Professional risks Evaluation. Definition and implementation

The "document unique sur l'évaluation des risques professionnels" (DUERP - single document on occupational risk assessment) is a comprehensive approach enabling all employers to identify and assess the occupational risks to which an organization is subject. A mandatory requirement for employers, as stipulated in Article R. 4121-2 of the French Labor Code, the DUERP must be updated at least once a year, and whenever a decision is taken to make major changes to workers' health and safety conditions, and/or as soon as necessary. In consultation with employees, their representatives and management, the DUERP is intended to enable dialogue and traceability of exchanges and measures, as part of a more comprehensive system for managing and preventing risks within organizations. This article is aimed primarily at specialists in health, safety and environment processes (prevention and QHSE engineers, hygienists), but also at more generalists (internal auditors, risk managers).

Occupational risks are among the main risks that employers, whether public or private, must take into account. The DUERP, as presented in this article, is certainly a mandatory procedure, but it is above all an iterative approach to risk identification and assessment, giving priority to preventive risk management.

The aim of this article is first and foremost to present the DUERP in an illustrated way, recalling the successive regulatory changes that have helped to support and reinforce this approach. The article covers a range of measures, as well as illustrations of companies that have implemented the DUERP approach, with a focus on the risk prevention measures put in place. The article goes on to describe the processes involved, the main uses and the functions for which the DUERP is used. Finally, the principles of updating, as well as the benefits and limitations of the DUERP, are detailed.