Appropriate workplace organisation is essential to ensure that your employees’ working environment protects them as far as possible from risks and health hazards. Your management team plays a key role in adapting conditions in the workplace accordingly. Communication between management and employees also makes a major contribution. Any shortcomings in this area could have serious consequences.
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Workplace organisation as part of your company philosophy
Effective workplace organisation requires appropriate consideration of employees’ health and safety. Ideally, occupational health and safety and health promotion should be firmly embedded in the company culture.
This can be achieved, for example, by making occupational health and safety an integral part of all relevant areas of management. Responsibilities are clearly defined and fulfilled, while employees are involved and kept informed. This helps identify and prevent hazards at an early stage.
Potential weaknesses in workplace organisation
- Neglect of supervisory duties
- Lack of workplace instruction
- Unclear or incorrect delegation of duties
- Missing or unsuitable work equipment
- Inadequate safety measures
- Missing or defective protective equipment
- Insufficient coordination of work processes
Assessing workplace organisation
Before carrying out the individual stages of the risk assessment and defining suitable measures, the company’s organisational structures and responsibilities should be taken into account.
The risk assessment can be structured by work area or activity. Company-specific characteristics should be taken into account.
Different work areas and activities may involve different hazards. For example, the requirements for an office workstation differ from those in a warehouse or in sales. The relevant factors are the activity, the working conditions and the associated hazards.
Individual workstations and work equipment may also be relevant to the assessment. When new equipment or machinery is purchased, for example, occupational health and safety requirements must be taken into account.
Depending on the circumstances, hazards for comparable activities or work areas may be assessed together. What matters is that the actual hazards are adequately identified.
Co-determination and works agreements
Where a works council exists, it has co-determination rights over how the risk assessment is designed. Specific procedures and responsibilities can, for example, be set out in a works agreement.
This may include defining the activities and workplaces to be examined, the methods to be used and the timetable.
Works council co-determination in occupational health and safety
Under section 87(1)(7) of the German Works Constitution Act (BetrVG), the works council has co-determination rights over the design of the risk assessment.
These rights apply when the risk assessment procedure is being designed. This may include, for example, the activities and workplaces to be examined, the methods used and the timetable.
The German Occupational Safety and Health Act requires employers to carry out a risk assessment but leaves scope for its practical implementation within the company. Where a works council exists, its co-determination rights must be taken into account.
The works council has co-determination rights over the design of the risk assessment under section 5 of the German Occupational Safety and Health Act (ArbSchG). Additional requirements may apply to specific protective measures.
Defining the organisational framework
Clear organisational arrangements support effective occupational health and safety and the proper conduct of risk assessments. In particular, this includes:
- Clearly assigning occupational health and safety duties and responsibilities.
- Reviewing whether delegated tasks are being carried out.
- Identifying the people responsible for occupational health and safety.
- Using suitably qualified people to carry out the risk assessment.
- Organising the required occupational health provision.
- Clearly documenting responsibilities and the delegation of tasks.
- Ensuring managers understand their occupational health and safety duties.
- Providing sufficient resources to carry out these duties.
- Documenting delegated employer duties in writing where required.
Monitoring delegated tasks
- Company management and managers review compliance with occupational health and safety duties in their respective areas of responsibility.
- Clear procedures are in place for monitoring delegated tasks.
- The performance and monitoring of key tasks are documented appropriately.
- Appropriate company procedures are followed where tasks are not fulfilled.
Fulfilling organisational duties
- Occupational safety and occupational health support is organised in accordance with the applicable legal requirements.
- Responsibilities and cooperation between those involved in occupational health and safety are clearly defined.
- Occupational safety specialists and occupational physicians have the required qualifications and perform their duties.
- Cooperation with employee representative bodies is organised appropriately.
- Where an occupational health and safety committee is required under section 11 of the German Occupational Safety Act (ASiG), it meets at least once every three months.
