How to Evaluate the Effectiveness of Your Chemical Safety Program

From incident trends to employee feedback, continuous evaluation keeps chemical safety programs effective, compliant, and central to workplace culture.

• By Mia Barnes
• Sep 02, 2025

Chemical safety shouldn’t just be a box you check on a compliance firm, but an integral part of your workplace culture. A good program protects people, equipment, your business and the environment. However, even the most thorough safety plan can lose effectiveness if you don’t regularly review and adjust it.

Review Incident and Near-Miss Reports

One of the most revealing indicators of your program’s performance is the number and nature of incidents and near-misses. If these events occur frequently, especially in the same areas or involving the same chemicals, it’s a sign that your procedures or training might be insufficient. Don’t just track the numbers — analyze the patterns. Look for root causes, not just symptoms.

Assess Compliance With Regulations and Standards

Your program must align with OSHA’s Hazard Communication Standard or your local regulatory equivalent, chemical-specific guidelines and any industry best practices. The United States Environmental Protection Agency only requires compliance checks once every three years as part of the Risk Management Program.

However, more frequent checks can prevent accidents and ensure safety procedures are effective. Incorporate scheduled audits and unannounced spot checks to ensure safety procedures are consistently followed, not just when inspectors are expected.

Evaluate Employee Training and Awareness

A program is only as strong as the people implementing it. Review how often employees receive chemical safety training and whether that training is engaging and tailored to your operations. Use quizzes, scenario-based exercises or even formal interviews to test comprehension.

Inspect Storage and Labeling Practices

Safe chemical handling starts with correct storage and labeling. Evaluate whether chemicals are stored according to their hazard class, incompatible substances are separated, and containers are intact and clearly labeled. Pay attention to secondary containers — unmarked bottles in a lab or shop are an accident waiting to happen.

Exposure Content Labels (ECLs) provide clear, standardized information on a chemical’s hazards, handling instructions and potential health risks. They’re one of the most practical tools for ensuring workers know exactly what they’re dealing with. When employees can interpret ECLs correctly, they can make safer day-to-day decisions and avoid costly mistakes, such as improper storage or unsafe mixing.

For businesses, using ECLs properly pays off. It reduces accidents, minimizes wasted materials, helps avoid regulatory fines and ultimately keeps operations running smoothly. Workers not consistently checking or understanding ECLs is a clear sign that labeling practices and training need immediate improvement.

Test Your Emergency Response Capabilities

A written emergency plan is good, but knowing it works under real-world conditions is better. Conduct drills that simulate chemical spills, exposures or fires. Measure the response speed and accuracy of actions. Did employees use the correct PPE? Did communication channels function? Were spill kits stocked and accessible?

Monitor Exposure Levels and Environmental Impact

Regular air, water and surface testing can confirm whether your control measures are truly minimizing exposure. Don’t wait until an illness is reported or a regulator asks for samples — monitor proactively. Include environmental impact in your review, especially if you handle chemicals that could contaminate soil or water.

Gather Feedback from Employees

Frontline workers often notice issues long before they escalate. Create formal and informal channels for them to share concerns, such as anonymous surveys, toolbox talks or open-door policies. The absence of feedback doesn’t always mean everything is fine. Sometimes it means employees don’t feel comfortable speaking up.

Feedback is necessary to boost self-awareness and encourage personal and professional growth. Actively follow up on feedback so employees see that their input leads to real change. This builds trust and encourages ongoing participation. Regularly receiving employee feedback can highlight recurring themes that point to systemic issues in your safety program.

Compare Against Industry Benchmarks

Look beyond your facility. Compare your incident rates, training completion rates and audit scores to industry averages. This will help you identify whether your safety program is ahead of the curve or lagging behind.

Track Continuous Improvement Efforts

An effective safety program evolves. Document every improvement, including new PPE, updated SOPs and enhanced training modules, and track whether these changes lead to measurable results. This ongoing loop of review, implementation and measurement separates an effective safety culture from one that simply meets minimum requirements.

Keep the Program Alive