other company locations.