Laboratory Safety & Compliance Champion

Vcu Rrtc; Richmond (VA); On-site; USD 59,000 - 72,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Fully onsite

Job summary

VCU's Occupational Health & Safety (OHS) department seeks a Laboratory Safety Specialist to promote safety culture, ensure regulatory compliance, and support laboratories across campus and health systems.

Responsibilities include inspections, risk assessment, CHP maintenance, training, and collaboration with faculty, staff, and students to mitigate hazards and uphold environmental health standards.

Qualifications

• Education: Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry, Biochemistry, Chemical Engineering, or a closely related discipline.
• Strong working knowledge of federal, state, and local safety and environmental codes applicable to academic, research, and clinical laboratory settings.
• Solid understanding of general laboratory processes, clinical/research best practices, and chemical hazard mitigation.
• Proven capability to collaborate with stakeholders to identify operational risks and promote safety culture.
• Strong technical writing skills with experience producing reports.
• Exceptional interpersonal, written, and verbal communication skills.
• Advanced analytical and critical thinking to resolve safety issues.
• Excellent organizational and time management skills.
• Willingness to acquire new professional skills and adapt to evolving compliance.
• Demonstrated ability to foster a culture of respect and civility among diverse populations.

Responsibilities

• Conduct safety inspections and evaluations across VCU and VCU Health Systems laboratories.
• Support faculty, staff, and students in identifying and mitigating laboratory safety risks.
• Enforce the University’s OHS policy and escalation procedures for timely issue resolution.
• Maintain and enforce the OHS Chemical Hygiene Plan (CHP) for compliance.
• Engage with research programs and staff to promote safety culture and practical mitigation strategies.
• Assist leadership in developing and delivering laboratory safety training modules.
• Provide technical and operational support for EHS functions including IH surveys and incident response.
• Maintain accurate reports and records in SciShield and other systems.
• Continuously expand expertise in Environmental Health and Safety.

Skills

Regulatory knowledge

Laboratory safety knowledge

Collaboration with stakeholders

Technical writing

Communication skills

Critical thinking

Problem solving

Time management

Professional growth

Positive safety culture

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry, Biochemistry, Chemical Engineering, or related discipline

Tools

SciShield

Job description

VCU's Occupational Health & Safety (OHS) department seeks a Laboratory Safety Specialist to promote safety culture, ensure regulatory compliance, and support laboratories across campus and health systems.

Responsibilities include inspections, risk assessment, CHP maintenance, training, and collaboration with faculty, staff, and students to mitigate hazards and uphold environmental health standards.