How to hire a clinical laboratory technician

How to hire a clinical laboratory technician, step by step

Here's a step-by-step clinical laboratory technician hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a clinical laboratory technician job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new clinical laboratory technician
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a clinical laboratory technician do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you post your clinical laboratory technician job, you should take the time to determine what type of worker your business needs. While certain jobs definitely require a full-time employee, it's sometimes better to find a clinical laboratory technician for hire on a part-time basis or as a contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   You should also consider the ideal background you'd like them a clinical laboratory technician to have before you start to hire. For example, what industry or field would you like them to have experience in, what level of seniority or education does the job require, and how much it'll cost to hire a clinical laboratory technician that fits the bill.

   This list presents clinical laboratory technician salaries for various positions.

   Type of Clinical Laboratory Technician	Description	Hourly rate
   Clinical Laboratory Technician	Medical laboratory technologists (commonly known as medical laboratory scientists) and medical laboratory technicians collect samples and perform tests to analyze body fluids, tissue, and other substances.	$17-33
   Medical Technologist, Generalist	A Medical Technologist Generalist performs day-to-day operations in the laboratory such as routine testing, quality control, and maintenance of instruments. They also develop, perform, and evaluate the accuracy of laboratory procedures.	$20-37
   Medical Technologist	A medical technologist's role is to conduct laboratory tests with accuracy and speed. It is their responsibility to gather, prepare, and analyze samples such as blood, tissues, and bodily fluid... Show more	$19-32

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Patients
   • Test Results
   • Patient Care
   • Hematology
   • Body Fluids
   • Proficiency Testing
   • QC
   • Customer Service
   • Specimen Handling
   • Laboratory Procedures
   • LIS
   • Phlebotomy
   • Blood Bank
   • Patient Specimens

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage patient, and corporate information with compassion and confidentiality.
   • Provide oversight of training and competency testing of technicians to ensure compliance with CLIA, HIPPA and OSHA guidelines.
   • Collect, process, and analyze clinical specimens for several departments including microbiology, chemistry, hematology, and urinalysis
   • Experience working in a hospital laboratory in automate chemistry, hematology, blood bank, urinalysis, and immunology departments.
   • Dispose of biohazard wastes according to OSHA standards ..
   • Screen blood products for pathogens and co-treatment success.

   More clinical laboratory technician duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your clinical laboratory technician job description helps attract top candidates to the position. A clinical laboratory technician salary can be affected by several factors, such as geography, experience, seniority, certifications, and the prestige of the hiring company.

   For example, the average salary for a clinical laboratory technician in Alabama may be lower than in Alaska, and an entry-level clinical laboratory technician usually earns less than a senior-level clinical laboratory technician. Additionally, a clinical laboratory technician with certifications may command a higher salary, and working for a well-known company or start-up may also impact an employee's pay.

   Average clinical laboratory technician salary

   $50,756yearly

   $24.40 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level clinical laboratory technician salary

   $36,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 21, 2026

   Average clinical laboratory technician salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$70,125	$34
   2	Nevada	$61,134	$29
   3	Arizona	$60,975	$29
   4	New York	$60,600	$29
   5	Washington	$60,138	$29
   6	Massachusetts	$57,892	$28
   7	New Jersey	$55,206	$27
   8	Minnesota	$52,472	$25
   9	Colorado	$51,214	$25
   10	Texas	$48,615	$23
   11	Maryland	$48,225	$23
   12	Pennsylvania	$47,234	$23
   13	Illinois	$46,768	$22
   14	Missouri	$46,439	$22
   15	Tennessee	$44,226	$21
   16	Ohio	$42,675	$21
   17	Georgia	$41,250	$20
   18	Florida	$37,187	$18
   19	Puerto Rico	$20,880	$10

   Average clinical laboratory technician salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Claxton Hepburn	$69,197	$33.27	6
   2	Commonwealth Home Health Care	$68,856	$33.10
   3	Columbia University in the City of New York	$67,942	$32.66	61
   4	Good Shepherd Health System	$67,734	$32.56
   5	Nacogdoches Memorial Health	$67,529	$32.47	9
   6	Sanofi Genzyme	$67,466	$32.44
   7	Tri-City Medical Center	$67,465	$32.44	5
   8	Madera Community Hospital	$67,086	$32.25	9
   9	New York University	$66,600	$32.02	7
   10	Intuitive Surgical	$66,510	$31.98	22
   11	Novartis	$66,105	$31.78	4
   12	California State University	$66,090	$31.77	28
   13	Logan Health	$66,027	$31.74	4
   14	Archbold Medical Center	$65,942	$31.70	4
   15	Pacific Diagnostic Labs	$65,846	$31.66
   16	University of California-Berkeley	$65,802	$31.64
   17	Hca Hospital Services Of San Diego	$65,565	$31.52	1
   18	The Medical Center Inc	$65,324	$31.41	1
   19	Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai	$65,229	$31.36
   20	CyberCoders	$64,789	$31.15

4. Writing a clinical laboratory technician job description

   A good clinical laboratory technician job description should include a few things:

   • Summary of the role
   • List of responsibilities
   • Required skills and experience

   Including a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager is also appreciated by candidates. Here's an example of a clinical laboratory technician job description:

   Clinical laboratory technician job description example

   At Garnet Health, the Hudson Valley's leading integrated health system, you'll find the perfect balance of a satisfying career and a rewarding lifestyle. Our focus is on patient-centric care with a collective of visionary leaders and dedicated and caring professionals working as a team to deliver the best for the people we serve. If you're interested in a health system that's both growing and award-winning, serving a diverse community that provides the best of both city and rural life, we invite to make your career home with us as a Clinical Laboratory Technologist on our Laboratory team at/in Garnet Health Medical Center- Catskill.
   Responsibilities:
   
   Clinical Laboratory Technologist
   
   A professional who, under the direction of the section supervisor, performs highly technical work with requires exercise of independent judgment and responsibility involving performance of wide variety of routine tests and specialized chemical, microscopic and bacteriologic test on a professional level to obtain data for use in diagnosis and treatment of disease. Recognizes problems and/or the potential for problems within the assigned section regarding instruments, computers and inventory. Displays sound, supportive and independent, judgement in resolving issues in the absence of a Supervisor.
   
   At Garnet Health, we are committed to supporting your career growth and professional potential. We are responsive, attentive and dedicated to the success and satisfaction of our team members. Here, you'll find resources that will help you excel in your career, tuition reimbursement programs for your continued education, and comprehensive health, dental and retirement benefits designed to fit your individual and family needs. Our inclusive and diverse team culture encourages you to contribute your exceptional talents, skills and perspectives to the success of our system, one another, our communities and our patients.
   
   Join the Garnet Health team and let your excellence shine.
   
   Qualifications:
   
   Clinical Laboratory Technologist
   
   Education:
   BS Degree in Medical Technology or related science. NYSED Clinical Laboratory Technologist License.
   Education acceptable by NYSED for a Clinical Laboratory Technologist license.
   
   Minimum Experience:
   Two years of clinical laboratory experience preferred
   
   Required License/Certification:
   ASCP certification preferred
   NYS Technologist license or eligible required. If not licensed, NYS Permit required within two months of hire, NYS Technologist license required within one year of Permit issuance. Trainee's without a Permit may observe, read procedures and learn processes in each section of the laboratory. They may not under any circumstances verify any testing on patients. They may be used for specimen processing, send outs and phlebotomy. Once a Permit has been obtained, candidate may verify tests in areas that competency has been completed.
   
   Physical Demands:
   Position will primarily be light work requiring lifting up to 25 pounds with occasional lifting and/or carrying objects weighing up to 25 pounds Occasional bending, twisting, stooping, kneeling and reaching is required. Expressing or exchanging ideas by spoken word is required. Walking, sitting and standing, most of the day. Visual acuity and color discrimination is required. Ability to communicate effectively and to comprehend conversation. Must have manual dexterity and hand-to-eye coordination to handle and manipulate instruments, slides, test tubes and other laboratory equipment Capable of working long hours at varied times during the day or night. Alertness required during all phases
   
   Working Environment:
   Will have frequent exposure to blood, body substances, infectious materials, chemical hazards, vibration, radiation, slippery surfaces, or noise that may result from performance of duties.
   
   Employees Supervised:
   MLT and phlebotomist
   
   Degree of Supervision Required:
   Minimal. Must be able to work independently

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find the right clinical laboratory technician for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important sources of talent for any company is its existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and current employees and ask if they know or have worked with clinical laboratory technicians they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit clinical laboratory technicians who meet your education requirements.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter now have more than 3.5 billion users, and you can use social media to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your clinical laboratory technician job on Zippia to find and recruit clinical laboratory technician candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites such as healthcarejobsite, health jobs nationwide, hospitalcareers, medreps.com.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Recruiting clinical laboratory technicians requires you to bring your A-game to the interview process. The first interview should introduce the company and the role to the candidate as much as they present their background experience and reasons for applying for the job. During later interviews, you can go into more detail about the technical details of the job and ask behavioral questions to gauge how they'd fit into your current company culture.

   You should also ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match the ideal candidate profile you developed earlier. Candidates good enough for the next step can complete the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new clinical laboratory technician

   Once you've selected the best clinical laboratory technician candidate for the job, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, this letter should include details about the benefits and perks you offer the candidate. Ensuring that your offer is competitive is essential, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and you should be open to discussion. After you reach an agreement, the final step is formalizing the agreement with a contract.

   It's also good etiquette to follow up with applicants who don't get the job by sending them an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   To prepare for the new clinical laboratory technician first day, you should share an onboarding schedule with them that covers their first period on the job. You should also quickly complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Finally, Human Resources must ensure a new employee file is created for internal record keeping.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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How much does it cost to hire a clinical laboratory technician?