Local health and safety representative

As a local health and safety representative, you are not responsible for the work environment, it lies with the vice-chancellor. The vice-chancellor then further delegates responsibility for implementing the tasks and routines that exist within the framework of the systematic work environment management (SAM) out into the organisation. Your immediate manager with personnel responsibility, e.g., head of department, head of division, is thus responsible for performing those tasks.

In this work, your manager should cooperate with you and involve you in the work throughout the process. As a local health and safety representative, you have the right to participate and influence your and your colleagues' work environment. You get the opportunity to do this by being involved in the planning and follow-up of work environment management.

Some more concrete examples where the local health and safety representatives should participate in dialogue with the employer:

• When planning changes such as new premises, equipment, work processes and working methods.
• When planning new work organization/change in work organization.
• When drawing up action plans regarding measures to prevent accidents/risks in the working environment.
• During safety rounds where you go through the business together and make a risk inventory of the physical and psychosocial work environment.

As a local health and safety representative, you must be offered courses - see the Competence Portal. One of the courses is "What is a good working environment. What does the law say?" This is given in collaboration between the employer, the trade unions' chief health and safety representatives, the university's work environment engineer and the occupational health service.

Structure of the health and safety organisation

The University's activities are divided into a number of main health and safety areas.

Principal health and safety representatives

For each main health and safety area, there must be a principal health and safety representative and deputy. The principal health and safety representative is chosen by the local health and safety representatives in each area. The role of the principal health and safety representative is to coordinate the activities of the local health and safety representatives and serve as a sounding board and support for them. If a difficult situation arises, it is to the principal health and safety representative that you should turn for support and help.

Chief health and safety representatives

There are also three chief safety representatives at Lund University, one from each trade union. The chief safety officers coordinate, support and help the chief safety representatives, participate in training and plan for long-term safety work. Sometimes, however, it may also be necessary for the chief safety representatives to step in as support and interlocutors to the local health and safety representatives.