Risk Assessment

Risk assessment is the key element in workplace occupational safety and health (OSH) provision. It forms the basis for successful, systematic safety and health management.

A woman and a man with a laptop carry out a risk assessment in a warehouse
© iStock | AnnaStills

Since 1996 the German Occupational Safety and Health Act (Arbeitsschutzgesetz, ArbSchG) has placed a duty on all employers to conduct assessments of working conditions and the risks associated with them in order to identify the measures necessary for the protection of their employees.

These pages supply information about the factors that have to be taken into consideration in risk assessments, as well as offering practical guidance.

BAuA makes the online version of its Handbook on Risk Assessment (Handbuch Gefährdungsbeurteilung) available free of charge. A Key Indicator Method developed at BAuA can also be used for the risk assessment of physical workload.

Research Projects

Project numberF 2498 StatusOngoing Project Consideration of psychosocial risks in Occupational Safety and Health. Fundamental revision of the BAuA specialist book

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Research ongoing

Project numberF 2483 StatusCompleted Project Simplified risk assessment of incoherent high-power spotlights

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Research completed

Project numberF 2399 StatusOngoing Project Project cluster: Physical inactivity in the workplace - etiology, risk assessment & prevention, Project 1a Scoping review; Project 1b Systematic review

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Research ongoing

Project numberF 2391 StatusCompleted Project Interactive guidance for the measurement of physical agents within the scope of risk assessment

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Research completed

Project numberF 2358 StatusCompleted Project Psychosocial risk management in company practice

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Research completed

Project numberF 2339 StatusCompleted Project Psychosocial risk management in the EU: Context, strategies and implementation at establishment level - a comparative European study

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Research completed

Publications

Search results

"It's good that we talked about it ...?!" - Methodological challenges in the assessment of risk of psychological stress in SMEs

Article 2018

The complete article can be purchased in German at the website of the Journal "Arbeitsmedizin, Sozialmedizin, Umweltmedizin", …

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A risk estimate of a SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus infection among grocery and drugstore retail employees

baua: Fokus 2021

Approximately 780,000 employees work in grocery and drugstore retail in Germany. Due to its systemic relevance, this sector was …

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Adequate data in REACH exposure scenarios for successful workplace risk assessment

Article 2020

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Association of work load and mental disorders - Review of the data

Article 2013

The complete article can be purchased in German at the website of the Journal "Der Nervenarzt", Volume 84, Issue 7, pp. 791-798:

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Barriers and success factors in psychosocial risk management - a cross-cultural comparative approach

Article 2015

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BAuA recommendations for action on SARS-CoV-2

baua: Fokus 2022

The BAuA recommendations for action on SARS-CoV-2 are intended to provide guidance on when infection protection measures should …

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Coarse Screening of Physical Stress

Article 2023

The complete article can be purchased in German at the website of the Journal "Arbeitsmedizin, Sozialmedizin, Umweltmedizin", …

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Consideration of mental stress in occupational medical practice

Article 2023

Background: Occupational health physicians have the task of advising and supporting employers in the assessment of working …

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Consideration of psychosocial factors in workplace risk assessments: findings from a company survey in Germany

Article 2019

Purpose: Work-related psychosocial risks are an increasingly important issue in occupational safety and health (OSH) policy. In …

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Current Status of Knowledge About Health Risk From Mental Workload - Evidence Based on a Systematic Review of Reviews

Article 2015

The complete article can be purchased in German at the website of the Journal "Zeitschrift für Arbeits- und …

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