Occupational risk assessment

Risk assessment and management

Risk assessment is an activity by which an employer identifies and assesses risk factors in the working environment that may harm workers. For example, inadequate lighting, forced operation, exposure to chemicals or continuous noise. It is important to discover health hazards before they harm workers and also to think about solutions. Proposals to neutralise each risk factor are a practical part of the risk analysis. The assessment of risks and their mitigation affect both the health of the employee and his or her ability to work and the performance of the enterprise. For example, if an employee is disturbed by one or more factors (noise, draught wind, absence of rest room, etc.), there are errors in the organisation of work (non-working equipment, additional tasks, etc.), the efficiency of his or her work is not the best. However, when an employee sees and feels cared for, it mostly helps to increase the motivation of the employee and thereby improve the performance of the company. The risk assessment shall be carried out by representatives of the employer, the relevant service provider or in cooperation between representatives of the company and the external service provider. There is no common methodology for the risk assessment of the working environment. The law only sets out basic requirements, and any company can find the solutions best suited to it. According to the Act, the five main requirements are as follows:

• identification of hazards to the working environment;
• measurement of hazards parameters, if necessary;
• an assessment of the risks to the health and safety of the worker in the light of the first point;
• formulation and preservation of risk analysis in a format which can be reproduced in writing;
• drawing up, on the basis of a risk analysis, a written action plan setting out the activities to be carried out in all the activities and management levels of the enterprise in order to prevent or reduce the health risk to workers, their timetable, the performers, and the allocation of the necessary resources for this purpose.

Risk assessment is a consistent process and the risk assessment must be kept constantly in line with the existing working environment. After the preventive measures have been taken, their adequacy must be assessed taking into account the change in human and technology and the depreciation of equipment and buildings.

OKAY! Occupational environmental surveys (light, noise, radiation, etc.) and scientific analysis of psychosocial hazards are not included in the price and are carried out in accordance with a specific agreement.