Britta Schmitt-Howe

Economic, technological and demographic developments like globalization, digitalization and aging of European population impact on organizations, work processes and work organization. They influence OSH implementation and performance in almost every organization, large, medium, small or self-employed. Creating and ensuring good OSH has become much more complex within these new contexts than before. Whether OSH implementation will be successful depends on mechanisms, the characteristics of organizations and their context. Successes with technical prevention are no guarantee for successes in dealing with psychosocial risks. A variety of OSH strategies is needed and has to consider key organizational characteristics like prevention culture. This discussion paper concisely summarizes and combines the results of five studies, three national (Sweden, Denmark, Germany) and two European studies that were presented and discussed in a workshop about prevention cultures and OSH interventions which was organized by the authors during the ninth Working on Safety conference in Prague (2017). OSH implementation and performance has to match the current developments in micro firms as well as in bigger companies. Besides important elements of successful strategies for OSH implementation, limitations and remaining challenges for research, policy and practice will be pointed out.

Although the popularity of workplace health promotion (WHP) has considerably increased over the years, there are still concerns about the way this concept is being implemented by the companies. There is, however, a seeming lack of empirical knowledge about variations in WHP practice. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of different patterns (and related quality levels) of WHP activity and the effect of organisational predictors on the chances of these WHP activity levels being implemented. Data from an establishment survey (N = 6,500) were used to calculate the prevalences of four configurations of WHP among German companies. Furthermore, multinominal logistic regressions were performed to determine odds ratios for these WHP activity levels according to several organisational characteristics. 9% of companies exhibited the most comprehensive type of WHP including analysis, individual-directed prevention measures and participatory groups concerned with working conditions improvement (level A), 18% featured a combination of analysis and individual-directed prevention (level B), 29% had reported measures from only one of these categories (level C), and 44% showed no WHP activity at all (level D). In the multivariate analysis company size turned out to be the strongest predictor of WHP at all levels. WHP was also predicted by a good economic situation of the company, the availability of safety specialist assistance, the availability of specialist assistance in occupational health and the presence of an employee representative body. These effects usually became stronger when moving up in the hierarchy of WHP levels. For the two sector-level variables (private vs. public, production vs. services) no statistically significant associations with WHP were found. WHP still shows great potential for improvement both in quantitative and qualitative terms. Especially required are additional efforts in developing and implementing WHP practice models and dissemination strategies which are tailored to the particular conditions and needs of small companies. However, findings suggest that the chances for achieving progress in WHP also depend on developments in adjacent policy areas such as labour relations or occupational safety and health.

Durch Überführung von EU-Vorgaben in deutsches Recht hat der Gesetzgeber 1996 alle Betriebe zur Gefährdungsbeurteilung (GFB) verpflichtet. Im Sinne des Gesetzes lässt sich die GFB als kontinuierlicher Verbesserungsprozess (KVP) verstehen. Umsetzungshäufigkeit und -qualität lassen aber bis heute zu wünschen übrig. Logistische Regressionsanalysen auf Basis der GDA-Betriebsbefragung 2011 zeigen, dass beispielsweise die Verfügbarkeit von betrieblichen Arbeitsschutzexperten, das Vorhandensein einer Arbeitnehmervertretung und das branchenbedingte Maß der Offensichtlichkeit von Gefährdungen und Belastungen positiv mit der betrieblichen „Anschlussfähigkeit“ an die gesetzliche Pflicht korrelieren. Ähnliches lässt sich für das Ausmaß von Sanktionsgefahren für die Nicht-Einhaltung von Vorschriften (non-compliance) sagen, für den betrieblichen Kenntnisstand zur gesetzlich geforderten Vorgehensweise einer GFB sowie für die Kontakthäufigkeit mit den Aufsichtsbehörden. Die Befunde differieren nach Betriebsgröße und Branchengruppe und legen nahe, dass der hohe Anspruch der gesetzlichen Pflicht auch in KMU und Branchen mit geringer physischer Belastung deutlicher kommuniziert werden muss. By converting EU guidelines into national law in 1996 the German legislature obliged all enterprises to conduct workplace risk assessments (WRA). According to the law, WRA is to be understood as a continuous improvement process. However, the frequency and quality of the application of WRA leave a lot to be desired. Latest logistic regression analyses carried out by the “GDA company survey 2011” (N = 6,500) and commissioned by the Joint German OSH Strategy show that the availability of occupational safety experts, the presence of work councils in the company and the obviousness of risks and strains pertaining to a particular branch on the one hand and the degree of conformity companies display in complying with the law on the other hand are positively correlated. Mostly, the same correlations can be reported with regard to the extent of possible dangers arising from incompliance with the regulations, the level of knowledge concerning the rules for WRA implementation, as well as of the proscribed contact frequency with the labour inspection authorities. The findings vary across to company size and branch. These results suggest that the highly demanding character of the statutory obligation must be communicated more clearly, and must include SMEs and branches with lower levels of physical strain. Die WSI-Mitteilungen sind eine wissenschaftliche Fachzeitschrift mit politik- und praxisorientierter Ausrichtung. Sie informieren über neue wissenschaftliche Erkenntnisse im Themenspektrum »Arbeit - Wirtschaft - Soziales«. Die Zeitschrift ist 1948 erstmals erschienen. Die Zeitschrift fördert den interdisziplinären Austausch und versteht sich als Wissens- und Argumentationsquelle für Akteure aus Arbeitswelt, Wirtschaft und politischer Praxis. Ihr Ziel ist, komplexes Wissen strukturiert und sprachlich ansprechend zu vermitteln. Ein professionelles Begutachtungsverfahren garantiert die Standards wissenschaftlicher Abhandlungen. Kurzauswertungen, Kommentare und Praxisbeiträge reflektieren aktuelle gesellschaftspolitische Probleme und diskutieren Lösungsvorschläge.