Introduction
National strategies are vital policy instruments to enhance the effectiveness of an OSH system by defining the key priorities and actions for improving workers’ health and safety.
The Commission called on the Member States to update and draw up their national OSH strategies in line with the EU Strategic Framework on Health and Safety at Work 2021-2027 - in cooperation with social partners - to ensure that the new measures are applied on the ground.
In the Czech Republic, safety, health and well-being at work fall primarily within the competences of the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, which also takes care of the dialogue with social partners and the Ministry of Health of the Czech Republic.
The key national legislation is the Labour Code of 2006 (as amended)[1], which contains detailed health and safety provisions, and the Labour Inspection Act 2005[2].
The National OSH policy was approved by Government Resolution 707 of 24 September 2025. It followed up on a document approved by the Government of the Czech Republic by Resolution No. 920 of 27 July 2008. The national OSH policy is the basis for the creation of a systemic approach to the issue of OSH. The Council of the Government for Safety and Health at Work (Rada vlády pro bezpečnost a ochranu zdraví při práci - Rada vlády pro BOZP) is a permanent advisory body of the Government of the Czech Republic in the field of occupational safety and health at work. The Council is primarily responsible for coordinating the national OSH strategy in the Czech Republic. The Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs serves as the chairperson[3].
More information on the various OSH systems can be found in the relevant OSHwiki articles on national OSH systems.
Basic information
The current OSH policy and the related Action Programme:
Národní politika BOZP (National OSH Policy)[4]
Národní akční program bezpečnosti a ochrany zdraví při práci pro období 2025-2026 National OSH Action Programme for the period 2025-2026[5]
The National OSH Action Programme for the period 2025-2026 came into effect on 26 November 2025.
Former OSH Action Programmes/strategies:
- Národní akční program bezpečnosti a ochrany zdraví při práci pro období 2019 – 2020[6]
- Národní akční program bezpečnosti a ochrany zdraví při práci pro období 2017 –2018[7]
- Národní akční program bezpečnosti a ochrany zdraví při práci pro období 2015 –2016[8]
Background and the perceived problem
The subject of the National OSH Policy is to reflect overall the changes in the work environment, the emergence of new fields, forms of employment and new occupational risks, as well as the need to respond to unexpected crisis phenomena.
VISION
- Health and safety at work is a value and is important for health, quality of life and life itself
- Health and safety at work is an integral part of both the public and private interests
- Health and safety at work is an integral part of education and lifelong learning
PRINCIPLES
- OSH is an important part of the state’s social policy.
- The strategy should be discussed and enforced in concert by ministries, public administrations and social partners.
- The OSH framework shapes the functional institutional structure, cooperation of institutions and bodies (including international), a system of tools for the application and enforcement of policy (legislative, control, economic, information, education, awareness-raising, scientific research).
- Preventing the reduction of established social standards, deterioration of working conditions (occurrence of risks, accidents at work, diseases related to work, stress, bullying, violence, discrimination) and the general state of OSH.
- Creating information support for SMEs, in particular through awareness-raising and promotional tools - clear interpretations of legislation, guidance, practical examples of meeting requirements for a specific type of business and work activity.
- Finding a suitable distribution channel of this information for owners and management of SMEs so that they actually receive and use it in practice.
- Rejecting the efforts of owners and capital to simplify OSH regulations in the sense of reducing standards and reducing the protection of employees (including efforts to enforce another “metre” for the assessment of OSH in SMEs).
Main characteristics and objectives of the National OSH Policy and National OSH Programme 2025-2026
The main strategic objectives of the National OSH Policy are in particular:
- to prevent high social and economic losses caused by accidents at work and occupational diseases;
- to ensure satisfactory, safe and healthy working conditions for employees, promoting a positive work culture and thus increasing the work capacity of each worker;
- to strengthen competitiveness, productivity and increase economic performance by improving labour conditions and motivating employers and employees to promote economic growth and employment.
The strategic objectives are reflected in ten priorities of the National OSH Policy, which are:
Priority No. 1 – Prevention of occupational risks
Priority No. 2 – Protection of specific groups of people
Priority No. 3 – Mitigation or elimination of the consequences of occupational health and safety
Priority No. 4 – Education and training in the field of occupational health and safety
Priority No. 5 – Research and development
Priority No. 6 – Information and consultancy
Priority No. 7 – Awareness and promotion
Priority No. 8 – Activities of state administration control bodies
Priority No. 9 – Cooperation between authorities, institutions, social partners and the professional public
Priority No. 10 – Foreign and international cooperation
The implementation of the priorities is carried out through the National Action Plan of OSH, which is processed in the form of specific tasks.
The priorities of the National OSH Policy represent a long-term strategic plan. The National OSH Action Programme serves as a practical implementation tool. The priorities define what needs to be addressed, while the Action Programme specifies how this will be done, defining specific tasks, deadlines, responsible authorities, and measurable steps toward achieving the goals.
Details of the strategy and activity plan
Axis description - National OSH Policy
Priority No. 1 – Prevention of occupational risks
Identification, assessment and management of occupational risks
Objective 1.1: Improve the level of occupational risks prevention.
- Occupational health services
- Multidisciplinary services in risk prevention
Objective 1.2 To ensure the quality of occupational health services.
Objective 1.3 Ensure the provision of quality multidisciplinary services in the prevention of occupational risks
Priority No. 2 – Protection of specific groups of people
Persons with disabilities
Objective 1.3: Revise existing methodologies containing guidelines for creating appropriate working conditions with regard to disabilities (e.g. hearing, vision, immobility) and make them accessible to practice.
- Older workers
- High-risk work
- Agency employees and foreign workers
- Pupils, students and young employees
- Gender dimension of OSH
Objective 2.2: Within the framework of human resources development, it is necessary to implement measures to take into account the specific needs of older workers from an occupational health and safety perspective
Objective 2.3: To reduce high-risk work and the number of workers carrying it out.
Objective 2.4: Ensure that these persons are familiar with legal and other OSH regulations and with the risks associated with the activities they perform
Objective 2.5: Monitor trends and ensure the physical and mental health of students during education and related activities.
Objective 2.6: Cross-cutting application of the gender dimension of OSH:
- Analyse the specifics of occupational safety and health protection from a gender perspective;
- Implement awareness-raising campaigns among employers, employees and the general public about the gender dimension of occupational health.
Priority No. 3 – Mitigating or eliminating the consequences of work-related health damage – rehabilitation
Objective 3: Develop new legislation on rehabilitation for injured employees within the framework of the compensation scheme for work-related accidents and occupational diseases.
Priority No. 4 – Education and training in the field of occupational health and safety
Education and training of children, pupils and students
Objective 4.1: Continue to support the teaching of the basics of physical education to students in schools in the following ways and forms: appropriate to the age and focus of the school, using existing research results.
- OSH training – employees and self-employed persons
Objective 4.2: Within the framework of the legal obligations regarding OSH training, focus primarily on
- the quality of the training, with an emphasis on occupational risks, risk factors in the working environment and their prevention in specific circumstances, as well as the accessibility of such training;
- increasing the level of OSH knowledge among self-employed persons
Training of OSH specialists
Objective 4.3: Ensure a high standard of Training for practitioners.
Continue to set basic requirements for the professional knowledge and skills of professionally qualified persons.
Priority No. 5 – Research and development
Objective 5.1: Ensure support for research and development in the field of OSH in line with changes in the labour market, the occurrence of existing, new and potential risks, and demographic developments, and create conditions for the implementation of research findings into practice.
Priority No. 6 – Information and consultancy
6.1 Comprehensive information services
Objective 6.1: Make available in a way that enables comprehensive remote and digital access in the field:
- current legal and professional technical information;
- research and development results and new information sources;
- information about educational and training programs and projects.
6.2 Providing information and advice to small and medium-sized entrepreneurs
Objective 6.2: Specifically focus on small and medium-sized enterprises and self-employed persons and create a knowledge base for them to prevent risks.
Priority No. 7 – Awareness and promotion
Objective 7: Focus on preventing new risks and improving working conditions, raising awareness of potential risks and promoting conditions that create employee well-being, including in the digital environment. Target youth, older workers, men and women, and small, medium and micro-enterprises.
Priority No. 8 – Activities of state administration control bodies
8.1 Cooperation between supervisory authorities
Objective 8.1: Promote greater cooperation in the inspection activities of administrative authorities operating in the field of OSH, their mutual interconnection in inspection programmes, digitalisation of processes, which will make their activities more efficient, as well as a focus on continuous training of professional staff of inspection bodies and on the exchange of experience, including international ones.
8.2 Labour inspection bodies
Objective 8.2: Participate in more effective and efficient control activities to reduce the number of occupational accidents.
8.3. Occupational Health and Safety Authorities
Objective 8.3: Contribute to prevent work-related harm to workers' health, to contribute to improve their state of health, to promote a healthy lifestyle, to improve or, where appropriate, maintain their fitness for work, and to ensure the long-term maintenance of their ability to work.
8.4 Personnel stabilisation of inspection bodies State
Objective 8.4: Increase the wage budgets of the state administration bodies responsible for monitoring compliance with obligations in the field of health and safety at work, with the aim of stabilising their staffing levels.
Priority No. 9 – Cooperation between authorities, institutions, social partners and the professional public
9.1 Cooperation at the national level
Objective 9.1: Implement cooperation between the state, social partners and professional institutions operating in the field of occupational health and safety at the national level.
9.2 Cooperation at the regional level
Objective 9.2: Implement cooperation at regional level involving all relevant authorities, in particular the Regional Labour Inspectorates, Regional Public Health Offices, the Technical Inspection Authority of the Czech Republic, the Railway Authority and the Czech Mining Authority.
9.3 Collaboration at company level
Objective 9.3: Promote effective cooperation between employers, employees and their representatives at company level, including the self-employed.
Priority No. 10 – Foreign and international cooperation
Objective 10: Promote cooperation and the use of best practice examples and approaches to address OSH at the level of international organisations such as EU-OSHA (European Agency for Safety and Health at Work), ACHS (Advisory Committee on Safety and Health at Work), ETUI (European Trade Union Institute), ICOH (International Commission on Occupational Health), UEMS Occupational Medicine (Union of European Medical Specialists in Occupational Medicine) and EASOM (European Association of Schools of Occupational Medicine), MODERNET (Monitoring trends in Occupational Diseases and tracing new and Emerging Risks in a NETwork), the European Society for Environmental and Occupational Medicine (EOM), and the Collegium Ramazzini (an international academy of experts in occupational medicine).
Axis description – National Action Programme for the period 2025 - 2026
- Securing funding for the OSH system
Setting up an OSH funding system that would enable the implementation of preventive measures within the meaning of the provisions of Section 320a, letter b) of Act No. 262/2006 Coll., the Labor Code, as amended, and the fulfilment of the set goals of the National OSH Policy.
Responsible: Medicine: Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs, Finance, Social Partners
Cooperation:Ministry of Health, Ministry of Education, Youth, Trade and Industry, relevant insurance companies providing compensation
- Legal framework
Revision of existing legislation – clarification of legal regulations.
Responsible: Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs, Education, Youth, and Sports, Ministry of Industry and Trade
Cooperation: State Labour Inspection Office, Czech Mining Office, other relevant departments, social partners
- Occupational Health Services
1. Analyse the state of education in the field of occupational medicine, including an assessment of the possibility of returning the field of occupational medicine to the basic fields of specialised medical education
Responsible: Ministry of Health
Cooperation: professional societies of the Czech Medical University of Prague, Institutes Postgraduate Education
2. Develop and publish an educational programme for the field of occupational medicine
Responsible: Ministry of Health
3. Carry out an analysis of the legal status of the labour law implications of the validity (binding nature) of medical reports
Responsible: Ministry of Health, Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs;
Cooperation: Ministry of Justice
- Rehabilitation after work injury and occupational disease
1. Prepare documents for the preparation of legal regulations on rehabilitation for injured persons (employees) within the system of compensation for work-related accidents and occupational diseases.
Responsible: Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs
Cooperation: Ministry of Health, social partners and compensation providers (relevant insurance companies)
- Safety and health protection of children, pupils and students
1. Update the methodological recommendations on the safety of children, pupils and students in schools and educational facilities
Responsible: Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports
Cooperation: Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, Ministry of Health
- Research and development
1. Map the lists of occupational diseases in EU countries and compare them with the national list of occupational diseases (NzP) and criteria for diagnosing these diseases and verifying occupational exposure. Focus on new risks in workplaces that lead to occupational health damage, the threat of occupational diseases and the development of occupational diseases. Draft update of Government Decree 506/2021 Coll., amending Government Decree No. 290/1995 Coll., establishing the list of occupational diseases, as amended.
2. Creation of national Best Practices and Operational Recommendations (OD) in the National Institute for Quality and Excellence in Healthcare (NIKEZ) system, for the recognition of selected new diseases, occupational diseases (e.g. post-COVID-19, burnout syndrome, lumbar spine disease from vibration) and to assess the justification for a possible expansion of the classification of occupational diseases (e.g. LS spine disease from overuse).
Responsible: Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs in cooperation with social partners
Cooperation: Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, Ministry of Health, National Institute of Public Health (SZU) and professional societies of the Czech Medical Association of J.E. Purkyně, Institute of Postgraduate Education
- Education, awareness and promotion in the field of OSH
1. Prepare pilot awareness, education and promotional programs for small and medium-sized enterprises. Subsequently, prepare an overview of the use of virtual reality, artificial intelligence, social networks and other approaches, possible limits, benefits.
Responsible: Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs for coordination and social partners
Cooperation: Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, Tate Labour Inspection Service (SUIP), representatives of individual departments, compensation providers
Actors and stakeholders
The National Action Programme is prepared in cooperation with the Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs, Education and Youth, other ministries and central administrative authorities, social partners and experts represented in the Government Council for Occupational Safety and Health and is approved by the Government Council for Occupational Safety and Health.
The implementation of the objectives defined in the National OSH Policy is carried out through the National OSH Action Programme, which is processed in the form of specific tasks by the Government Council for OSH, a permanent advisory body of the Government of the Czech Republic.
Resources and time frame
The current National OSH Programme covers the period from 2025 - 2026
Strategic monitoring
The National OSH Policies is monitored through the periodic National Action Programmes that set specific short-term objectives, timelines, and reporting frameworks.
Indicators
Following indicators are recorded annually:
- Total number of work-related accidents, Incidence rate
- Fatal accidents at work
- Serious accidents at work
- Injury rate
- Number of work-related diseases
The implementation of the objectives of the National OSH Policy and the fulfilment of its priorities through short-term national programmes are continuously monitored and evaluated. A report on the implementation is submitted annually to the Government of the Czech Republic as part of the annual report dealing with the activities of the Government Council for Occupational Safety and Health.
Relationship to EU Strategic Framework on health and safety at work 2021-2027
All key objective of the EU strategic framework are covered by the National OSH Policy and implemented by the National OSH Programme, for Example
Key objective 1 of the EU Strategic Framework (Anticipating and managing change) is covered by the National OSH Policy Priority Nr. 1 - Prevention of occupational risks, Priority No. 5 – Research and development and the National OSH Programme Action IV
Key objective 2 of the EU Strategic Framework (Improving prevention of work-related diseases and accidents) is covered for example by the National OSH Policy Priority Nr. 1 - Prevention of occupational risks
Key objective 3 of the EU Strategic Framework (Increasing preparedness – responding rapidly to threats): Preparedness for crisis situations and strengthening the overall resilience of the system is one of the most important pillars of the current National OHS Policy. The purpose is to reflect changes in the working environment, the emergence of new fields, forms of employment and new occupational risks, as well as the need to respond to unexpected crisis phenomena. In the national strategy, this preparedness is anchored at several specific levels for example in the National OSH Programme Action VI.
