Safety Specialist - Vehicle Testing

Primary Purpose: Motional is seeking a dedicated and proactive Safety Team Member to join our team at our Las Vegas Test Track. This critical role will be responsible for ensuring the health and safety of all personnel, maintaining the environmental integrity of the site, and providing comprehensive operational safety oversight of all autonomous vehicle test activities. The ideal candidate will be a highly organized, detail-oriented individual with a strong commitment to safety culture, a deep understanding of complex systems, and a proven ability to implement and enforce EHS policies and specialized AV operational safety protocols in a dynamic and cutting-edge environment.

Essential Duties:

Test Activity Safety Oversight:

• Pre-Test Safety Briefings: Conduct comprehensive safety briefings for test operators and relevant personnel before elevated risk  test activities, outlining potential risks and required safety procedures.
• Review test plans and procedures to identify potential safety concerns and recommend modifications to enhance safety.
• Provide real-time safety oversight during test activities, ensuring adherence to safety procedures and responding immediately to any unsafe conditions or behaviors.
• Be prepared to act as a first responder and coordinate emergency services during test-related incidents.
• Ensure all test equipment, vehicles, and instrumentation are operated and maintained safely.
• Verify proper usage and availability of required PPE for all test personnel.
• Confirm that all test activities are conducted in strict accordance with established safety procedures and operational guidelines.
• Provide constructive feedback to test teams regarding safety performance and identify opportunities for continuous safety improvement in test methodologies.

Environmental, Health, and Safety (EHS) Management:

• Serve as the primary EHS point of contact at the test track, fostering a strong safety culture among all employees, contractors, and visitors.
• Support the EHS Manager in implementation and enforcement of Motional's EHS policies, procedures, and best practices.
• Utilize Hazard Identification & Risk Assessment strategies to proactively identify potential hazards at the test track, conduct thorough risk assessments, and direct mitigation strategies.
• Respond to and investigate all EHS incidents, accidents, and near misses, identifying root causes and developing corrective actions to prevent recurrence.
• Develop, maintain, and conduct drills for emergency response plans (e.g., fire, medical emergencies, hazardous material spills).
• Conduct regular EHS training sessions for test track personnel, including safety briefings and specialized training on safe operating procedures.
• Support routine safety inspections and audits of facilities, equipment, and operations to ensure compliance with internal standards and external regulations.
• Regulatory Compliance: Stay current with all relevant local, state, and federal EHS regulations (e.g., OSHA, EPA) and ensure the test track's compliance.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in Occupational Health & Safety, Environmental Science, Engineering, or a related field. 
• Minimum of 3-5 years of progressive experience in an automotive, testing, R&D, or similarly dynamic industrial environment, with a strong preference for EHS experience.
• 3-5 years of experience involved with design, testing, or operation of automotive or robotics systems
• Proficiency in conducting hazard assessments, risk analysis, incident investigations, and developing corrective actions.
• Experience reviewing test plans

Preferred Qualifications (not required):

• Professional certifications (e.g., ASP, CSP, CIH, OHST)
• First Aid/CPR: Current First Aid and CPR certification
• Project management skills or PMP certification
• Experience with testing of vehicle subsystems or features (esp. L2-L5 systems)
• Experience in using issue tracking software or tools is preferred (esp. Atlassian Confluence, Jira)
• Experience in technical writing is preferred

Skills

• Proficiency in conducting hazard assessments, risk analysis, incident investigations, and developing corrective actions.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to clearly articulate safety policies and procedures to diverse audiences.
• Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to build rapport, influence behavior, and effectively collaborate with various teams.
• Proactive and analytical problem-solver with a strong attention to detail.
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team in a fast-paced, evolving environment.

Working Environment

The work environment characteristics described here represent those a team member encounters while performing the essential functions of this job.  Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform essential functions.

While performing the duties of this job, the team member is regularly exposed to office spaces, travel environments, and outside weather conditions. The noise level of the environment is low to high depending on travel and daily work site.

Motional AD LLC is an Equal Employment Opportunity employer, and we welcome all qualified applicants.  All applicants will receive impartial consideration regarding race, sex, color, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, genetic data, religion, gender identity, sexual orientation, or another legally protected status.  Motional AD LLC is a Drug-free workplace.

Motional is a driverless technology company making autonomous vehicles a safe, reliable, and accessible reality. We’re driven by something more.

Our journey is always people first.

We aren't just developing driverless cars; we're creating safer roadways, more equitable transportation options, and making our communities better places to live, work, and connect. Our team is made up of engineers, researchers, innovators, dreamers and doers, who are creating a technology with the potential to transform the way we move.

Higher purpose, greater impact.

We’re creating first-of-its-kind technology that will transform transportation. To do so successfully, we must design for everyone in our cities and on our roads. We believe in building a great place to work through a progressive, global culture that is diverse, inclusive, and ensures people feel valued at every level of the organization. Diversity helps us to see the world differently; it’s not only good for our business, it’s the right thing to do.  

Scale up, not starting up.

Our team is behind some of the industry's largest leaps forward, including the first fully-autonomous cross-country drive in the U.S, the launch of the world's first robotaxi pilot, and operation of the world's longest-standing public robotaxi fleet. We’re driven to scale; we’re moving towards commercialization of our technology, and we need team members who are ready to embrace change and challenges.

Formed as a joint venture between Hyundai Motor Group and Aptiv, Motional is fundamentally changing how people move through their lives. Headquartered in Boston, Motional has operations in the U.S and Asia. For more information, visit  www.Motional.com and follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and YouTube.

Motional AD Inc. is an EOE. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. To comply with Federal Law, we participate in E-Verify. All newly-hired employees are queried through this electronic system established by the DHS and the SSA to verify their identity and employment eligibility.