Occupational Health Nurse salary
A occupational health nurse earns about $93,600 a year — roughly $45.00/hour, with most earning between $75,990 and $100,780. This is an estimate — a starting point, not an exact figure.
Occupational Health Nurse — U.S. national
Specialty estimateMedian annual pay
$93,600
Hourly
$45.00/hr
- Typical range
- $75,990–$100,780
- What most nurses earn
- High end
- $135,320
- Top earners
- Entry level
- $66,030
- Newer nurses
What affects this pay
- Industry (manufacturing, energy, construction often pay more)
- COHN or COHN-S certification
- Case management and workers-comp experience
- Solo-practice site responsibility
- Company size and safety program maturity
About Occupational Health Nurses
What they do
Occupational health nurses run the health function at a worksite — a factory floor, a corporate campus, or a remote industrial site. Their day mixes treating on-the-job injuries, managing workers' compensation claims and return-to-work plans, performing pre-employment physicals, drug screens, and hearing or respirator-fit tests, and keeping the employer compliant with workplace safety recordkeeping. They often work as the only clinician on site.
How to become an Occupational Health Nurse
An RN license comes first, and hiring managers typically look for a few years of clinical experience in emergency, urgent care, or community health before trusting a nurse with an autonomous worksite role. The recognized credentials are the Certified Occupational Health Nurse (COHN) and the COHN-S for specialists; case management credentials and workplace-safety coursework strengthen a candidate further.
What drives the pay
Because public wage data folds occupational health nurses into the general registered nurse category rather than counting them separately, the estimates on this page are modeled from RN pay. Compensation generally lands near the RN median: these are salaried weekday positions without shift differentials, but that loss is roughly offset by corporate employers, site autonomy, and certification premiums — with heavy-industry roles landing at the higher end.
Occupational Health Nurse pay by state
Estimated occupational health nurse pay where this role tends to earn the most. Open a state for the full local picture.
| State | Est. annual pay | vs U.S. |
|---|---|---|
| California | $129,170 | +38% vs national |
| Hawaii | $112,320 | +20% vs national |
| Alaska | $110,450 | +18% vs national |
| Oregon | $110,450 | +18% vs national |
| Washington | $110,450 | +18% vs national |
| Massachusetts | $107,640 | +15% vs national |
| New York | $105,770 | +13% vs national |
| District of Columbia | $104,830 | +12% vs national |
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Occupational Health Nurse salary FAQ
- How much do Occupational Health Nurses make?
- Occupational Health Nurses earn an estimated $93,600 a year — about $45.00 an hour, with most between $75,990 and $100,780. Occupational Health Nurses aren't reported as a separate role in public wage data, so this is a specialty estimate that starts from registered nurse pay.
- What is the hourly pay for Occupational Health Nurses?
- Most Occupational Health Nurses are paid an hourly wage. The national estimate works out to about $45.00 an hour at a full-time schedule, with a typical range of $36.53 to $48.45. Nights, weekends, and overtime differentials push the real hourly rate higher.
- Which state pays Occupational Health Nurses the most?
- California is among the highest-paying states for Occupational Health Nurses, at roughly $129,170 a year, followed by other West Coast and Northeast states. State figures are estimates based on national pay and local cost of living.
- Why is Occupational Health Nurse pay shown as an estimate?
- No public source measures Occupational Health Nurses as a separate occupation, so we start from registered nurse pay and apply the pay difference these nurses typically see. The figure is clearly labeled an estimate and sharpens as nurses submit their own pay.
- Why are some figures verified and others estimates?
- National pay for the main nursing roles — registered nurses, LPNs/LVNs, nurse practitioners, CRNAs, nurse midwives, and nursing assistants — comes from verified public wage data. State, city, and specialty figures that aren't reported on their own start from that national pay and are labeled "Estimated" or "Specialty estimate." We never show an estimate as a verified figure.
Source & confidence— An estimate for a specialty that public pay data does not list on its own. A ballpark to start from, not an exact figure.
Modeled specialty estimate
Occupational Health Nurse is not broken out by BLS. Figures are modeled from the SOC 29-1141 median using a specialty differential of 1.00×, reflecting commonly reported pay differences. Treat as directional, not precise.
Source year 2024. Last reviewed June 1, 2025. Full methodology
This role isn’t broken out in public wage data, so the figure starts from registered nurse pay and sharpens as nurses submit their pay. Last reviewed June 1, 2025.