About the role
The Safety Manager leads the development and implementation of SWAG’s workplace safety program across its distribution centers and other assigned locations. This role partners with site leaders, supervisors, employees, and HR to identify hazards, reduce risk, strengthen safety practices, and support compliance with applicable safety requirements.
The Safety Manager has a strong field presence and focuses on practical safety improvements in powered industrial truck operations, loading docks, material handling, ergonomics, and tire operations. The role also manages incident investigations, safety training, inspections, corrective actions, recordkeeping, and injury trend analysis.
What you'll do
- Develop, maintain, and communicate SWAG’s safety policies, procedures, programs, and training materials.
- Conduct routine and risk-based safety inspections at distribution centers and other assigned locations.
- Assess hazards involving forklifts and other powered industrial trucks, docks, trailers, pedestrian traffic, storage, lifting, and tire handling.
- Partner with site leaders to correct unsafe conditions and practices, assign action owners, and verify corrective actions are completed.
- Coordinate incident, injury, near-miss, and property-damage investigations; identify contributing factors and recommend preventive actions.
- Maintain safety records and support required injury and illness recordkeeping and reporting.
- Oversee the powered industrial truck training and evaluation process. Confirm employees are trained and evaluated before authorization to operate equipment, and that refresher training is provided when required.
- Develop and coordinate annual safety training, including at least six safety sessions each year for leads, supervisors, and managers.
- Establish and support a near-miss reporting process that encourages timely reporting and focuses on learning and prevention.
- Review safety trends by location, department, incident type, and contributing factor; recommend targeted interventions.
- Support workers’ compensation claim coordination and timely communication with employees, managers, HR, and the claims administrator.
- Coordinate with HR and Operations on return-to-work planning and appropriate transitional work when available.
- Support emergency preparedness, safety committee activity, safety communications, and employee engagement.
- Provide coaching to managers and supervisors on safety expectations, employee communication, and consistent follow-through.
- Monitor applicable federal and state safety requirements and recommend updates to company practices.
- Travel to SWAG locations as needed.
How you will be measured
- Safety inspections and corrective actions: Complete 100% of scheduled site inspections and close at least 90% of corrective actions by their due dates. Apply immediate controls to high-risk hazards.
- Forklift training and authorization: Ensure 100% of operators are trained and evaluated before operating independently; achieve at least 95% on-time completion of required safety training.
- Incident and near-miss follow-up: Complete at least 95% of investigations within the established timeframe, and review and assign an owner to 100% of near-miss reports.
- Safety compliance and program delivery: Maintain accurate injury records and meet applicable deadlines; deliver the annual safety calendar across all locations.
- Site and injury trend reviews: Review TRIR, DART, workers’ compensation, and incident trends quarterly, with documented safety reviews and improvement actions for each location.
Qualifications
- Bachelor’s degree in occupational safety, environmental health, industrial safety, or a related field preferred; equivalent experience may be considered.
- Five or more years of progressive workplace safety experience, preferably in warehousing, distribution, manufacturing, or logistics.
- Experience developing and implementing safety programs across multiple locations.
- Working knowledge of OSHA general industry requirements, powered industrial truck safety, injury and illness recordkeeping, hazard identification, and incident investigation.
- Strong communication and training skills, including the ability to work effectively with hourly employees and leaders.
- Ability to analyze incident data, identify trends, and translate findings into practical corrective actions.
- Proficiency with Microsoft Office and safety, HR, or training record systems.
- OSHA 30-hour General Industry training preferred.
- ASP, CSP, or comparable safety certification preferred.
Reasonable Accommodation
Southwest Accessory Group is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to qualified applicants and employees with disabilities in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Accommodations will be provided unless doing so would create an undue hardship on business operations. Applicants requiring an accommodation during the hiring process should notify Human Resources.
Department: Human Resources
Reports To: Director of Human Resources / Operations
Status: Exempt
Salary Range: $110-$130k
About Southwest Accessory Group
At Southwest Accessory Group, we're driven to be the premier GM and Ford accessory distributor by delivering exceptional service, operational excellence, and unmatched customer support. From our five distribution centers, we help dealerships grow profitability through industry-leading accessory programs, innovative solutions, and responsive partnerships.
Our success starts with our people. We foster a culture built on service, worth, alignment, and grit, where employees are empowered to grow, make an impact, and build rewarding careers. If you're passionate about delivering results and thrive in a fast-paced, customer-focused environment, we'd love to have you on our team.