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Home›Environmental and Occupational Health and Hygiene Professionals: Jobs in Demand in Europe (2025)

Environmental and Occupational Health and Hygiene Professionals: Jobs in Demand in Europe (2025)

Environmental and Occupational Health and Hygiene Professionals is an official occupation group (ISCO-08 code 2263) used by the International Labour Organization and Eurostat.

  • Environmental health officer
  • Occupational health and safety adviser
  • Occupational hygienist
  • Radiation protection expert
9European countries report a shortage (EURES 2025)
7countries report a surplus
1,580open job ads right now in Germany and Sweden
2263ISCO-08 occupation code
Short answerIn the 2025 EURES report on labour shortages, 9 European countries reported a shortage of environmental and occupational health and hygiene professionals: Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, Greece, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal and Romania. 7 reported a surplus: Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Finland, Germany, Latvia and Slovakia. Belgium appears in both lists, which usually means shortages in some regions and surpluses in others.

Pay in the UK for this job

£41,725median gross pay a year, full-time
£808median gross pay a week, full-time
10,000full-time jobs (ONS estimate)

UK occupation used: Environmental health professionals (SOC 2020 code 2483). Placeivo matched this to ISCO-08 2263 by job title and duties; the UK and international occupation lists do not line up exactly. National figure for the whole United Kingdom, in pounds sterling (GBP), before income tax and National Insurance.

Small sample: the ONS quality measure (coefficient of variation) is annual figure 12%. ONS advises using estimates like this with caution.

Source: Office for National Statistics, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE) 2025 provisional, Table 14 (occupation by 4-digit SOC 2020): tables 14.7a (annual pay, gross) and 14.1a (weekly pay, gross), full-time employee jobs, United Kingdom. Weekly pay is for April 2025; annual pay is for the tax year ending 5 April 2025, employees in the same job for at least a year. Retrieved 2026-10-13.

See the ONS earnings tables by occupation

UK Skilled Worker visa for this job

EligibleGOV.UK level: Higher Skilled
£40,900standard going rate a year
£34,100lower going rate a year
£41,700usual minimum salary for a new visa

This occupation (UK code 2483, Environmental health professionals) is on the UK list of jobs eligible for the Skilled Worker visa. The job usually has to pay the higher of £41,700 a year or the going rate for the occupation. GOV.UK says the lower going rate applies if you apply for a Health and Care Worker visa in certain occupations, or got the certificate of sponsorship for your first Skilled Worker visa before 4 April 2024 and have held one ever since. Going rates are for a 37.5-hour week and are pro-rated for other hours. Placeivo matched this UK code to ISCO-08 2263 by job title; the lists do not line up exactly.

This is a summary of official rules, not legal advice. Rules change and some people (for example those already on a Skilled Worker visa) have different rules. Always check GOV.UK before you apply.

Source: UK Visas and Immigration, GOV.UK tables "Skilled Worker visa: eligible occupations and codes" and "Skilled Worker visa: going rates for eligible occupation codes", updated 2025-07-22, retrieved 2026-10-15. General minimum salary from GOV.UK "Skilled Worker visa: Your job", checked 2026-10-15.

Compare UK visa going rates by job · Eligible occupations (GOV.UK) · Going rates (GOV.UK) · Salary rules (GOV.UK)

Latest environmental and occupational health and hygiene professionals job ads

Real vacancies from the official public employment services, updated daily. Job titles are translated into English automatically; the full ad opens on the official site in German or Swedish (your browser's translate button turns it into English).

Germany

1,542 open ads

Source: Bundesagentur für Arbeit (German Federal Employment Agency). Ads are written by employers; Placeivo does not check them. See all ads in Germany

Sweden

38 open ads

Source: Arbetsförmedlingen (Swedish Public Employment Service). Ads are written by employers; Placeivo does not check them. See all ads in Sweden

Where environmental and occupational health and hygiene professionals are needed in Europe

CountryEURES 2025Average gross pay, all professionals (2022)1-bed rent in the capital
BulgariaShortage€1,367 a monthSofia: €650
DenmarkShortage€5,925 a month *Copenhagen: €1,800
GreeceShortage€1,904 a month *Athens: €1,150
ItalyShortage€3,172 a month *Rome: €1,300
LuxembourgShortage€6,887 a month *Luxembourg: €1,900
NetherlandsShortage€4,726 a monthNot yet verified
PortugalShortage€2,323 a month *Lisbon: €1,400
RomaniaShortage€1,991 a month *Not yet verified
BelgiumShortage and surplus€5,370 a month *Brussels: €1,150
AustriaSurplus€4,602 a month *Vienna: €1,250
CroatiaSurplus€2,097 a month *Zagreb: €1,050
FinlandSurplus€4,673 a month *Helsinki: €1,150
GermanySurplus€5,270 a monthBerlin: €1,350
LatviaSurplus€2,136 a monthRiga: €870
SlovakiaSurplus€1,830 a monthBratislava: €910

Pay: Eurostat Structure of Earnings Survey 2022, mean gross monthly earnings of all professionals in each country, in euros. This is the average for the whole occupation group, not for environmental and occupational health and hygiene professionals alone, and before tax. * Firms with 10 or more employees only. Rent: Eurostat, good-quality 1-bedroom flat in the capital, 2025.

What environmental and occupational health and hygiene professionals do

Environmental and occupational health and hygiene professionals assess, plan and implement programmes to recognize, monitor and control environmental factors that can potentially affect human health, to ensure safe and healthy working conditions and to prevent disease or injury caused by chemical, physical, radiological and biological agents or ergonomic factors.

Typical tasks

  • Developing, implementing and reviewing programmes and policies to minimize potential environmental and occupational risks to health and safety
  • Preparing and implementing plans and strategies for the safe, economic and suitable disposal of commercial, industrial, medical and household wastes
  • Implementing prevention programmes and strategies for communicable diseases, food safety, waste water treatment and disposal systems, recreation and domestic water quality, contaminated and hazardous substances
  • Identifying, reporting and documenting hazards, and assessing and controlling risks in the environment and workplace and advising on compliance with relevant law and regulations
  • Developing, implementing and monitoring programmes to minimize workplace and environmental pollution involving chemical, physical and biological hazards
  • Advising on methods to prevent, eliminate, control or reduce the exposure of workers, students, the public and the environment to radiological and other hazards
  • Promoting ergonomic principles within the workplace such as matching furniture, equipment and work activities to the needs of employees
  • Providing education, information, training and advice to persons at all levels on aspects of occupational hygiene and environmental health
  • Recording and investigating injuries and equipment damage, and reporting safety performance
  • Coordinating arrangements for the compensation, rehabilitation and return to work of injured workers

Finding environmental and occupational health and hygiene professionals jobs in Europe

Search all EU vacancies on EURES Check if your job is regulated
  • EURES is the official job portal of the EU public employment services. The search above looks for "Occupational hygienist".
  • Some jobs are regulated professions: before you can work, your qualification may need to be recognised in the new country.
  • If you are not an EU/EEA citizen you will usually need a work permit or a visa such as the EU Blue Card. Check the rules of the country's immigration authority.

Cost of living where the jobs are

Take-home pay needed to rent a good 1-bedroom flat in the capitals of countries reporting a shortage:

SofiaCopenhagenAthensRomeLuxembourgLisbonBrussels

About this data

  • Shortage and surplus: European Labour Authority, EURES Report on labour shortages and surpluses 2025, annex table 21 (published 2026). Each country's public employment service reports which occupations it finds hard to fill or in oversupply. Countries not listed did not report this occupation as either.
  • Definition, tasks and job titles: International Labour Organization, ISCO-08 structure and definitions.
  • Pay: Eurostat, Structure of Earnings Survey 2022 (earn_ses22_48), by occupation group. United Kingdom, closest UK occupation: Office for National Statistics, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14 (median pay of full-time employees).
  • Job ads: Bundesagentur für Arbeit (Germany) and Arbetsförmedlingen (Sweden), refreshed about once a day.

See all jobs in demand in Europe · Methodology