Points of “Guidelines forRisk Assessment(Labor and welfare minister’s
Notification ,No. 0310001,
March 10, 2006)”
Nov., 2009
Japan Association of Working Environment
Measurement (JAWE)

１ Purpose○Greater diversification and complexity inproduction processes○Increased use of new machinery, equipment andchemical substances↓○Ａ wide variety of causes of industrial accidents, notas uniform as those that can be covered byarticles of laws and regulations○In view of this situation, the revised Industrial
Safety and Health Law requires employers not onlyto comply with the standards that are specified inlaws and regulations as minimum requirements,
but also to voluntarily conduct assessment of risks
that individual workplaces entail.

○These Guidelines specify the basic concept
and actions to facilitate the appropriate andeffective implementation of individual risk
assessment.
○As these are of general nature, more detailed
guidelines focusing on specific types ofrisks/ hazards such as those for Chemical
Substances or for Machinery Safety, should
be separately developed.
○Risk assessment in these guidelines
constitutes the corresponding process in theOSHMS guidelines. (Ministry of Labor
Notification No. 53, 1999).

２ Scope○These Guidelines shall be applicable
to all hazards inherent in work
associated with structures, facilities,raw materials, etc., work practices orother work-related factors.

3 Implementation(1) The identification of hazards involved in job
by workers(2) An estimation of risks, that is, the severity
and the extent of possibility of occurrenceof injuries or diseases that might be causedby the hazards identified in item (1)(3) Setting priorities to reduce the risks
estimated under item (2), and examining
risk reduction measures(4) Implementing risk reduction measures inaccordance with priorities set under item (3)4 Organizational Structurea) The responsible person for the supervision /management of the RiskAssessment→the person who supervises and manages an overall businessundertakingb) The person in charge of implementation of risk assessment andcontrol measures→ a safety supervisor, a health supervisor, etc.,c) Participation of workers should be secured→through opportunities such as a safety and health committee
stipulated by lawｄ）To identify hazards, estimate risks and examine risk reduction
measures. →employer shall strive to assign a person such as aforeman who is well acquainted with specific work detailse) Risk assessment and control measures relative to machinery andequipment →employer shall strive to have person(s) who havetechnical knowledge regarding the relevant machinery or equipment
participate in such activities.
ｆ） Persons designated for risk assessment and control measures above→employer shall provide necessary education and training

５ Implementation Timing
When to implement risk assessment and control measures→when work specified in “a” through “e” below is planned orconducted.
a. When a structure is installed, relocated, modified ordismantled
b. When a facility is newly introduced or a change is made toa facilityc. When a raw material is newly adopted or changed
d. When a working method or working procedures are newlyadopted or changed→Ｗhen risks perceived in a workplace change or are likely tochange, such as in the following cases:
a. If an industrial accident occurred and problems were foundin the contents of risk assessment and control measuresconducted in the pastb. when the quality of machinery, equipment, etc., has been
degraded due to aging,c. when workers do not have adequate knowledge and/orexperience relative to safety and health due to turnover６ Determination of Objects of Risk Assessment○If the occurrence of injuries or diseases isreasonably possible due to hazards associatedwith that specific work,→the work should be the object of risk assessment
Those works, however, that are expected to cause
only minor injuries or diseases such as walking ona flat walkway can be excluded.
○The following shall be taken into consideration,
1) The actual situation of work sites,
2) Not only routine work but also non-routine,
temporary work such as maintenance/repair ofmachinery7 Collection of Information
Information needed are on;○ Work standards, operation procedures, etc.
○ Hazards relative to machinery, equipment, materials,etc., that are used, such as specifications and material
safety data sheets (MSDS)○ Supplementary information of work environment suchas the layout of machinery and equipment, etc.
○ The results of working environment measurements, etc.
○ Actual work situation, such as whether it is performed
under sub-contract , sub-sub-contract, or workers fromdifferent companies work together in one place anddanger exists arising from several kinds of operations
performed in a single location○ Actual cases of occurrences of accidents and statistics
on accidents so far for the same/similar type of work.
○ Other materials and information relevant toimplementing risk assessment and control measures

In gathering information, the employer shall take noteof the following；a） In introducing new machinery, equipment, etc.,
require the manufacturer of such machinery, equipment, etc.,
the results of risk assessment and control measures taken,b） In using or remodeling machinery, equipment, etc., that is
not owned by the employer, obtain the results of risk
assessment and control measures taken by the person orcompany that owns management title over such facilities.
c） When multiple sub-contractors conduct work in one location,
each employer shall obtain the results of risk assessment andcontrol measures conducted by the principal employer toprevent an industrial accident due to the machinery andequipment used and performance of different types of work atone location.

８ Identification of Hazards
Based on work standards, etc., theemployer shall examine work in detailby appropriate work units , andidentify hazards inherent in each workunit

９ Estimation of Risks○ Estimate risks and determine priorities toreduce risks, using a method such as thosedescribed below, taking into consideration
the severity and the extent of possibility ofthe occurrence of injuries or diseases that
may be caused by hazards.
○ However, with respect to diseases
caused by chemical substances, etc., theemployer can estimate risks inconsideration of the level of toxicity of andthe extent of exposure to chemicalsubstances, etc.

(1) A method of using a Table in which
relatively estimated” severity” of injuries ordiseases and relatively estimated extent of“possibility” of the occurrence of injuries or
diseases are plotted on vertical andhorizontal axes,(2) A method in which the extent of possibility
and the severity are numerically expressed
based on prescribed criteria, and such
numerals are added or multiplied to estimate
the degree of risk
(3) A method in which risks are estimated bybranching on step by step basis the severity
and the extent of possibilityIn estimating risks as specified above, the employer
shall take note of the following matters.
a) Accurately identifying those persons who may
suffer estimated injuries or diseases and the detailsof such injuries or diseasesb) Estimating the severity of the most serious injuries
or diseases by assuming the worst possible case,rather than using the severity of injuries or diseases
that actually occurred in the pastc) Use principally the number of days absent, etc., as
the common criteria to measure the severity ofinjuries or diseases regardless of their type,

The employer shall estimate risks as specified in item
(1) according to the characteristics of machinery,equipment, work, etc., for each type of injury or
disease listed below.
(a) Nature of possible accidents or diseases such as“being caught in machinery”, “falling”, explosion/fire, poisoning, disorders caused by vibration, etc.,(b) Reliability of functions/measures to prevent
industrial accidents such as the installation of safety
devices and “off limits” measures as well as theability to maintain such functions or measures.
(c) Possibility of undoing or ignoring safety functions(d) Possibility of foreseeable intentional or accidental
incorrect use or dangerous behavior, such asdeviation from work procedures or errors in handling10 Study and Implementation of Risk Reduction
Measures○The employer shall ensure that the measuresrequired by laws and regulations are fully
implemented. In addition, the employer shall studyand implement measures for reducing risks in theorder of priority given below.
１）Measures from the design and planning stage,
such as elimination of dangerous work or adoptionof safer work２）Engineering measures to prevent or reduce risks
such as the installation of interlocks and local
exhaust ventilation systems
３）Administrative measures such as the preparationof instruction manuals, education & training
４）Use of personal protective equipment

○ In studying measures as specified above, the risk
reduction measures to which a higher priority isgiven must be implemented in as many cases aspossible, except for cases in which the burden
incurred to reduce such a risk is substantiallygreater than the expected effect of preventing
accidents and leads to a significant imbalance
between the cost and effect, and where theimplementation of such measures is consideredhighly irrational.
○ If a long time is required to implement appropriate
measures for risks that might lead to fatalities,
residual disability or severe diseases, provisional
measures shall immediately be taken.

１１ Recording
The employer shall maintain a written recordof the following activities.
A) Examined workB) Identified risks
C) Estimated risksD) Priorities established for risk reduction
measuresE) Implemented risk reduction measures-fin-(by S.A)