The sector's Joint Industry Board (JIB) run by Unite and the ECA has brokered the free assessments for employees of its member companies covered by the JIB's benefits scheme. Operatives will be able to receive a funded OHA every three years.
Four occupational health providers will provide the assessments: Clarity Healthcare, Express Medicals, RPS Group and Sarsen Health. Companies will be able to choose the most convenient provider and location.
An occupational health physician from one of the providers will carry out a medical examination then advise the employer on the employee's health and make recommendations for adjustments to ensure a safe/healthy working environment. The examination can also be an assessment of the individual's fitness for work.
The assessments will cover ten fitness for work and health metrics, including respiratory function, hearing, skin health, blood pressure and mental health/workplace stress. The JIB says the OHAs are designed to help employers identify the steps needed to ensure the health and wellbeing of employees and can provide the individual with early signs of any health issues, which can be effectively managed and prevented.
Paul Reeve, director of business at the ECA, said: "Though the individual data will be confidential, we will increasingly be able to collect, and report on, a range of industry-wide occupational health metrics."
