Occupational Health and Safety in the Public Service
Verified 09 October 2026 - Public Service / (Prime Minister)
As a public official, you benefit from various measures designed to guarantee your health and safety at work. We present these devices according to your public service (State - FPE, territorial - FPT, hospital - FPH).
EPF / FPT
The employer's administration shall assess the risks to the health and safety of employees, including in the choice of work equipment, in the fitting out or refitting of workplaces or installations, in the organization of work and in the definition of workstations.
This risk assessment takes into account the differentiated impact of risk exposure depending on whether you are male or female.
Following this evaluation, the employer administration shall implement preventive measures and appropriate working methods to improve the level of protection of the health and safety of staff.
Occupational risks are listed in a single occupational risk assessment document (DUERP). This document shall be kept up to date by the employer administration.
This single occupational risk assessment document shall be kept by the employer administration in its successive versions and shall be available to agents, former agents and any person or body having an interest in having access to it.
Each time it is updated, the employer authority sends the single occupational risk assessment document to the prevention and occupational health department.
Your employer authority designates one or more prevention assistants and, optionally, prevention advisors.
Prevention assistants are the level of proximity of the network of prevention agents.
Prevention advisors are responsible for coordination. They are established when the importance of occupational risks or staff or when the organization of the services justifies it.
These prevention officers have the task of assisting and advising the heads of service, with whom they are placed, in risk assessment, risk prevention and the implementation of occupational safety and hygiene rules.
They propose practical measures to improve risk prevention. They are involved in raising awareness, informing and training staff.
The heads of service shall send these prevention officers a scoping letter setting out the resources made available to them for the performance of their duties.
These prevention assistants and advisers receive initial training before they take up their duties and ongoing training in health and safety.
The employer administration shall also designate occupational health and safety inspectors responsible for monitoring the application of the applicable health and safety rules.
Occupational health and safety inspectors propose measures to department heads that can improve occupational health and safety and the prevention of occupational risks.
In the event of an emergency, they shall propose any immediate measures they deem necessary.
Occupational health and safety inspectors shall have free access to all establishments, premises and workplaces dependent on the services to be inspected.
One occupational health and safety register shall be open in each department to receive comments and suggestions from staff concerning the prevention of occupational risks and the improvement of working conditions.
The register of health and safety at work shall be made available to all staff and, where appropriate, to users.
It is also available for specialized training on health, safety and working conditions in the Social Committee.
An officer who has reasonable grounds to believe that his or her work situation serious and imminent danger to life or health or who observes a defect in protection systems immediately alert its employer administration.
He can withdraw from such a situation.
The employing authority may not require an official who has used his right of withdrawal to resume his activity in a work situation where a serious and imminent danger persists, resulting in particular from a defect in the protection system.
A staff representative for specialized training on health, safety and working conditions in the Social Committee, who finds that there is a cause of serious and imminent danger, in particular through an official, shall immediately alert the employer administration.
No penalty, no withholding of wages shall not be taken against an officer or group of officers who have withdrawn from a work situation which they had reasonable grounds to believe posed a serious and imminent danger to the life or health of each of them.
The right of withdrawal must be exercised in such a way that it cannot create a new situation of serious and imminent danger for another agent or user.
When a staff representative at the specialized training alerts the employer administration, he shall record his opinion in writing in a special register serious and imminent dangers. The pages of this register are numbered and authenticated by the specialized training stamp. This special register shall be made available to the staff representatives on the Social Committee.
This notice is dated and signed. It shall indicate the workstations concerned by the cause of the hazard identified, the nature and cause of the hazard and the names of the exposed agents.
The employing authority shall immediately carry out a investigation with the representative of the specialist training who has reported the hazard and is taking the necessary steps to remedy it. It shall inform the specialized training of the measures taken.
In case of divergence on the reality of the danger or how to stop it, including by stopping work, machinery or installation, specialized training is convened urgently, within a maximum of 24 hours.
The labor inspector shall be informed of the meeting and may attend.
On the basis of the opinion of the competent specialized training, the employer administration shall determine the measures to be taken.
In the absence of agreement between employer administration and specialized training on the measures to be taken and their conditions of performance, the employer administration immediately refers the matter to the labor inspector.
The labor inspector may initiate one of the following 2 procedures:
- To refer the matter to the Regional Director for companies, Competition, Consumer Affairs, Labor and Employment for formal notice to the employer's administration to take all appropriate measures to remedy the dangerous situation
- Bring the matter before the judicial judge for interim measures to stop the risk (decommissioning, immobilization, seizure of equipment, machinery, devices, products or other).
FYI
Officials carrying out missions for the security of property and persons, as determined by ministerial decree, in particular in the fields of customs, national and municipal police, prison administration and civil security, do not have the right of individual withdrawal, as this would jeopardize the very performance of the tasks of the service concerned.
Work spaces and facilities must be designed in such a way as to guarantee your safety and that of users.
Your work premises must be kept in a constant state of cleanliness and present the hygiene and safety conditions necessary for your health and those of users.
The premises must be fitted out, ventilated, lit, soundproofed and heated in such a way as to guarantee the health of the staff.
The employer’s administration shall inform employees of the risks to their health and safety in a manner that is understandable to everyone.
This information relates to:
- Conditions for access to the single risk assessment document
- The risk prevention measures identified in this single risk assessment document
- The role of the occupational health service and, possibly, of staff representatives in preventing occupational risks
- The fire safety instructions and the identity of the persons responsible for implementing these safety instructions.
This information and safety training is provided at the time of hiring and whenever necessary.
The purpose of safety training is to inform officers of the precautions to be taken to ensure their own safety and, where appropriate, that of other officers working in the service.
It concerns:
- Traffic conditions in the premises
- The conditions of performance of the work
- What to do in the event of an accident or disaster.
The occupational physician is involved in the development of safety training and in determining the content of the information.
In the event of a severe accident at work or occupational or occupational disease, the employer's administration shall carry out an analysis of the conditions of movement or work.
It shall organize, where appropriate, for the benefit of the workers concerned, the training necessary for safety.
The same shall apply in the case of an accident at work or occupational or occupational disease of a repeated nature:
- Either at the same or similar workstations
- Either in the same function or similar functions.
When an official resumes his activity after a work stoppage of at least 21 days, he shall, at the request of the occupational physician, receive safety training.
Specific training courses may be organized at the request of the occupational physician.
A preventive medicine service is established in each administration.
The role of the preventive medicine service is to prevent any deterioration in the health of the workers as a result of their work.
The preventive medicine service comprises one or more occupational physicians who may be assisted by nurses and, possibly, by medico-social secretaries.
The occupational physician is separate from the approved physician responsible for physical fitness visits and the control physician.
The certified physician checks your general suitability for public employment.
The occupational physician checks the compatibility of your health condition with the working conditions related to the position you hold.
At the request of your employer's administration, the supervising doctor checks whether you are genuinely unable to work because of an illness or accident.
The occupational physician shall advise the administration, staff and their representatives on specialized training in health, safety and working conditions within the Social Committee on the following matters:
- Improvement of living and working conditions in services
- Occupational Risk Assessment
- Protection against all nuisances and risks of accidents at work or occupational diseases
- Adaptation of positions, techniques and working rhythms to human physiology, with a view to contributing to the retention of staff
- General hygiene of service premises
- Hygiene in administrative restaurants
- Health information.
In each department, the occupational physician shall draw up and periodically update a sheet on which the occupational risks within the department and the number of staff exposed are listed.
This form shall be communicated to the employer administration and kept at the disposal of the agents.
It is presented to the specialized training at the same time as an annual report of the occupational physician.
The occupational physician shall notify the employer's administration in writing of the health risks to the employees that he or she observes and that are relevant to the workplace.
The occupational physician must be consulted on major construction or fitting-out projects for administrative buildings and modifications to equipment.
It must be informed before any use of dangerous substances or products, of the composition of these products and of the nature of these substances and their conditions of use.
The occupational physician may ask the administration to have samples and measurements taken.
The occupational health service shall be informed by the employer administration as soon as possible of each accident at work and of each occupational disease.
In compliance with medical confidentiality, the occupational physician informs the employer administration of any risk of epidemic.
An episode of intense heat refers to a period during which temperatures rise significantly above seasonal norms and reach the yellow, orange or red alert thresholds defined by Météo France.
The employing authority shall assess the risks associated with the exposure of the agents to intense heat events, indoors or outdoors.
Where the assessment identifies a risk to the health or safety of workers, the employer authority shall define the measures to be implemented.
Preventive measures or actions to reduce the risks associated with exposure to intense heat events may include:
- Implementation of work processes that do not require exposure to heat or that require less exposure
- Modification of the layout and arrangement of workplaces and workstations
- Adaptation of work organization, including working hours, in order to limit the duration and intensity of exposure and to provide for rest periods
- Technical means for reducing solar radiation on exposed surfaces, e.g. by damping or insulation, or for preventing heat accumulation in premises or workstations
- Increase, as necessary, of the fresh drinking water available to the agents
- Choice of appropriate work equipment to maintain a stable body temperature, taking into account the work to be performed
- Provision of personal protective equipment to limit or compensate for the effects of high temperatures or to protect against the effects of direct or scattered solar radiation
- Adequate information and training of staff on the conduct to be taken in the event of high heat and on the correct use of work equipment and personal protective equipment so as to reduce their exposure to heat to as low a level as is technically possible.
During episodes of intense heat, the employer administration implements these preventive measures or actions by adapting them in the event of heat intensification.
In the event of an episode of intense heat, the employing authority shall provide a sufficient quantity of fresh drinking water.
The employer's administration provides a means of keeping drinking water cool throughout the working day, close to workstations, in particular for outdoor workstations.
Where the employing authority is informed that an official is, for reasons relating in particular to his age or state of health, particularly vulnerable to the risks associated with exposure to intense heat episodes, it shall, in liaison with the occupational health service, adapt the appropriate preventive measures to protect his health.
The employer's administration shall lay down the conditions for reporting any appearance of physiological signs of concern, malaise or distress and the measures intended to provide assistance as soon as possible to any staff member and, in particular, to isolated or remote staff members.
These provisions shall be brought to the attention of the staff and communicated to the occupational health service.
FPH
The employer's administration shall assess the risks to the health and safety of employees, including in the choice of work equipment, in the fitting out or refitting of workplaces or installations, in the organization of work and in the definition of workstations.
This risk assessment takes into account the differentiated impact of risk exposure depending on whether you are male or female.
Following this evaluation, the employer administration shall implement preventive measures and appropriate working methods to improve the level of protection of the health and safety of staff.
Occupational risks are listed in a single occupational risk assessment document (DUERP). This document shall be kept up to date by the employer administration.
This single occupational risk assessment document shall be kept by the employer administration in its successive versions and shall be available to agents, former agents and any person or body having an interest in having access to it.
Each time it is updated, the employer authority sends the single occupational risk assessment document to the prevention and occupational health department.
An officer who has reasonable grounds to believe that his or her work situation serious and imminent danger to life or health or who observes a defect in protection systems immediately alert its employer administration.
He can withdraw from such a situation.
The employing authority may not require an official who has used his right of withdrawal to resume his activity in a work situation where a serious and imminent danger persists, resulting in particular from a defect in the protection system.
A staff representative for specialized training on health, safety and working conditions in the Social Committee, who finds that there is a cause of serious and imminent danger, in particular through an official, shall immediately alert the employer administration.
No penalty, no withholding of wages shall not be taken against an officer or group of officers who have withdrawn from a work situation which they had reasonable grounds to believe posed a serious and imminent danger to the life or health of each of them.
The right of withdrawal must be exercised in such a way that it cannot create a new situation of serious and imminent danger for another agent or user.
When a staff representative at the specialized training alerts the employer administration, he shall record his opinion in writing in a special register serious and imminent dangers. The pages of this register are numbered and authenticated by the specialized training stamp. This special register shall be made available to the staff representatives on the Social Committee.
This notice is dated and signed. It shall indicate the workstations concerned by the cause of the hazard identified, the nature and cause of the hazard and the names of the exposed agents.
The employing authority shall immediately carry out a investigation with the representative of the specialist training who has reported the hazard and is taking the necessary steps to remedy it. It shall inform the specialized training of the measures taken.
In case of divergence on the reality of the danger or how to stop it, including by stopping work, machinery or installation, specialized training is convened urgently, within a maximum of 24 hours.
The labor inspector shall be informed of the meeting and may attend.
On the basis of the opinion of the competent specialized training, the employer administration shall determine the measures to be taken.
In the absence of agreement between employer administration and specialized training on the measures to be taken and their conditions of performance, the employer administration immediately refers the matter to the labor inspector.
The labor inspector may initiate one of the following 2 procedures:
- To refer the matter to the Regional Director for companies, Competition, Consumer Affairs, Labor and Employment for formal notice to the employer's administration to take all appropriate measures to remedy the dangerous situation
- Bring the matter before the judicial judge for interim measures to stop the risk (decommissioning, immobilization, seizure of equipment, machinery, devices, products or other).
FYI
Officials carrying out missions for the security of property and persons, as determined by ministerial decree, in particular in the fields of customs, national and municipal police, prison administration and civil security, do not have the right of individual withdrawal, as this would jeopardize the very performance of the tasks of the service concerned.
Work spaces and facilities must be designed in such a way as to guarantee your safety and that of users.
Your work premises must be kept in a constant state of cleanliness and present the hygiene and safety conditions necessary for your health and those of users.
The premises must be fitted out, ventilated, lit, soundproofed and heated in such a way as to guarantee the health of the staff.
The employer’s administration shall inform employees of the risks to their health and safety in a manner that is understandable to everyone.
This information relates to:
- Conditions for access to the single risk assessment document
- The risk prevention measures identified in this single risk assessment document
- The role of the occupational health service and, possibly, of staff representatives in preventing occupational risks
- The fire safety instructions and the identity of the persons responsible for implementing these safety instructions.
This information and safety training is provided at the time of hiring and whenever necessary.
The purpose of safety training is to inform officers of the precautions to be taken to ensure their own safety and, where appropriate, that of other officers working in the service.
It concerns:
- Traffic conditions in the premises
- The conditions of performance of the work
- What to do in the event of an accident or disaster.
The occupational physician is involved in the development of safety training and in determining the content of the information.
In the event of a severe accident at work or occupational or occupational disease, the employer's administration shall carry out an analysis of the conditions of movement or work.
It shall organize, where appropriate, for the benefit of the staff concerned the training necessary for safety.
The same shall apply in the case of an accident at work or occupational or occupational disease of a repeated nature:
- Either at the same or similar workstations
- Either in the same function or similar functions.
When an official resumes his activity after a work stoppage of at least 21 days, he shall, at the request of the occupational physician, receive safety training.
Specific training courses may be organized at the request of the occupational physician.
A preventive medicine service is established in each administration.
The role of the preventive medicine service is to prevent any deterioration in the health of the workers as a result of their work.
The preventive medicine service comprises one or more occupational doctors who may be assisted by nurses and, possibly, by medico-social secretaries.
The occupational physician is separate from the approved physician responsible for physical fitness visits and the control physician.
The certified physician checks your general suitability for public employment.
The occupational physician checks the compatibility of your health condition with the working conditions related to the position you hold.
At the request of your employer's administration, the supervising doctor checks whether you are genuinely unable to work because of an illness or accident.
The occupational physician shall advise the administration, staff and their representatives on specialized training in health, safety and working conditions within the Social Committee on the following matters:
- Improvement of living and working conditions in services
- Occupational Risk Assessment
- Protection against all nuisances and risks of accidents at work or occupational diseases
- Adaptation of positions, techniques and working rhythms to human physiology, with a view to contributing to the retention of staff
- General hygiene of service premises
- Hygiene in administrative restaurants
- Health information.
In each department, the occupational physician shall draw up and periodically update a sheet on which the occupational risks within the department and the number of staff exposed are listed.
This form shall be communicated to the employer administration and kept at the disposal of the agents.
It is presented to the specialized training at the same time as an annual report of the occupational physician.
The occupational physician shall notify the employer's administration in writing of the health risks to the employees that he or she observes and that are relevant to the workplace.
The occupational physician must be consulted on major construction or fitting-out projects for administrative buildings and modifications to equipment.
It must be informed before any use of dangerous substances or products, of the composition of these products and of the nature of these substances and their conditions of use.
The occupational physician may ask the administration to have samples and measurements taken.
The occupational health service shall be informed by the employer administration as soon as possible of each accident at work and of each occupational disease.
In compliance with medical confidentiality, the occupational physician informs the employer administration of any risk of epidemic.
An episode of intense heat refers to a period during which temperatures rise significantly above seasonal norms and reach the yellow, orange or red alert thresholds defined by Météo France.
The employing authority shall assess the risks associated with the exposure of the agents to intense heat events, indoors or outdoors.
Where the assessment identifies a risk to the health or safety of workers, the employer authority shall define the measures to be implemented.
Preventive measures or actions to reduce the risks associated with exposure to intense heat events may include:
- Implementation of work processes that do not require exposure to heat or that require less exposure
- Modification of the layout and arrangement of workplaces and workstations
- Adaptation of work organization, including working hours, in order to limit the duration and intensity of exposure and to provide for rest periods
- Technical means for reducing solar radiation on exposed surfaces, e.g. by damping or insulation, or for preventing heat accumulation in premises or workstations
- Increase, as necessary, of the fresh drinking water available to the agents
- Choice of appropriate work equipment to maintain a stable body temperature, taking into account the work to be performed
- Provision of personal protective equipment to limit or compensate for the effects of high temperatures or to protect against the effects of direct or scattered solar radiation
- Adequate information and training of staff on the conduct to be taken in the event of high heat and on the correct use of work equipment and personal protective equipment so as to reduce their exposure to heat to as low a level as is technically possible.
During episodes of intense heat, the employer administration implements these preventive measures or actions by adapting them in the event of heat intensification.
In the event of an episode of intense heat, the employing authority shall provide a sufficient quantity of fresh drinking water.
The employer's administration provides a means of keeping drinking water cool throughout the working day, close to workstations, in particular for outdoor workstations.
Where the employing authority is informed that an official is, for reasons relating in particular to his age or state of health, particularly vulnerable to the risks associated with exposure to intense heat episodes, it shall, in liaison with the occupational health service, adapt the appropriate preventive measures to protect his health.
The employer's administration shall lay down the conditions for reporting any appearance of physiological signs of concern, malaise or distress and the measures intended to provide assistance as soon as possible to any staff member and, in particular, to isolated or remote staff members.
These provisions shall be brought to the attention of the staff and communicated to the occupational health service.
Service Public
Service Public
National Research and Security Institute (INRS)
Ministry in charge of the Civil Service