Environmental Health Safety Specialist

The Irca Group is an International Leader in high quality finished and semi-finished ingredients for the bakery, pastry, and ice cream markets. With a solid history of over 100 years in the industry, the Group has its headquarters in Italy (Gallarate) and a strong global footprint with 23 production sites and over 2000 employees in Europe, the United States and Vietnam.

Our core product categories include chocolate, compounds, chocolate decorations, sprinkles, creams, pastry mixes, gelato ingredients, nuts and candied fruit. The most recent acquisition of Kerry Sweet complements our existing categories with the addition of sweet particulates, chocolate confections, inclusions, variegates and frozen fruit purees.

Through its 8 key brands (IRCA, Dobla®, in2food, Via Degli Orsini, JoyGelato, RaviFruit, Cesarin and Anastasi®) the IRCA Group offers an unparalleled "one-stop shop" approach for delivering quality solutions to all ingredients needs, through a broad range of innovative products. We offer every day and seasonal solutions to 3 macro channels: Gourmet, Food Manufacturing and Consumer Product (Retail). “Extraordinary made simple”

Purpose of Position:

Irca Group is seeking an experienced EHS Specialist to enhance and accelerate our safety culture and programs. If you have a track record of developing and implementing effective safety work programs and driving continuous improvement in EHS programs, please apply to join our team! We’re passionate about our people, starting with their safety. As our EHS Manager, you will partner cross functionality with colleagues to create a Safety-First mindset and culture. We are seeking someone to work onsite daily at our plant located in Elk Grove Village, IL.

• Be a key contact and site resource for EHS support during afternoon and evening shifts, conducting observations, assessments, and oversight of non-routine work permits.
• Conduct risk assessments, hazard analyses and ergonomic assessments.
• Undertake at regular intervals EHS audits/inspections of the site and develop appropriate corrective and preventive actions.
• Assist in the implementation and management site ISO 14001 Environmental Management System.
• Manage site EHS training, develop appropriate resources, and execute training sessions for employees and management staff as required.
• Maintain enterprise Environmental, Health & Safety data management systems
• Analyze EHS and Sustainability data to offer insights and suggestions for system and process improvements and attainment of EHS performance targets
• Develop and publish metrics scorecards and reports (weekly, monthly, quarterly, and annual)
• Support site supervisors with the investigation of EHS incidents at the site. Where necessary, lead investigation process.
• Maintain EHS records to ensure adherence to corporate polices and/or regulatory requirements. Includes, but not limited to, OSHA 300 log, training, inspections, etc.
• Promote World Class EHS Culture through: Employee Engagement, Behavior Based Safety Program, leading Site Safety Committees.
• Other duties as directed by the EHS Manager.

• Bachelor of Science, preferably in safety engineering, risk management, occupational health Industrial or Environmental Engineering, or a related field, and minimum of 3 years previous experience in EHS management; in manufacturing environment (preferably food).
• Understanding of OSHA and EPA (state and federal) regulations
• Interpret State and Federal regulations and applicability to facilities to ensure compliance
• Proven ability to drive process improvements, adhere to budgets, and maintain regulatory compliance.
• Knowledge and experience with relevant consensus standards such as NFPA and ANSI, and systems such as ISO 14001 is a plus. Additional experience
• Strong problem-solving skills, CAPAs, RCAs.
• Superior communication and interpersonal skills within all levels of the organization.
• Technically proficient in tools such as (Excel, Word, PowerPoint) and other EHS Enterprise Solutions. Experience with Intelex, MVP, Alchemy, and Traction Guest is a plus.
• Bilingual is Spanish in a plus, but not required.
• May be required to travel domestically to various sites up to 15% annually.

Why Join Us:

Irca Group offers career growth opportunities as well as competitive compensation and benefits: Medical, Dental, & Vision, 401(k) matching, Paid Vacation, and Holidays, Employee Education Tuition Reimbursement Program