Director of Safety – NYC Construction

LMK Recruiting Solutions • New York City, NY

6d

About The Position

The Director of Safety is a strategic leadership role responsible for building and continuously improving safety systems, training, and culture across a New York City general contractor’s portfolio of ground-up residential high-rise and mid-rise construction projects. The role focuses on company-wide prevention and infrastructure rather than day-to-day jobsite response; site-level safety personnel handle routine jobsite oversight. The Director reports directly to executive leadership and has authority to shape safety practices across the portfolio.

The Director will establish standardized programs, training curricula, escalation and incident-investigation protocols, leading safety metrics, and reporting systems. The role also oversees company-wide OSHA compliance strategy, DOB filings, and Local Law 196 training compliance; integrates safety planning into preconstruction; manages organizational relationships with insurers, workers’ compensation providers, and regulators; develops the site safety manager talent bench; conducts periodic program audits; monitors regulatory changes; and presents safety performance and risk trends to leadership and ownership.

Requirements

• At least 8 years of progressive safety leadership experience in NYC commercial or residential construction, including high-rise and/or mid-rise ground-up projects.
• Proven experience building or significantly overhauling an organizational-level safety program, rather than managing safety only on individual sites.
• Deep knowledge of OSHA regulations, NYC DOB requirements, and Local Law 196 site safety training compliance.
• Strong training and curriculum development skills, including the ability to build a training program from scratch.
• Experience developing safety metrics, dashboards, or reporting systems used at the executive level.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including comfort presenting to ownership and executive leadership.
• A systems-and-process mindset focused on building repeatable structures rather than personally responding to every field issue.

Nice To Haves

• CHST, CSP, or SMS certification.
• Experience managing a team of site safety managers across multiple concurrent projects.
• Background in curriculum design or adult learning/training methodology.
• Familiarity with safety management software or EHS platforms such as Procore, HammerTech, Predictive Solutions, or similar.
• Experience working directly with insurance carriers on experience modification rate (EMR) improvement strategies.

Responsibilities

• Design, implement, and continuously improve company-wide safety programs, policies, and standard operating procedures across active high-rise and mid-rise projects.
• Build and deliver structured safety training curricula for site safety managers, superintendents, subcontractors, and new hires, including OSHA requirements, fall protection, crane and rigging safety, site logistics, and NYC-specific DOB and Local Law requirements.
• Develop leading safety metrics and reporting systems to identify portfolio-wide risk trends before incidents occur.
• Establish incident investigation and root-cause analysis protocols that site teams can execute independently.
• Own company-wide OSHA compliance strategy, DOB safety filings, and Local Law 196 site safety training compliance.
• Partner with project executives and estimators during preconstruction to include safety planning, staffing, and budgets in project plans.
• Manage organizational relationships with insurance carriers, workers’ compensation providers, and regulatory agencies, including OSHA, DOB, and DOT.
• Build and maintain a bench of qualified site safety managers through hiring standards, onboarding, and ongoing professional development.
• Conduct periodic program audits to evaluate site-level execution of company safety standards and adjust programs based on findings.
• Track regulatory changes and proactively update company policy ahead of compliance deadlines.
• Present safety performance, program updates, and risk trends to executive leadership and ownership on a regular cadence.

Benefits

• Competitive salary commensurate with experience.
• 401(k) with company match.
• Comprehensive health, dental, and vision coverage.
• Paid time off and holidays.
• A seat at the leadership table and the opportunity to shape company-wide safety strategy.
• Opportunity to build a program across a growing portfolio of landmark NYC developments.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Director
• Education Level: No Education Listed