Health & Safety Officer

The European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) is seeking a proactive and detail-oriented Health & Safety Officer to join our Health & Safety Office in Heidelberg. Our team ensures safe and healthy working conditions for all staff and visitors across EMBL sites by implementing and maintaining comprehensive occupational, laboratory, and general safety standards.

Your role

As a Health & Safety Officer, your main responsibilities will you will be responsible for day-to-day operational tasks:

• Chemical Safety: Conducting risk assessments, implementing appropriate safety measures, conditioning of chemical waste for disposal, testing substitute substances, introducing and managing a new electronic chemical registry, advising users on the handling and disposal of chemicals, and updating work instructions for hazardous substances
• Hazardous Waste Management: Acting as the designated waste management officer, liaising with external disposal providers, and compiling annual statistics and waste disposal strategies.
• Explosion Protection: Overseeing the explosion-protected solvents storage facilities and maintaining the relevant documentation.
• Dangerous Goods Handling: Advising on the shipment of dangerous goods (primarily UN 3373 and UN 1845), and managing inventories of incoming and outgoing samples.
• Laser Safety: Performing risk assessments, maintaining inventories, and ensuring safety measures are in place.
• First Aid: Serving as a first aid attendant
• Gas Monitoring: Supervising the gas detection systems in laboratory environments
• Radioactive Material Handling: Managing radioactive waste disposal, contamination checks, oversight of isotope laboratories, and installation of wastewater collection systems.
• General Support: Assisting with routine tasks such as the collection and autoclaving of biological laboratory waste (biosafety S1 and S2), as needed.
• Other Tasks: Performing additional duties as assigned by the Head of the Health & Safety Office.

The Health and Safety Officer reports to the Head of the Health & Safety Office.

You have

• A university degree (BSc or MSc) in chemistry, biochemistry, or equivalent training as a chemical laboratory assistant with in-depth knowledge of hazardous substances.
• Proficiency in MS Office and experience using scientific or safety-related databases.
• Good language skills in English (written and spoken).
• Pronounced organisational skills and a practical, conscientious, and responsible approach to working.
• The ability to work both independently and as part of a collaborative team.
• A strong service orientation and willingness to learn new tasks.

You may also have

• Certification as a First Aid Attendant (Betriebssanitaeter)
• Certification as a Laser Safety Officer (Laserbeauftragter)
• Certification as a Waste Management Officer (Abfallbeauftragter)
• Certification as a Dangerous Goods Advisor (Gefahrgutbeauftragter)
• Experience in handling open radioactive material
• Experience conducting workplace risk assessments

Contract length: 3 years (renewable up to 9 years)

Salary: Grade 4 (monthly salary starting at €3.607 after tax) + other paid benefits based on personal circumstances

EMBL is curiosity-driven, community-oriented and international. As an inclusive, equal opportunity employer, we believe that diversity enables us to collaborate more effectively and be innovative in our approaches. We are, therefore, committed to creating an inclusive and flexible culture - one where everyone can realise their full potential and make a positive contribution to our organisation.

We encourage applications from individuals who can complement our existing team - we believe that success is built on having teams whose backgrounds and personal experiences reflect the diversity of the populations that our science serves. We actively encourage applications from all genders and cultures, ethnic groups and all demographics to help us avoid perpetuating biases and oversights at this transformational point in our people strategy.

Enjoy lots of benefits:

• Financial incentives: Salary free of income tax, Monthly family, child and non-resident allowances, annual salary review, pension scheme, death benefit, long-term care, accident-at-work and unemployment insurances
• Flexible working arrangements
• Private medical insurance for you and your immediate family (including all prescriptions and generous dental & optical cover)
• Generous time off: 30 days annual leave per year, in addition to public holidays
• Relocation package including installation grant (if applicable)
• Campus life: Free shuttle bus (select sites), on-site library, subsidised on-site gym and cafeteria, casual dress code, extensive sports and social club activities (on campus and remotely)
• Family benefits: Kindergarten (Heidelberg), 10 days of child sick leave, generous paid maternity/parental leave and monthly family & child allowances
• Benefits for international newcomers: Visa exemption, education grant for private schooling, financial support to travel back to your home country every second year and a monthly non-resident allowance.
• For detailed information please visit our employee benefits page here

What else you need to know

• International applicants: We recruit internationally and successful candidates are offered visa exemptions. Visit our International Applicants page, to find out more.
• EMBL is a signatory of DORA. Find out how we apply DORA principles to our recruitment and performance assessment processes here.
• Diversity and inclusion: At EMBL, we strongly believe that inclusive and diverse teams benefit from higher levels of innovation and creative thought. We encourage applications from women, LGBTQ+ & individuals from all nationalities.
• How to apply: To apply please submit a cover letter and a CV through our online system. Applications will close at 23:59 CET on the date shown below. We aim to provide a response within two weeks after the closing date.