The German employer model

The German Arbeitssicherheitsgesetz (ASiG) was established in 1973. It is the legal basis for the establishment of medical care and safety supervisions in enterprises. This law specifies the demands on and the tasks of safety engineers and occupational physicians. The ASiG also defines minimum values for working time of the safety engineers (per year and per employee), taking into account the occupational hazards which are encountered in the enterprises. These minimum values – especially the lower ones – pose problems especially in small and medium-size enterprises (SMEs). In these enterprises, the support by occupational physicians and safety engineers is linked with special challenges. In particular accident statistics indicate the need for further qualified consultation and support in SMEs in the field of occupational safety and health (OSH). New stress factors, leading, e.g., to work related diseases demand new prevention concepts especially for SMEs. The German employer model picks up these prevailing circumstances. This concept occupies on OSH particularly in small companies with up to 50 employees.