According to Section 5 of the Occupational Health and Safety Act, employers are obliged to assess the working conditions for all employees. Since the reform of the Maternity Protection Act (MuSchG) in 2018, it must also be checked whether there are additional risks for pregnant or breastfeeding mothers. This check is required regardless of whether pregnant women are currently working in the company. Failure to carry out this risk assessment, which is independent of the occasion, constitutes an administrative offense.

The “Fourth Bureaucracy Relief Act” (BEG IV) amended the risk assessment requirements in the Maternity Protection Act in order to reduce the burden on employers. Since January 1, 2025, the obligation to carry out a risk assessment regardless of the cause in accordance with Section 10 (1), sentence 3 MuSchG no longer applies if, according to a rule or finding published by the Maternity Protection Committee, a pregnant or breastfeeding woman may not carry out the activity or be exposed to a working condition. The relevant rules and findings can be found at the Maternity Protection Committee. In such cases, employers must document that the activity falls under this rule.

The general obligation to carry out an assessment in accordance with the Occupational Health and Safety Act remains in place. Employers must continue to carry out a risk assessment as soon as an employee is pregnant or breastfeeding.

Updates on current developments will follow.