How do you combine prevention and regulatory compliance to improve health and safety in the workplace?
Safety at work in France remains a major challenge for both companies and employees, with a strong legal obligation and considerable human and economic impact.
Safety at work, a daily challenge
Safety at work is not just a matter of complying with a series of administrative rules: it’s a real culture that needs to be established to protect employees’ physical and mental health.
According to the Ministry of Labour, each employer must
- inform and train employees about risks,
- propose appropriate measures and
- improve safety at high-risk workstations, thus guaranteeing better prevention.
In France, in 2023-2024, there will be 717,719 recognized workplace accidents, of which 555,803 will result in lost time, and 759 fatalities. The main causes were manual handling (48-53%), falls (27-32%) and the use of machinery, often linked to inadequate training or failure to follow instructions.
Work-related accidents: figures and trends
According to Assurance Maladie, the number of accidents at work is declining slightly (by 1.5% in 2023), but fatalities are on the rise, underlining the need to step up prevention. Occupational illnesses, including musculoskeletal disorders and mental illnesses, are also on the rise, leading to absenteeism and long-term disability.
Why prevention needs to be stepped up
Despite the legal obligation enshrined in the French Labor Code (Articles L. 4121-1 et seq.), many companies only measure safety after an incident has occurred. Yet it is essential to develop a proactive approach:
- involve employees in drawing up instructions,
- measure danger reports and promote internal dialogue.
What to do?
Awareness-raising, ongoing training and the monitoring of indicators (number of hazards reported, equipment inspected, improvements proposed) help to really improve safety in the workplace and create a serene environment.
Legal obligations and tools available
Regulations require every company to produce a single risk prevention document, which identifies, analyzes and prioritizes the risks present in the workplace. Consulting firms (but also health services) support companies in implementing concrete actions: employee training, awareness-raising, safety culture audits or equipment audits. Finally, an effective prevention policy and good communication help to avoid accidents, reduce absenteeism and associated costs, and improve productivity.
2025: More stringent regulatory requirements
July 2025
Since July 10, 2025, the French government has stepped up occupational risk prevention. In concrete terms :
- More powers for labor inspectors, who can punish breaches even without an accident.
- Generalization of penal transactions: uncorrected discrepancies can be very costly.
- In the event of a fatal accident, liability now extends to the entire chain (employer, principal, client).
- Enhanced cooperation between labor inspectorates and law enforcement agencies.
- Increased support for victims.
October 2025
The deadline of October 1, 2025 concerns a new occupational safety regulation: from this date, employees assigned to positions requiring driving authorization or electrical clearance will no longer be subject to the usual reinforced individual medical monitoring.
- Every 5 years, the employees concerned will have to obtain a medical certificate issued by the occupational physician, confirming that they are not contraindicated in driving or in carrying out their duties.
- The certificate must be presented to the employer, who must keep a copy for the duration of its validity.
- Old notices of suitability issued before the entry into force remain valid for 5 years from their date of issue.
- If the certificate is refused, a simplified procedure before the industrial tribunal (Conseil de prud’hommes) is available to settle the dispute.
- The aim of this measure is to redeploy the medical resources of occupational health services to workplaces presenting particular risks, and to strengthen primary prevention.
This deadline strengthens traceability and the organization of prevention for specific risk jobs, while reducing the medical monitoring requirements for certain employees.
Employer obligations
- Identify the positions concerned and inform employees of the new obligation.
- Ensure that the medical examination required to obtain the certificate is organized for employees concerned by October 1, 2025.
- Keep all certificates for their period of validity, and keep the list up to date.
Prevention is the key to averting risks upstream!
Some ideas for action
- ✅ Regular risk analysis
- ✅ Targeted and ongoing training
- ✅ Maintenance and documented checks
- ✅ Compliant equipment
- ✅ DUERP and PAPRICAT updated
- ✅ Medical follow-up and traceability of actions
How can Novallia help you?
With its regulatory watch and compliance service
Keep up to date with the latest occupational health and safety regulations!
Monitoring and regulatory compliance
With its consulting services
With training courses
- Understand occupational health and safety issues and apply regulations
- Chemical risk regulations
- Chemical risk training for personnel
- Acquire basic knowledge of chemical hazards
Official sources
- Decree no. 2025-355 of April 18, 2025, effective October 1, 2025.
- Information on reinforced individual follow-up: FNEDT, ACISMT, Ministry of Labor.
Additional sources and resources
- Ministry of Labour, Occupational Safety
- Assurance Maladie 2023 report
- Labour code and legal obligations
- INRS key figures
- Statistics on accident causes
Safety at work is everyone’s business, and it’s thanks to collective commitment, proactive prevention and compliance with legal obligations that we can create a safer, healthier working environment!