Safety Intern- Paid

About the position Effective protection is invisible protection. Wayne Metro's staff show up every day to change lives across Wayne County. Housing, Head Start, energy assistance, workforce development. The work is hard and it's personal, it matters enormously to the people on the receiving end of it. The Safety Department is what keeps it moving. The quiet, steady work of making sure that when our staff walk into a building, run a program, or sit across from a family in crisis, they can do it safely. That behind-the-scenes force is what you would be joining. As our Safety Intern, you will work directly with the Safety Manager and Agency Safety Lead on inspections, emergency planning, staff training, incident tracking, and preparedness work across our sites. The work is real, the responsibility is real, and the people you are ultimately protecting are very real. If you are studying public health, emergency management, occupational safety, social work, or public administration and you want to spend a semester doing work that holds something important together, we want to hear from you!

Responsibilities

• Workplace Safety (40%): Conduct safety inspections and site assessments across Wayne Metro offices, Head Start centers, and community locations Identify hazards, document findings, and follow corrective actions through to resolution Track incidents and near misses and maintain accurate records Support compliance documentation and safety recordkeeping Assist with special safety projects as they arise across the agency
• Emergency Management (40%): Support the planning, coordination, and execution of emergency drills including fire evacuation, medical emergencies, and active threat scenarios Contribute to updates and maintenance of the agency Emergency Operations Plan Assist with resilience hub development and planning Support Incident Command System integration work at the organizational level Assist with crisis response planning across agency sites Help design and develop tabletop exercises (TTXs) for staff and leadership across a range of emergency scenarios Contribute to the development of functional exercises, building out scenarios, injects, and evaluation materials that could be activated when the agency is ready Research best practices and help build a library of exercise possibilities the Safety Department can draw from going forward
• Training Development (20%): Help develop safety training materials, including guides, presentations, newsletters, and short video content Support the facilitation of staff safety trainings across departments and locations Assist with internal safety communications that build awareness and reinforce a proactive safety culture across the agency

Requirements

• Pursuing a degree in occupational safety, public health, emergency management, public administration, nonprofit management, social work, or a related field
• Notices what others walk past and follows through on what they start
• Comfortable working across a large, complex organization with a lot of moving pieces
• Understands that safety in a human services environment is about protecting people who are already in vulnerable situations
• Takes that responsibility seriously
• High school diploma/general education degree (GED) OR a combination of education and experience that is similarly equivalent.
• Pass Criminal Background check & Drug Screening
• Ability to work a hybrid schedule
• Strong verbal and written communication skills
• Professionalism in appearance, tact, punctuality, and dependability
• Good interpersonal and professional skills including but not limited to professional appearance, tact, punctuality, and dependability.
• Perform work in a manner that upholds Wayne Metro policies, procedures, and mission.

Nice-to-haves

• Prior coursework or experience in safety, emergency management, or public health is a plus
• Character, curiosity, and dependability matter more than a perfect resume