Earlier this year, an amendment passed that voids the obligation of employers to provide regular health checks for professions that are not at risk. In general, this is a less physically demanding job first and second category. Among them are, for example, clerical workers such as accountants, HR professionals, sales representatives, and in the second category, for example mechanics, tailors, nurses or gynecologists.

Part of the anti-bureaucratic package

The purpose of this change is to ease the employer’s obligations. “Abolishing mandatory periodic checks will not only lead to a reduction in bureaucracy, but also hundreds of millions of crowns a year in savings on the part of employers and significant time savings for doctors and employees, who are often referred to only for stamps, while maintaining health protection standards. employees at work, said Health Minister Vlastimil Válek.

But problems arise when an employee is injured, dies, causes an accident or lots of damage, and the employer has to prove he or she is medically fit for the job. If he doesn’t send his employee for inspection, he has no way of proving it and all responsibility falls on the employer. How is that possible? The amendments do not change the wording of the Labor Code, which clearly obliges the employer to assign the employee work appropriate to his health. This will be verified by a doctor during the initial medical examination, but eligibility may change over the course of employment. In addition, as retirement age increases, health problems tend to increase.

Volunteer tour

If the employer does not want to risk his employees losing their medical skills over time, he can continue to send them to doctors. The doctor will assess the effect of the work environment and activities on health capacity and, if necessary, recommend measures that protect the employee and, most importantly, his health. “We recommend continuing to use the old system until laws are finally harmonized so that employers are not exposed to possible risks,” suggested Jakub Malchar, managing director from BEPRA profi srorelating to safety and fire protection.

In this way, the employer avoids the risk of high fines in serious cases work accident or occupational disease. Just as he avoids the possibility of a fine that could be awarded to him by the Labor Inspectorate of up to CZK 2,000,000 if his employee performs work, the difficulty of which is not commensurate with his ability and medical fitness. Both employers and employees can request routine checks.

Inspection periods are granted, but completion is voluntary for the first and second categories. Periodic examinations with doctors are still mandatory for professions that, according to the Public Health Protection Act, are classified in the risk category, are included in occupational risk, or which include risk factors that exclude or limit health fitness for work.