The Swedish Work Environment Authority's new regulatory structure

The Swedish Work Environment Authority decided on September 15, 2023, on a new regulatory structure that will come into effect on January 1, 2025. In simplified terms, this means that the authority has consolidated the current 67 regulations into 15 regulations. The goal of the regulatory renewal by the Work Environment Authority has been to maintain the same requirements and protection levels as before while making the regulations easier to understand and use.

The new rules largely correspond to what was previously applicable. However, there is an important exception in the regulation "The Swedish Work Environment Authority's regulations and general advice (AFS 2023:3) on planning and construction work environment coordination – basic obligations," which is directed at various actors such as builders, designers, and construction work environment coordinators (Bas-P and Bas-U).
For the aforementioned actors, entirely new rules and requirements are introduced to some extent in connection with the new regulation. The purpose of the regulation is to make it clear to an actor what is included in their responsibilities and at the same time make it easy for an employee to understand what concerns them and whom to contact regarding work environment issues.

The difference compared to before is that the regulations clarify an obligation for the actors to work more proactively to prevent risks and ensure a safe work environment, which is combined with an increased follow-up responsibility.

To achieve this, the new regulations impose higher demands on the actors regarding, among other things, coordination, routines, control, and follow-up in matters related to work environment efforts. The requirements for the competence and training of the actors and the contractors they choose to hire have been clarified, and an obligation for the actors to be able to substantiate claimed qualifications has also been established.

In summary, the new rules mean that it becomes extra important for each actor to be aware of their areas of responsibility and to ensure that the new requirements are met. After the turn of the year, when the rules come into effect, there is a risk that those who do not comply with the new regulations will face sanctions. Therefore, before Christmas, we recommend reviewing existing templates to ensure they meet the new regulations' requirements and terminology, and to develop new documents and routines where needed so that everything is in place before the turn of the year.