Risk factor

What is a risk factor?

Law 31/1995 does not expressly define the risk factor, but the concept is implicit in its definition of working conditions (Article 4.7), which encompasses any characteristic of work with a significant influence on the generation of risks, and in the requirement that the assessment identify hazardous elements and the conditions that make them hazardous. Royal Decree 39/1997 uses equivalent expressions when requiring that the assessment consider the nature of the activity, the characteristics of the jobs and the workers, and the existing or planned working conditions.

Distinguishing between related concepts is useful for accurate assessment. A hazard is a source with the intrinsic capacity to cause harm (a machine with moving parts, a toxic chemical, working at height). Risk is the combination of the probability of harm occurring and its severity. A risk factor is a condition that increases that probability or severity: the absence of machine guards, handling the product without proper extraction, working at height without collective protection. Risk factors are, therefore, the direct target of preventive measures, because modifying them reduces risk without necessarily eliminating the hazard.

In practice, risk factors are grouped by preventive disciplines: workplace safety (material and process conditions), industrial hygiene (environmental agents and exposure), ergonomics (physical and mental workload, workstation design), and psychosocial factors (organization, content, and relationships of work). Many factors act in combination, and their combined effect can be greater than the sum of the individual effects.

Types of risk factors

• Safety. Workspaces and surfaces, openings and uneven surfaces, machinery and tools, electrical installations, vehicles and lifting equipment, storage, fire and explosion, workplace housekeeping , signage.
• Environmental or hygienic factors. Chemical agents (concentration, route of entry, exposure time), physical agents (noise, vibrations, temperature, radiation, lighting) and biological agents, along with handling and ventilation conditions.
• Ergonomics. Awkward postures , repetitive movements, manual handling of loads, application of forces, workstation design, visual display screens and mental workload.
• Psychosocial factors. Psychological demands, autonomy, social support, quality of leadership, role clarity, working time, recognition, insecurity, violence and harassment.
• Organizational and management issues. Lack of training and information, non-existent or inadequate procedures, time pressure, uncoordinated subcontracting, poor maintenance, and a weak preventative culture.
• Individual factors. Special sensitivity, experience, age, health status, fatigue, and substance use modulate the effect of environmental factors and must be considered in the assessment without blaming the person.

Identification and control

• Identification. Checklists, observation of actual work, task analysis, interviews, study of accidents and incidents, and environmental measurements.
• Assessment. Estimation of exposure (intensity, frequency, duration) and its relationship to damage, using general or specific methods depending on the discipline.
• Hierarchy of control. Eliminate the factor at its source, replace it, apply collective technical and organizational measures, and only lastly individual protection and training, in accordance with Article 15 of Law 31/1995.
• Monitoring. Exposure and compliance indicators, reassessment in response to changes, and effectiveness analysis.
• Interactions. Consideration of the combination of factors (e.g., noise and ototoxic substances, heat and physical workload, shift work and emotional demands).

Organizational application: how to manage risk factors

1. Identify the risk factors of each position and task with the participation of the people who perform them, covering the four preventive disciplines and organizational factors.
2. Assess exposure and prioritize factors according to their contribution to risk and the number of people affected.
3. Define measures following the control hierarchy and assign them in the preventive planning with responsible parties, deadlines and resources.
4. Incorporate risk factor analysis into accident and incident investigations to identify underlying causes.
5. Measure and monitor relevant factors (environmental measurements, organizational indicators, health surveillance) and review the assessment in response to changes.
6. Train managers and staff in identifying risk factors and communicating poor conditions.
7. Document the relationship between each factor, the assessed risk, and the measures taken to maintain traceability.

Preventive management software allows you to maintain a catalog of risk factors by position and center, relate them to assessments, measures and incidents, and track their evolution with indicators.

Limits and common mistakes

1. Confusing risk factor with hazard or risk and assessing inaccurately.
2. Focus on visible material factors and omit organizational, psychosocial, and individual ones.
3. Attributing accidents to individual factors (carelessness, recklessness) without analyzing environmental and organizational factors.
4. Act on the person (PPE, instructions) when it is possible to eliminate or reduce the factor at its source.
5. Ignoring the interactions between factors that amplify risk.
6. Do not re-evaluate after changes in process, equipment or organization that introduce new factors.

The identification and assessment of risk factors is the responsibility of prevention technicians with the appropriate specialization; this sheet is for informational purposes only.

Regulatory framework in Spain

• Law 31/1995, articles 4, 15 and 16. Definitions of occupational risk and working conditions, principles of preventive action and risk assessment.
• Royal Decree 39/1997, articles 3 to 7. Risk assessment: content, procedure and review.
• Basic guidelines for occupational risk assessment, INSST (2021) . Reference document on hazard identification, risk factors and risk estimation.
• Directive 89/391/EEC, Articles 6 and 9. General principles of risk prevention and assessment.
• ISO 45001. Hazard identification and risk and opportunity assessment in the management system.

The World Health Organization and the International Labour Organization use the concept of occupational risk factor in their estimates of disease burden; in Colombia, GTC 45 classifies hazards and risk factors for identification in the SG-SST.