Occupational Safety Officer
An organisation has to order specialists for occupational safety in writing. The minimum working hours depend on the risk classification and the number of employees of the company and the associated accident and health risks (§ 5 Nr.. 1 ASiG). When ordering, it requires, if available, the approval or consultation of the works council (§ 9 (3) ASiG). If applicable, an order must be notified to the competent authority and / or professional association.
Qualification:
The safety-related technical knowledge must be proven by the area-specific training in accordance with the specifications of an accident insurance institution. In the function of occupational safety specialist, vocational training as an engineer, technician, master or equivalent qualification is a prerequisite for training as a SiFa (§ 7 (1) ASiG or §4 DGUV 2).
Tasks according to Occupational Safety Regulations
- Support and advice to the company management on questions of occupational safety and prevention
- Advice on the planning, execution and maintenance of operating systems and, consequently, on work systems
- Creation and evaluation of risk assessments, possibly also hazardous substances register
- Support for the procurement of work equipment, selection and testing of personal protective equipment
- Supporting the compliant design of workplaces and the assessment of workload and workloads
- Verification of operating equipment and technical equipment and protective device
- Plant inspections, inspection and employee appraisals, review of work systems and occupational safety equipment
- Investigation of the causes of accidents, near misses and hot spots
- Contact person of the employees / safety / hazardous substances officer for occupational safety, prevention and WHM
- Review of the target and actual conditions of the equipment, work systems and work organizations
- Development of a training system and preparation of operating instructions
- Support of the security warden
- Participation in the ASA meetings;
The Health and Safety Committee has the task of occupational safety and health issues with the stakeholders of the company management, SiFa, SiBe, the BA and possibly the works council, among others. Involved parties. The Health and Safety Committee meets at least once a quarter.
Preparation of an annual report for company management, (audit criterion future ISO 45001)
An annual safety report ASB aims to highlight the need for action as well as successfully established concepts. It is at the same time proof of activity of the commissioner and evaluates the legally compliant documentation of the obligation fulfillment. An ASB should include as far as possible the following aspects:
- Operating times of the commissioners
- Frequencies and findings of the site inspections,
- Summaries of OSH meetings (ASA),
- Consultations and recommendations for detected misalignments and improvements
Position
The specialist for occupational safety or the chief specialist for occupational safety reports directly to the head of the company (§ 8 para. 2 ASiG), or a senior HSE manager. The guidelines of the professional associations apply. According to a ruling of the Regional Labor Court of Cologne, the specialist for occupational safety belongs to a staff position. This may not be subordinated to a head of department neither organizational nor disciplinary (Az: 10 (1) Sa 1231/02). In a comment on the Occupational Health and Safety Act, it states: "the company doctor and the occupational safety specialists are assigned a staff position by 8 para. 2 in order to secure their independence and to underline the importance of their work in the company."
(from: Nthlichs, Matthias, Weber, Horst Peter, Wilrich, Thomas: Occupational Safety and Occupational Safety, Erich Schmidt Verlag, Berlin - Losebl.-Ausg., 19th edition of the edition: May 2010).
In the same context, it is shown that the sole assumption in the management of the company is independent of whether an employee or external occupational safety specialist or a company medical service is appointed.
An external order, as SiFa in a impartiell staff position in direct assignment of the management, is gem. § 8 para. 2 ASiG with the consent of a possibly existing works council.
To determine the required, DGUV-compliant deployment time of an external specialist for occupational safety and / or in combination of other order obligations, our experts are at your disposal.
With the regulation of the Employers' Liability Insurance Association the professional associations and accident insurance institutions of the public hand define a uniform and equal specification for the specification of the work safety law (ASiG).
The employers' liability insurance associations have created uniform guidelines with which companies can determine how much care is required in the context of basic care and specific care provided by the specialist for occupational safety and occupational health care
On the web page of your Employers' Liability Insurance Association, extensive action aids are provided for determining the operating times. There you can determine your own determination of your required care times for a first overview.
Note:
You need the number of employees and the code of your company (NACE code) for the investigation
QHSE Compliance Division Europe