Health and Safety Specialist – Coca Cola Vacancies

Job Description

Coca-Cola Beverages Africa is seeking a Health and Safety Specialist to support the implementation, governance, and continuous improvement of occupational health and safety systems. Reporting to the Health and Safety Lead, this role plays a critical part in ensuring compliance, driving safety performance, and strengthening a proactive safety culture across manufacturing and logistics operations.

Coca-Cola Beverages Africa is the largest Coca-Cola bottler on the African continent and among the leading authorised bottlers globally, serving a wide customer base across multiple African markets with a diverse portfolio of beverage brands.

Functional Capabilities

• Occupational health and safety systems and compliance management

• Policy development, implementation, and standardisation

• Audit planning, execution, and corrective action follow-up

• Risk, incident, and safety performance data analytics

• Cross-site health and safety governance and process improvement

• Interpretation of regulatory and international standards including ISO 45001 and KORE

• Stakeholder engagement, communication, and change management

• Training programme development and safety awareness support

• Corporate reporting and executive-level communication

Key Duties and Responsibilities

Strategy and Governance Support

• Align national health and safety strategies with global QSE requirements and local legal obligations

• Support the development and rollout of health and safety policies, procedures, and frameworks across operations

Compliance Monitoring and Audit Coordination

• Plan and coordinate internal health and safety audits to assess compliance with ISO 45001, KORE, and legislative requirements

• Consolidate audit outcomes and monitor corrective action implementation

• Act as a subject matter expert to support site-based health and safety teams

Performance Analytics and Reporting

• Consolidate, analyse, and interpret safety performance data and incident reports

• Develop dashboards and reports for leadership and regulatory stakeholders

• Monitor key indicators including incident trends, training completion, and risk mitigation progress

Incident Support and Continuous Learning

• Support investigations into serious incidents and near misses using robust root cause analysis

• Identify trends and contribute to proactive safety interventions

Training, Communication and Safety Culture

• Support the development of national safety training programmes and awareness initiatives

• Collaborate with operational teams to strengthen safety culture through education and engagement

• Facilitate cross-site knowledge sharing and best practice adoption

Stakeholder Engagement

• Serve as a liaison between head office QSE leadership and site-based health and safety teams

• Collaborate with QSE, HR, Engineering, and Operations to align and embed safety initiatives

Key Performance Indicators

• National Lost Time Injury Frequency Rate performance

• Internal and external safety audit compliance scores

• Timely closure of audit findings

• Incident and near-miss reporting rates

• Compliance with legal registers and permit-to-work systems

• Safety training coverage and participation

• Completion of risk assessments and safety documentation

• Safety culture maturity assessment results

Skills, Experience and Education

Education

• National Diploma or Bachelor’s Degree in Occupational Health and Safety, Environmental Health, Engineering, or a related field

• Professional certifications such as SAMTRAC, NEBOSH, or NOSA

• ISO 45001 Lead or Internal Auditor certification is preferred

• Membership with a recognised professional body is advantageous

Experience

• 5–7 years’ experience in a health and safety role with exposure to multi-site or head office oversight

• Experience within manufacturing or FMCG environments is preferred

• Proven ability to implement corporate safety programmes and standardise practices across multiple sites

• Strong knowledge of South African occupational health and safety legislation

Skills

• Advanced knowledge of occupational health and safety legislation and ISO 45001 standards

• Proficiency in Microsoft Office and safety data management systems

• Strong analytical and reporting skills with high attention to detail

• Effective communication, training, and presentation abilities

• Strong project coordination and stakeholder engagement skills

• Ability to influence, drive change, and support safety culture transformation

General

• Management reserves the right to apply additional relevant criteria during the shortlisting process

• Preference will be given to suitable equity candidates in line with the company’s Employment Equity Plan