One of those obligations is to perform a DSE assessment on the following 2 events:
- When an employee join
- When workplace conditions undergo a significant change ( furnitures, move, work organisation…)
It is also important to note that apart from those obligations, there are no recommendations on the DSE occurrence, which probably explain why you can approach the DSE and its results via various ways.
How to use your DSE assessment results ?
This is a very interesting topic, and while each company may have a different approach, it is probably possible to establish 2 different ways of dealing with DSE Assessment results.
- A box ticking exercise approach
- A health orientated approach
Those 2 different ways will really depend on the following aspects
- Who is in charge of the process i.e.. H.R, Facilities, Health and Safety Manager, office manager
- What is the approach of the individual in charge , i.e. a legal obligation to meet or an opportunity to improve work condition
- Other aspects such:
- as resources (in house, external ), costs and budget
- workforce type (healthy workforce or few individuals with issues)
It is also important to note that an employer is only obliged to provide reasonable adjustments, which is quite often a good way to perform the process “a minima”.
All of the above will have an impact on the way DSE is conducted and its results.
A box-ticking exercise approach
As we have seen, a DSE is first and foremost a legal obligation, in only few instances. Therefore, it is very tempting for an employer to ask the person/ the team in charge to conduct it with a view of keeping the business compliant with its legal obligation.
In this instance, the employer is likely to ask an employee to undertake a DSE assessment , quite often via a self-filled questionnaire ( paper or electronic) and fill it in the H.R file of the employee if none of the questions raise a red flag.
In order to stay compliant, the company is also likely to run its DSE process every few years to ensure the records are kept to date. In this instance, if an employee raise a red flag, it is likely to be dealt on the side, and unfortunately quite often “a minima”, with the risk of providing the wrong answers to staff need.
The box ticking exercise approach is also more likely to be taken if the person in charge has a lack of support/ leverage in the company, as all issues raised through the answers might need intervention/ engagement with other stakeholders of the business (facilities, H.R…)
So while there is nothing wrong with this approach, it is certainly not compatible with a well-being policy
A health orientated approach
As we have seen previously (see "DSE Assessment - How to do it ?"), and while being a legal requirement, a DSE Assessment is an instant survey/picture of your workforce physical and ergonomics status, through covering a wide range of issues (premises, physical health, workplace equipment, work organisation….)
As a result, the employer is able to gather a wealth of information on its workplace, and more importantly the employee feel about their working environment.
Therefore, it is possible, if using a proactive approach, to turn this obligatory process into an opportunity for improving the workplace environment.
In order to achieve this, it requires the individual/ team in charge to have
- the correct mindset through an interest in health and well-being
- the ability to promote a well-being Agenda, and engage with other relevant business stakeholder
A good way to demonstrate is through the following example:
If 50 employees of a 200 staff members company complains about their chairs, the right approach would require
- to raise the issues with the facilities manager
- see if the chairs are in good condition and appropriate for the job
- see if if the employees know how to use the chair…
More importantly, once the problem(s) has been established, further action would have to be taken in order to ensure the issue doesn’t unravelled and creates more staff problems (physical health, mental health….)
So, as demonstrated by the above example, it is not only the DSE results which matter in the Health Orientated approach, it is what you do with them to ensure the problem is resolved successfully
Conclusion
Overall, and regardless of the methods chosen to perform it, a DSE assessment process outcome will depend on the individual running the proces, its approach towards it and its desire/ capacity to have an impact the working environment of its company.