A new American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) membership compensation analysis survey found the average member salary in 2003 to be $74,000 with half of the respondents receiving a bonus of between $1,000 - $5,000. Also, the majority of those surveyed anticipate a salary increase this year of about 4.6 percent, or between one and five percent of their current salary base.

Conducted by Block Research, Inc., the survey found that professional ASSE members (those with a P.E., CSP, CIH, CHP, CRSP or IOSH-RSP or BA from an accredited college plus ten years of safety experience) earn nearly $10,000 more.

The survey also found that having a Bachelor's Degree adds nearly $12,000 to one's salary and a Master's Degree nearly $20,000 compared to high school only. A Certified Safety Professional (CSP) designation adds $10,500 to a salary.

In addition to salary and bonuses, 61 percent are reimbursed for professional development, with the annual amount spent per employee ranging from $1,000 to $10,000.

The survey found that safety, health and environmental (SH&E) practitioners with ten or more years of experience earn about $20,000 more than those with less than five years' experience. As responsibility and stature within a company increases, so too does salary – rising from $57,410 for entry-level positions to $97,760 for executive-level positions.

Survey results found the electronics and finance industries ranked the highest in terms of compensation for SH&E practitioners, with education and agriculture ranking the lowest.

The 34-question survey developed by ASSE was sent to a randomly selected group of 2,500 members and professional members. Of the 1624 returned surveys, respondents represented all business categories with more than half from the manufacturing, construction, insurance, services and public administration sector.