Legal Requirements under § 6 ArbSchG
The documentation requirement for risk assessment derives from § 6 of the German Occupational Health and Safety Act:
"The employer must maintain records documenting the results of the risk assessment, the defined occupational safety measures and the results of their review."
Who Must Document?
The documentation requirement applies to employers with more than 10 employees. However, smaller businesses should also document – not least as proof to authorities and employer's liability insurance associations.
What Must Be Documented?
The documentation must include the following elements:
1. Results of the Risk Assessment
- Which activities/areas were examined?
- Which psychological stressors were identified?
- How were the stressors evaluated?
2. Defined Measures
- Which measures were agreed upon?
- Who is responsible for implementation?
- By when should the measures be implemented?
3. Results of Effectiveness Review
- Were the measures implemented?
- Are the measures having the desired effect?
- Are adjustments necessary?
Format of Documentation
The law does not prescribe a specific format. Documentation can be done as:
- Digital documentation (e.g., in SafeMind)
- Excel spreadsheets
- Word documents
- Paper forms
What matters is that the documentation is traceable and complete.
Retention Periods
For retaining documentation:
- No legally mandated minimum period in the ArbSchG
- Recommendation: Keep for at least 5-10 years
- For work accidents/occupational diseases: Retain until conclusion of possible proceedings
Checklist: Complete Documentation
Check your documentation against this checklist:
- ☐ Date of implementation
- ☐ Persons involved (responsible parties, works council)
- ☐ Method applied
- ☐ Activity areas examined
- ☐ Identified stress factors
- ☐ Evaluation of stressors
- ☐ Derived measures
- ☐ Responsibilities and deadlines
- ☐ Results of effectiveness review
- ☐ Date of next review
Digital Documentation with SafeMind
SafeMind automatically creates legally compliant documentation:
- Automatic logging of all steps
- Timestamps for all actions
- PDF certificates for authorities and audits
- Version control for updates
- Audit-proof archiving
Conclusion
Proper documentation protects you from legal consequences and serves as proof of your due diligence. With digital solutions like SafeMind, documentation is created automatically – you can focus on the substantive work.
