Gefährdungsbeurteilung bei Schwangerschaft

The example's starting point

All of the following details are fictional assumptions for this example, not information about a customer or employee:

• The example concerns an adult childcare educator after she has informed her employer that she is pregnant.
• Her described duties include supervising a group, occasional help with nappy changing, preparing and clearing up activities, and moving between group rooms and adjoining rooms.
• A general risk assessment is assumed to exist for this example. Its actual content, working hours, staffing, products and local conditions would need to be checked at the workplace.
• Medical findings and individual immune status are not part of this example.

Tasks outside the usual group may also be relevant. The BGW guide to childcare workplaces explicitly notes the variety of activities and work areas. Each centre must identify which points apply to it.

• BGW: Workplace in a childcare centre, January 2025 (German)

From the existing document to the specific assessment

The general assessment under section 10(1) of the German Maternity Protection Act (MuSchG) considers potential hazards and the expected need for measures. Once the pregnancy is disclosed, the necessary protective measures must be determined without delay and a discussion about further adjustments must be offered. The employee may carry out an activity only once its required measures have been taken. The exception in the current section 10(1) for certain published rules or findings of the Maternity Protection Committee is not assumed to apply to a childcare activity here; its applicability requires competent assessment.

For this example, the existing activity description is therefore checked against the actual duties. Unresolved working conditions remain open. The DGUV/IFA guidance on maternity protection risk assessments also explains the distinction between the general and the specific assessment.

• Section 10 MuSchG: Assessment and protective measures (German)
• DGUV/IFA: Maternity protection risk assessment (German)

A completed example entry: a manual lifting task

Fictional entries for assessment at the actual workplace

Activity and area

Helping with nappy changing in an adjoining room

Workflow

A child assumed to weigh 12 kg is lifted from the floor onto the changing table twice during the morning, without a mechanical aid. These figures apply only to this example.

Hazard factor

Physical strain from manual lifting

Basis of the assessment

Section 11(5), point 1, MuSchG covers, among other tasks, occasional manual lifting of more than 10 kg without mechanical aids. The lifting task described here is therefore not classified as permissible on the basis of a low matrix score.

Measure to assess

Do not assign this lifting task to the pregnant employee. The childcare centre manager and operator assess a workable redesign of the workflow and the actual allocation of tasks. Cover for staff sickness must also be planned.

Responsible role

Childcare centre manager within the operator's allocation of responsibilities; the specific workplace responsibility still needs to be entered

Timing

Before assigning the relevant activity

Evidence of implementation

An amended task plan and a workplace check: the lifting task does not arise unexpectedly during handovers or staff cover either.

Effectiveness check

Check whether the adjusted allocation of duties can be followed in the actual daily routine. Document the outcome and any necessary changes.

Work status

Proposal for competent assessment at the actual workplace; implementation and effectiveness are unconfirmed; no overall workplace clearance

The legal basis of this example assessment is section 11(5) MuSchG. Checking and adapting the measures follows section 9(1) MuSchG. The organisational arrangement is a proposal to assess for this fictional case, not a universally applicable solution for childcare centres.

• Section 11(5) MuSchG: Physical strain (German)
• Section 9(1) MuSchG: Measures and effectiveness checks (German)

Further points remain open in this example

This selection is not a complete GDA checklist. The respective requirements for biological agents, hazardous substances and physical effects must be assessed separately. BGW describes possible infection exposure through specific activities and calls for a workplace-specific assessment; general minimum standards may be insufficient in an individual case.

• BGW: Infection protection in education and childcare, January 2025 (German)