Posted By Trudy Sharp Hi there, Big debate going on at my workplace at the moment. We have always advised that laboratory chairs should be imperveous to liquids, resistant to chemicals etc and this is company policy. We now have one specific team of people that are wanting to take upholstered chairs into a lab. Have discussed GLP, current policy etc with them but we're not getting anywhere. Does anyone know if there is actually anything in writing that states lab chairs MUST be impervious? I've tried the obvious legislation, British standards etc and can't find confirmation of that statement anywhere - all that I have found refers to benches, floors and walls - no mention of chairs at all. It's a long shot but it would be nice to wave a piece of paper in front of them! Their main objection appears to be that they don't want to sit on vinyl. Any advice or comments would be gratefully received.

Posted By Kieran J Duignan A row about where laboratory workers put their bums sounds like the stuff of cartoons! On 1 February, you wrote on this website: "... I have today managed to get our new H&S Policy and Arrangements, including the roles and responsibilities, agreed in principle. So I think I will go for attaching the H&S Policy and Arrangements to the letter and going for some thing along the lines of: "Strong leadership is vital in delivering effective health and safety risk control. Your commitment is required to continuous improvement in health and safety and your actions and decisions at work must always reinforce the messages contained within the Campus Health and Safety Policy and Arrangements. ... In addition, you are required to ensure that local health and safety arrangements for your area(s) of responsibility are developed as necessary." Where is the 'strong leadership and commitment' in the laboratory? In its absence, to better understand the source of the opposition, invite the staff to complete a repertory grid with you. Wiley published a good guide to repertory grids by D Jancowitz in 2003.

Posted By Trudy Sharp Thank you for your time and advice - I'm afraid that no one has suggested anything that we haven't already tried. We've done the risk assessments, we've looked at all the options, and the only appropriate way to go for the laboratory concerned is impervious chairs. We've looked at vinyl, polypropylene etc but they want their upholstered ones - but don't seem to be able to provide a logical reason for this. Asking if there was actually a piece of legislation is my last ditch attempt at persuading them. Someone did suggest that the BS on laboratory design stated that lab charis should be impervious but I've trawled the document and can't find that anywhere. At the end of the day - all I can do is advise them, which I have done, and leave it to them. If they do not want to follow my advice that is their affair!

Posted By Paul Leadbetter Trudy What were the original reasons for specifying impervious chairs and have those reasons changed? Paul

Posted By Frank Hallett Hi Trudy I, like a couple of others, have almost lost interest in this one. Not because we are dismissive of your problem however; simply because there is an apparent almost total failure on behalf of your fellow employees and the employer to recognise the fundamentals of safty management! If the RA has been completed as impartially as it should, and it still indicates impervious chairs for the identified reasons, yet the users wish to use something else and they appear to be winning the arguement then it is clear that the term "safety management" means something very different to each of the parties involved. My advice is to spell out exactly who will be liable for what if an event [of any nature] occurs - it doesn't matter whether it's followed by a claim but deal with that also - and make sure that all the recalcitrants get exactly the same information at the same time; then leave them to get on with their own devices and make sure that YOU KEEP THE EVIDENCE to safeguard yourself. Frank Hallett

Posted By Salus I know it is not your compaany policy for these types of chairs but why can they not have the chairs? sounds like it could be cleared up with a good housekeeping procedure

Posted By James Andrew Scott All of this sounds to have gotten really complicated, but the labs where I work have impervious upholstered chairs in various areas and these cause no problems at all. Have a look at what is available in lab supplies catalogues. James

Posted By Bob Thompson CMIOSH what ever happened to section 8 of haswa

Posted By John Redfern The HSAC booklet 'Safe working and the prevention of infection in clinical laboratories and similar facilities, states that 'Other fittings and furniture also needs to be constructed from hard-wearing, easily cleaned materials with impervious surfaces that are resistant to damage by stains or chemicals' I realise that this is guidance but still best practice. Redders