Those in your lab may be your colleagues or may be people assigned to you to produce results and for whom you have responsibility. If you are the lab manager, you are the mentor and they will follow your lead and the tone you set for conduct in the lab. Are staff members making good choices? Are they sufficiently skilled to be doing the tasks necessary for their assignment? Do you intervene when necessary? These simple steps will encourage safety in your laboratory staff.

Lead by example. Those in the lab will generally take the lead of those in charge. Make it a point to put on a lab coat and your eye protection whenever you go into the lab. Consistently and impartially enforce rules, it doesn’t have to be heavy handed, but it does need to be consistent. If you see someone doing something “odd,” don’t hesitate to ask, you might be glad you did.

Set a time for clean-up. One of the largest and most productive organic chemistry labs we’ve had the pleasure to work with had mandatory clean-up time. All work had to cease one hour before the lab meeting each week. All lab staff had to spend that hour cleaning and maintaining their areas. The lab manager announced the clean-up time and walked through the lab at this time to oversee and address issues (that which gets measured gets done). That manager also embraced the lead by example approach. Things never got out of hand, the lab was one of the best in terms of safety and compliance, and, it produced quality science.

Have a productive method to bring forward issues. This should be framed as a cooperative “we are in it for the common good” approach rather than a “gotcha” type attitude. Require lab members, from the newest technician to the most senior staff member to turn in two safety issues at each lab meeting. Everyone should be able to find two things regardless of how good a lab might be. These can then be opened for discussion and follow-up. This will set the stage for reinforcing safety as an important value in the culture of your laboratory.

From: A Fresh Look at Your Old Lab: The People by The Safety Guys