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Article 1 - Definitions
Article 2 - Inventory
Article 3 - Implementation of a health screening system
Article 4 - Practical arrangements for the medical examinations
Article 5 - Purpose and nature of the medical examinations
Article 6 - Conclusions of the medical officer
Article 7 - Appeals
Article 8 - Follow-up to the medical conclusions
Article 9 - Consequences of refusal to attend the medical examination
Article 10 - Entry into force

Internal rules on health screening for security, vigilance and defined-risk posts occupied by officials and other servants

THE SECRETARY-GENERAL OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT,

HAVING REGARD TO the Staff Regulations of officials of the European Union (hereinafter 'the Staff Regulations') and to the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants of the European Union (hereinafter 'the CEOS'), and in particular to Article le(2) of the Staff Regulations and Articles 10, 80(4) and 126(2) of the CEOS;

HAVING REGARD TO the Bureau decision of 13 January 2014 on the delegation of the powers of the appointing authority and of the authority empowered to conclude contracts of employment (hereinafter 'the AECE');

HAVING REGARD TO Council Directive 89/391/EEC of 12 June 1989 on the introduction of measures to encourage improvements in the safety and health of workers at work [ OJ L183, 29.06.1989.];

WHEREAS it is in the interests both of the persons who hold security, vigilance or definedrisk posts and of the persons who rely on them to carry out their duties that physical fitness to perform security or vigilance work or to occupy a defined-risk post should regularly be assessed by means of medical examinations specifically arranged for that purpose and carried out by Parliament's medical officer (hereinafter 'the medical officer');

WHEREAS appropriate health and safety standards can only be upheld if the relevant medical examinations are compulsory and if refusal to attend is regarded as serious misconduct which may give rise to disciplinary measures;

WHEREAS the special medical examinations for holders of security, vigilance and definedrisk posts meet requirements specific to the duties concerned and are therefore separate from the annual medical examinations provided for in Article 59(6) of the Staff Regulations and Articles 16, 91 and 131(5) of the CEOS, which may be carried out by a doctor of the staff member's choosing;

WHEREAS it is for the directorates-general to comply with the appropriate health and safety standards by assigning to security, vigilance and defined-risk posts only officials and other servants who have been declared medically fit to perform the duties involved;

Having consulted the Legal Service, the Advisory Committee on Prevention and Protection at Work, the Staff Committee, the Committee on Equal Opportunities and Diversity and the Data Protection Officer;

HAS ADOPTED THESE INTERNAL RULES:
Article 1 - Definitions

For the purposes of these Internal Rules:
'security post' means any post involving duties which, if not performed properly, may seriously jeopardise the health and safety of the staff member occupying the post, other staff members or third parties;
'vigilance post' means any post involving duties which consist of the constant monitoring of the functioning of an installation, where a lack of vigilance may seriously jeopardise the health and safety of other staff members or third parties;
'defined-risk post' means any post in respect of which a risk analysis reveals the existence of:
a) an identifiable risk to the health of a staff member stemming from exposure to a physical, biological or chemical agent;
b) a link between exposure to ergonomic constraints or constraints associated with the strenuous or the monotonous and repetitive nature of the duties to be performed and an identifiable physical or mental risk to the staff member concerned;
' medical fitness' means an assessment that the holder of a defined-risk post is physically and mentally capable of coping with the risks inherent in the duties involved and that the state of health of the holder of a security or vigilance post is such that he or she does not pose a danger to others.

Article 2 - Inventory

1) Security, vigilance and defined-risk posts shall be listed in an inventory drawn up by the Head of the Prevention and Well-being at Work Unit in cooperation with the heads of the medical services in Brussels and Luxembourg, who shall assess the inventory and modify it whenever it is deemed necessary, and at least once every three years. The inventory, which is annexed to these Internal Rules, includes only posts occupied by officials and other servants, and not those occupied by employees of outside firms.

2) The inventory shall stipulate, for each type of post, the frequency with which the holder of the post concerned must undergo the medical examination to assess medical fitness referred to in Article 4. For certain jobs, that frequency shall also be fixed on the basis of the age of the holder of the post. For some holders of posts in the inventory, the heads of the medical services referred to in paragraph 1 may shorten the period of validity of the assessment of medical fitness to perform the relevant duties.

Article 3 - Implementation of a health screening system

A person may not be assigned to or retained in a security, vigilance or defined-risk post if he or she has not been declared medically fit to perform the relevant duties by the medical officer. A health screening system for security, vigilance and defined-risk posts shall therefore be implemented.

Article 4 Practical arrangements for the medical examinations

1) The health screening system shall consist of regular medical examinations to assess medical fitness organised by the medical services. Staff members who fail to attend shall be liable to disciplinary measures.

2) In order to enable the medical services to organise these medical examinations properly, the Resource Directors in the directorates-general concerned shall forward to them, before 1 February each year, the list of security, vigilance and defined-risk posts drawn up by their respective directorates-general in accordance with the inventory referred to in Article 2, giving the full name, staff number and administrative address of the holders of the posts in question.

3) The medical services shall ensure that the regular medical examinations to be undergone by the staff members concerned are scheduled at least three months prior to the expiry of the period of validity of the assessment of physical fitness provided for in Article 6(2). The medical examinations shall be carried out during the normal working hours of the medical services.

4) In consultation with the Medical Leave Service and the directorate-general concerned, the medical services may carry out medical examinations to assess medical fitness in cases where the holder of a post is returning to work following a period during which he or she was declared temporarily unfit for work and where that temporary unfitness might continue to have a bearing on the vigilance and security requirements of the post occupied.

5) Following a period of sick leave of at least 28 consecutive days, the holder of a post shall be required to undergo a medical examination before returning to work.

6) Where justified for medical reasons, the medical officer may independently decide to require the official or other servant to undergo a medical examination and, where appropriate, revoke or suspend the certificate of fitness for work.

7) Following the examination, a certificate shall be drawn up stating that the holder of a post is either fit or unfit for work. The certificate shall be placed in the post holder's personal file and forwarded without delay to the directorate-general concerned.

Article 5 - Purpose and nature of the medical examinations

1) The purpose of the medical examinations is to identify possible medical contraindications in order to:
- ensure that certain duties are not performed by persons who, owing to their state of health, would be unable to cope with the risks involved;
- ensure that certain duties are not performed by persons who have a serious medical condition and thus pose a danger to the security of others;
- detect as early as possible occupational diseases and work-related medical conditions;
- contribute to research into and the study of risk factors that may give rise to occupational diseases and work-related medical conditions.

2) The medical examinations shall consist of:
- a review of the staff member's medical history tailored to his or her working conditions;
- a comprehensive clinical examination tailored to the risks he or she faces.

3) The list of specific medical examinations to be carried out for each job is available from the medical service.

4) If necessary, the medical officer may decide to have additional examinations carried out by specialists. Fees and ancillary expenses in connection with additional examinations ordered by the medical officer as part of the regular medical examination shall be borne by Parliament.

Article 6 - Conclusions of the medical officer

1) Following the medical examination, the medical officer shall conclude:
- either that the holder of the post in question is medically fit to perform the duties involved;
- or that the holder of the post in question is temporarily or permanently medically unfit to perform the duties involved.

2) If the conclusion is that the holder of a post is medically fit to perform his or her duties, the medical officer shall stipulate the period of validity of that assessment, which may be equal to or shorter than the relevant period set in the inventory referred to in Article 2. The medical officer may make recommendations and proposals concerning the conditions subject to which the post in question may be occupied and any special arrangements required. The medical officer shall notify the conclusion to the person concerned and, without revealing any medical information, to his or her immediate superior, to the Resources director and the head of the personnel unit concerned and to the Director for HR Support and Social Services.

3) If the conclusion is that the holder of the post is medically unfit to perform his or her duties, the medical officer may propose a transfer to a post better suited to the state of health of the holder of the post. The medical officer shall notify the conclusion to the person concerned and, without revealing any medical details, to the staff member's immediate superior, to the Resources director and the head of the personnel unit concerned and the Director for HR Support and Social Services. Pending a decision by the latter in accordance with Article 8(2), the official or other servant may not carry out the duties he or she has been declared unfit to perform.

Article 7 - Appeals

1) If the medical examination provided for in Article 4 gives rise to a medical opinion that the holder of a post is medically unfit to perform his or her duties, within 20 calendar days of notification of the opinion he or she may submit a written request to the Director for HR Support and Social Services asking for his or her case to be put to a medical committee. The committee shall consist of three doctors appointed by the Director for HR Support and Social Services from among the medical officers of the European institutions. The medical officer who issued the negative opinion shall be heard by the medical committee. The staff member concerned may submit to the medical committee an opinion issued by a doctor of his or her choosing.

2) Fees and ancillary expenses in connection with tests requested by the medical committee shall be borne by Parliament. Fees and ancillary expenses in connection with consultations and examinations requested by the staff member concerned or by his or her doctor shall be borne by the staff member.

3) The appeal procedure shall have no suspensory effect on the decision of the medical officer.

Article 8 - Follow-up to the medical conclusions

1) On the basis of the conclusions of the medical officer or, where appropriate, the medical committee referred to in Article 7, the Director for HR Support and Social Services shall take the measures required and notify them to the person concerned, to his or her immediate superior and to the Resources director and the head of the personnel unit concerned.

2) If the medical conclusions deem the holder of a post unfit to perform his or her duties, the Director for HR Support and Social Services shall immediately request that a transfer decision be taken by the appointing authority/AECE. If, in the meantime, the holder of a post cannot safely continue to perform his or her duties, until the transfer takes effect he or she may automatically be placed on leave in accordance with the first subparagraph of Article 59(5) of the Staff Regulations.

3) The staff member concerned may challenge the decision to place him or her on leave automatically by submitting a request for arbitration in accordance with the second subparagraph of Article 59(5) of the Staff Regulations.

Article 9 - Consequences of refusal to attend the medical examination

1) If the holder of a security, vigilance or defined-risk post has failed to respond to two invitations to attend the medical examination to assess medical fitness referred to in Article 4, and has no verifiable, overriding reasons for so doing, the Director for HR Support and Social Services shall immediately inform the staff member's immediate superior and the Resources director and the head of the personnel unit concerned.

2) Without prejudice to any disciplinary proceedings that may be brought, and pending the organisation of the medical examination to assess medical fitness, the official or other servant may not perform the relevant duties or tasks and any entitlement to allowances linked to their performance shall be suspended with immediate effect.

Article 10 - Entry into force

1) These Internal Rules shall enter into force on the first day of the second month following the month in which they are signed.

2) The Internal Rules on health screening for security and vigilance posts adopted by decision of the Secretary-General of 12 March 2008 are repealed.

Klaus WELLE