Occupational health and safety: protecting the health of employees

Employers are jointly responsible for minimising the risk of accidents at work and work-related illnesses. It is therefore not enough to react once something has happened. Companies must take preventative action and comply with the applicable regulations on Occupational safety and to the Occupational safety realise.

If employees suffer an accident at work or fall ill due to inadequate health and safety measures, this is the opposite of a win-win situation. The affected employees suffer damage to their health and are often absent from work for long periods of time. The The company In turn, they will have to cope with the cancellation and possibly look for a replacement.

It should therefore be in every company's own interest to minimise hazards in the workplace and keep the risk of accidents at work as low as possible. It goes without saying that employers must comply with the applicable occupational health and safety regulations.

General occupational health and safety obligations

Employers must ensure that the occupational health and safety measures required by law are organised and implemented by all employees. An example: On Construction sites helmets are compulsory to protect employees from falling parts. The person responsible for the construction site must ensure that everyone on the site complies with the safety regulations.

In addition, employers are responsible under Section 12 of the Occupational Health and Safety Act for informing employees about safety and health at work. Health protection adequately and appropriately at the workplace. In other words, employers must provide employees with sufficient information about occupational health and safety measures. Specialised training courses, for example, can be considered here. The aim is prevention. The aim is to reduce the risk to health and accidents.

In principle, according to Occupational Health and Safety Act obliged to do so,

to take the necessary measures to prevent accidents at work and work-related illnesses
organising the planning and implementation of occupational health and safety measures and providing the necessary resources
check whether the health and safety measures implemented are effective
adapt the health and safety measures following the inspection if necessary
instruct employees with regard to occupational health and safety measures

Employees have a so-called duty to co-operate in occupational health and safety. This means that they must also take care of their own health and safety in the workplace. Employees are obliged to do so, for example,

operate machines properly,
to follow the employer's instructions with regard to occupational health and safety,
to use the protective work clothing provided,
not to jeopardise the health of work colleagues
report possible dangers in the company to the employer immediately.

Please note: The employer must bear the costs for occupational health and safety measures - for example, for the provision of protective work clothing. It is not permitted to pass on such expenses to the employees.

Carry out a risk assessment

A very important part of occupational health and safety is carrying out a risk assessment.

Risk assessment means that employers must analyse and assess the potential hazards at workplaces in the company. This results in the findings,

which reduces risk factors,
which defects have been eliminated and
which protective measures must be taken.

Ze differentiate between work-related, activity-related and personal health risks:

What specific risks are there in the particular area of work?
What special risks does the specific activity harbour
What special risks are there for certain people or groups of people, for example for employees during pregnancy?

Important health and safety regulations

In addition to the Occupational Health and Safety Act there are other regulations that are relevant for employers with regard to occupational health and safety. These include in particular

the Workplace Ordinance
the technical rules for workplaces (ASR) and
the Occupational Safety Act
the Youth Labour Protection Act

The Workplace Ordinance concretises the regulations of the Occupational Health and Safety Act. For example, it sets out requirements on the following topics:

Room temperature and heat protection
Noise protection
Design of the workplace
Ventilation of operating rooms
Break, standby and sanitary rooms
Construction sites
Computer workstations
Non-smoker protection
Escape routes and emergency exits

The Workplace Ordinance is concretised by the Technical rules for workplaces (ASR).

Also important is the Occupational Safety Act. It regulates how company doctors, safety engineers and other occupational safety specialists must be deployed in the company. The Occupational Safety Act is supplemented by the accident prevention regulation "Company doctors and occupational safety specialists" issued by the German Social Accident Insurance (DGUV).

Companies that employ workers or trainees under the age of 18 must also familiarise themselves with the Youth Labour Protection Act and comply with the rules laid down therein.