The OSHA Safety Champions Program is a new federal initiative designed to help organizations build and improve workplace safety and health programs. In laboratory environments, where hazardous materials, complex workflows, and specialized instruments increase operational risk, structured safety programs play a critical role in preventing injuries, illnesses, and workplace fatalities. The program provides a practical roadmap for employers to strengthen governance, formalize responsibilities, and align safety practices with evolving operational needs.
Grounded in OSHA’s Recommended Practices for Safety and Health Programs, the Safety Champions Program incorporates seven core elements that laboratory leaders can use to evaluate program maturity, identify improvement priorities, and advance laboratory safety management across research, academic, clinical, and industrial settings.
Core elements of the OSHA Safety Champions Program
The program is built around seven foundational components, each supporting a structured, systems-based approach to safety in laboratory environments:
- Management leadership: Demonstrates visible commitment, allocates resources, and sets clear expectations for safety performance
- Worker participation: Engages staff in reporting concerns, sharing feedback, and contributing to safety planning and improvement
- Hazard identification and assessment: Uses inspections, exposure assessments, and near-miss reviews to recognize risks proactively
- Hazard prevention and control: Applies engineering and administrative controls, standard operating procedures, and personal protective equipment to reduce risk severity and likelihood
- Education and training: Ensures laboratory personnel understand hazards, role-specific responsibilities, and emergency response procedures
- Program evaluation and improvement: Reviews program performance, tracks trends, and refines controls through continuous improvement
- Communication and coordination: Aligns expectations and responsibilities across host employers, contractors, and staffing agencies in shared laboratory environments
How the OSHA Safety Champions Program supports laboratory safety management
A defining feature of the OSHA Safety Champions Program is its three-step, self-guided progression model with introductory, intermediate, and advanced steps. Organizations move through these stages at their own pace as their safety and health programs expand in scope and sophistication. For laboratories, this model enables leaders to benchmark progress, align improvement efforts with operational capacity, and integrate safety initiatives into broader management systems.
Participants may also request support from a safety champion special government employee (SGE), who can assess the organization’s safety and health program and provide feedback at any stage of development. For lab managers, this external perspective can help validate program effectiveness, identify implementation gaps, and inform strategic planning for long-term safety performance.
Implications for workplace safety and health programs in laboratories
For laboratory managers, the Safety Champions Program offers a practical framework for strengthening internal safety governance, improving hazard-control practices, and building a culture of shared responsibility across scientific teams. By aligning laboratory operations with OSHA’s seven core elements, organizations can enhance regulatory readiness, reduce risk, and support safer, more resilient work environments.
This article was created with the assistance of Generative AI and has undergone editorial review before publishing.
