or about changes in occupational health and safety at office workstations

Recent changes have been made to occupational health and safety regulations for workstations equipped with display screens. Therefore, it's important to prepare for changes in the way office workers work.

Before presenting the exact changes, it's important to briefly outline the specific workstations affected by these changes. This includes workstations with basic equipment, including a display monitor, keyboard, mouse, or other input devices, software with a user interface, workstations with a chair and table, and optional additional equipment, including a disk drive, printer, scanner, document holder, and footrest. From the employee's perspective, these are all workstations where a computer is used.

Moving on to the changes themselves, it's important to note that if an employee uses portable systems, the employer will be required to provide an additional monitor, keyboard, and mouse (with the top edge at eye level). It's important that each workstation be equipped and prepared accordingly—not only for current employees but also for new ones. It's also important to emphasize that this also applies to remote work. In this context, this could be problematic—employers will be required to provide monitors or stands for "home" employees at their work locations. Alternatively, the issue of compensation for using their own tools remains open.

A much more far-reaching change is the employer's obligation to provide employees with contact lenses. This will apply when, as recommended by a doctor, ophthalmological examination results indicate the need for eye support when using a display device. This is undoubtedly a new element of occupational health and safety regulations. This change stems from the need to adapt regulations to the changing world of technology and engineering.

However, it's unclear how the regulations should be interpreted – who will decide whether the employer will cover the cost of glasses, as was the case until now, or (according to the amendment) contact lenses. However, it's worth including the frequency and amount of co-financing in the work regulations.

The above changes are effective from November 17, 2023. It is important to note, however, that employers have only six months to adapt existing workstations to the new requirements set forth in the regulation. Therefore, if you were not previously aware of them, it is important to urgently amend your regulations and workstation equipment.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.

Legal status as of November 24, 2023.

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