What does the legislation say about workers' exposure to electromagnetic fields in the workplace?
- 24/09/2019
- At work, Environmental health
The legal framework for workers' exposure to electromagnetic fields is clear:
Reminder of Decree 2016-1074
Decree 2016-1074 on the exposure of workers to electromagnetic fields specifies that risk assessment is mandatory for all “companies and establishments governed by Part Four of the Labour Code whose workers are exposed to electromagnetic fields”.
This decree, adopted to transpose Directive 2013/35/EU, defines the rules for preventing risks to workers’ health and safety and sets the occupational exposure limit values that must not be exceeded.
There are several categories of workers at "particular risk" from exposure to electromagnetic fields
Some workers fall into a special risk category and are subject to more stringent exposure limit values.
This category includes workers wearing active and passive implanted medical devices and pregnant workers. They must therefore be the subject of preventive measures and resources that take account of their specific characteristics.
It is therefore particularly important to assess the risk linked to exposure to electromagnetic fields, taking into account the assumption that these categories of workers are present in the establishment.
The case of ISO 45001-certified companies
For ISO 45001-certified companies, the assessment of the risk of exposure to electromagnetic fields is even more demanding, as they are committed to an ongoing approach based on the assessment of all occupational risks, and are audited annually for this purpose.
As a reminder, ISO 45001 published in March 2018 is a standard designed to improve safety levels directly in the workplace.
In particular, it is based on the implementation of a management system enabling organisations (companies and public authorities) to provide employees with safe and healthy workplaces. It is therefore part of a prevention approach based on continuous improvement.
Ultimately, all companies are therefore concerned by the occupational risk of exposure to electromagnetic fields, but since the implementation of Decree 2016-1074 in January 2017, a number of them have not yet begun their compliance process. Independent inspection agencies offer companies solutions for managing the risk of exposure to electromagnetic fields.
Find out more about ISO 45001
