Baden-Württemberg authority: only 43 % of GB-Psych target met in 2023
BW Annual Report 2023: state supervisors hit just 43 % of their GDA-Psyche target – Tübingen 24 %, Stuttgart 40 %. The 2026 5% quota will change that.
If you run a company in Baden-Württemberg and have wondered just how likely a German authority audit on the psychological risk assessment really is, the latest annual report of the Gewerbeaufsicht Baden-Württemberg 2023 gives you an honest answer: the state authority has met its own target for the GDA "Psyche" programme only at 43 %. [1]
That sounds like good news for companies without a GB Psych. It is not – quite the opposite.
Table 5: Target vs. Actual by Regional Council
As of 31 December 2023, 3rd GDA period:
| Regional Council | Target | Actual | Met |
|---|---|---|---|
| Karlsruhe | 112 | 65 | 58 % |
| Freiburg | 98 | 48 | 49 % |
| Stuttgart | 140 | 56 | 40 % |
| Tübingen | 85 | 20 | 24 % |
| Total Baden-Württemberg | 435 | 189 | 43 % |
Source: Annual Report Gewerbeaufsicht Baden-Württemberg 2023, Table 5. [1]
System inspections also lag far behind plan
The gap is even bigger for general system inspections: Baden-Württemberg achieves 2,499 actual against 13,016 target – 19 %. The federal average is 44.7 %. [1]
Among the 2,499 companies actually inspected, the authority found:
- 1,258 with adequate risk assessment
- 858 with insufficient risk assessment
- 383 without any risk assessment – that is 15.3 %
For small companies (1–19 employees), the rate is significantly higher: 277 out of 1,006 companies (27.5 %) had no GB at all. [1]
Why these numbers suddenly read differently in 2026
Until 2025, the authority regularly missed its own targets. From 2026, however, the Arbeitsschutzkontrollgesetz obliges supervisors to inspect 5 % of all companies annually. From the current ~1 % that is a tenfold increase. [2]
The annual report itself describes the situation as a "difficult staffing situation" across virtually all offices. But the 5 % obligation is federal law – not a goal the authority can opt out of. And it is in force now, not in 2027.
What this means for managing directors in Baden-Württemberg
Until now, the probability of being noticed for a missing GB Psych was actually low. That gap is closing. Anyone who reviews the evidence now is at an advantage over those who rely on "this will not happen to us".
- Written GB Psych available for all activity areas, not older than 12 months.
- Methodology aligned with GDA recommendations.
- Action plan and effectiveness check documented.
- Documentation immediately retrievable on inspection day.
How SafeMind helps
SafeMind delivers your GB Psych within days, in 15 languages, with one-click documentation ready for authority inspections. Book a 15-minute consultation.
Going deeper: Authority inspection of GB Psych – hub page with all sources and From 2026, authorities inspect ten times as many companies.
Sources
- Annual Report Gewerbeaufsicht Baden-Württemberg 2023, BW Ministry of Economic Affairs, 66 pp – Table 5 (target/actual per Regional Council, 3rd GDA period AP Psyche, status 31 Dec 2023); BW system controls 19 % vs. national 44.7 %; small-businesses 1–19 emp.: 277/1,006 without GB (27.5 %). PDF, wm.baden-wuerttemberg.de.
- German Occupational Safety Inspection Act, 22 Dec 2020, Federal Law Gazette 2020 I p. 3334. Art. 1 No. 4 introduces § 21 (1a) ArbSchG (5 % quota p.a. from 2026). Primary: BMAS. Paragraph: § 21 ArbSchG.
- Regional Council Stuttgart – Competence Centre for Occupational Psychology, Department 9, Unit 96; helpline Mon 7–11 am (+49 711 904-39666); advises inspectors and trains specialists. rps.baden-wuerttemberg.de.
- GDA "Psyche" Programme (3rd GDA period 2021–2026) – mandate to "advance the advisory and supervisory standard"; focus on SMEs <250 employees, digitalisation, post-COVID. Programme detail page, gda-portal.de.
- ArbSchG § 5 (risk assessment), esp. (3) No. 6 – mental stress as a mandatory part of the risk assessment since 2013. § 5 ArbSchG.
