Occupational safety; application for an exception to the appointment of a company doctor or occupational safety specialist

Employers can apply to the relevant trade supervisory office for an exemption from the appointment of company doctors and occupational safety specialists if the person to be appointed does not meet certain legal requirements.

Employers are generally obliged to appoint company doctors and occupational safety specialists (Sifa), e.g. safety engineers, technicians or foremen. These support the employer in ensuring that

• the regulations serving the safety and health protection of employees are applied in accordance with the respective operating conditions,
• safety in the workplace is improved by implementing occupational health and safety findings, and
• all employees in the company behave in a safety-conscious manner.

Company doctors and occupational safety specialists must be specially qualified for these activities.

Under certain conditions, the competent trade supervisory office may, at the employer's request, allow company doctors and occupational safety specialists (Sifa) to be appointed even if they do not yet have the necessary specialist knowledge or that a person with the specialist knowledge required to perform the safety tasks may be appointed instead of a safety engineer.

The application must be submitted by the employer, enclosing the relevant documents.

The costs are up to €400, depending on the scope of the approval procedure, plus any necessary expenses.