Russia: Importance of registering workplace risk assessment (SOUT) results

As of January 2020, tougher control procedures will be imposed over registration of workplace risk assessment results in the Federal State Information System (FSIS) for Accounting for the Results of the Special Evaluation of Working Conditions (SOUT).

Specially accredited organizations that perform SOUT at a facility are required to obtain an identification number prior to commencement of work, which will subsequently be recorded in the SOUT report. Also, these organisations, upon completion of work, are obliged to timely transmit information to the system (FSIS) and notify the employer who contracted them for the conducting of the SOUT within 3 working days.

Employers will be able to use the results of the self-reported accounting system only after these results have been registered in the FSIS.

If the employees disagree with the results of the special evaluation of working conditions (SOUT) for any reason, the employer might make a decision to initiate a non-scheduled SOUT. It is, however, important that the employees who have disagreed with the results have submitted their objections and comments in writing to the elected body of the trade union organization or other representative body of workers, in which case the objections will be taken into account and included in the SOUT report.

As of January 2020, the declaration of conformity of working conditions is now considered valid not from the moment of approval of the report on the SOUT (as before), but only after the SOUT results have been registered in the FSIS.

The amendments do not apply to cases in which the SOUT report contains information constituting a state secret or any other secret information protected by law.

Law: Federal Law No. 451-FZ of 27 December 2019 on Amending the Federal Law on the Special Evaluation of Working Conditions