HUP Agreed to Reduce the Number of Occupational Safety Experts for Large Employers

Following the achieved reduction for small employers, efforts by HUP will bring into effect amendments to the Regulation that reduce the already prescribed obligation regarding the number of occupational safety experts for large employers.

Namely, after negotiations in the middle of the year, which resulted in relief for small employers (up to 49 employees) who were restored the possibility of using the services of external experts in the field of occupational safety instead of imposing the obligation for small companies to have an employed person with a passed exam for an occupational safety expert, HUP has negotiated with the social partner (union) and the Ministry of Labor and Pension System to relieve large employers by amending Article 8, paragraph 2 of the Regulation so that large employers must have an additional occupational safety expert of Level II for every 2000 employees, instead of the previously prescribed requirement to have an additional occupational safety expert of Level I for every 500 employees. The amendment applies to large employers where at least 80 percent of employees perform low-risk jobs. The amendments to the Regulation will soon be published in the Official Gazette, as confirmed to us by the relevant ministry.

Let us recall that in June of this year, amendments to the Regulation on the performance of occupational safety tasks were published, which, thanks to the activities of HUP, restored the possibility for employers with up to 49 employees to contract the performance of occupational safety tasks with an external company. Namely, previous amendments to the Regulation introduced the obligation for all employers to have an “internal” occupational safety expert, i.e., an employed person with a passed exam for an occupational safety expert, which was removed by the amendments to the Regulation in June 2015, allowing employers who employ up to 49 workers, the majority in the Republic of Croatia, to continue to engage external experts or choose the option to employ an occupational safety expert or train one of the existing workers. During intensive negotiations with the Ministry of Labor and Pension System, HUP insisted that entrepreneurs be left with the option of choice, without imposing new obligations, which was ultimately achieved, as representatives of the ministry accepted the arguments and showed openness to finding a satisfactory solution.