This time, the 5th IMS breakfast focused on "Consideration of mental stress in risk assessments".
One of the goals of occupational health and safety management is to stabilize the well-being, health and performance of employees. Risk assessment is an instrument for recognizing hazards in the workplace and reducing them as much as possible through coordinated measures. In addition to avoiding and reducing hazards caused by mechanical, electrical or physical factors, it has been a legal requirement since September 2013 that companies must also include psychological hazards in the risk assessment. This is the legislator's response to the results of statistical studies which show that mental illnesses have risen rapidly across all age groups in the last 10 years and are also characterized by significantly longer periods of incapacity to work compared to other illnesses.
The level of implementation in companies has so far been low for various reasons: a lack of knowledge about the legal obligation or the methodical approach as well as an often still negative interpretation of mental stress are some of them. However, interest in the topic is high. This was demonstrated by the representatives of the 10 companies that accepted the invitation to the 5th IMS breakfast, which is traditionally organized by the Chair of Integrated Management Systems in cooperation with TÜV-Rheinland Akademie GmbH.
Fred Bader, Branch Manager Saxony / Thuringia of the Occupational Medical Service (AMD) and Dr. Vicky Hermet-Schleicher, psychologist and senior consultant for occupational, organizational and industrial psychology at the AMD Dresden branch, gave a well-founded explanation of the objectives and procedure for considering mental stress in the context of risk assessments using concise case studies from previous consulting projects. From their experience, the following points are important for practical implementation:
The recording and evaluation of employees' mental stress can only succeed on the basis of a good relationship of trust in those carrying out the assessment, the way it is implemented and a high, representative participation rate. "It has to be well prepared, because there is no trial here," says one company representative, summarizing the challenges facing companies.
Under the category "Did you know", Ines Hirt, Energy Manager of the City of Zittau and Anke Zenker-Hoffmann, employee in the area of environmentally oriented corporate management at F Natural and Environmental Sciences, presented their experiences of the "Health and Environment Days" (GuT), which have been jointly organized for the past two years. The concept can be a building block to sensitize employees and managers to the topic of health and well-being and to actively do something themselves. Based on the positive experience of this year's pedometer challenge, a company run is to be organized together with regional companies as a highlight for next year. In any case, the companies present have signaled their willingness to participate...