Mobile Medical Service in Mexico Helps Businesses Implement NOM-035 Compliance

CERTOLAB, a Mexican provider of all-encompassing mobile onsite medical & diagnostics services for businesses nationwide, is furthering its mission of improving corporate compliance with federal labor laws, including implementation of the Mexican law NOM-035-STPS-2018, in an ultimate effort to improve the work culture & productivity of its clients.

What is NOM-035-STPS-2018?

NOM-035-STPS is a standard that requires companies to detect and prevent psychosocial risks that may arise in daily activities within the organization. Failing to comply with this rule can result in fines of more than 500,000 pesos.

Psychosocial Risk Factors at work are the psychological and social aspects that can negatively affect workers within an organization. They can be, for example, severe stress, anxiety or sleep disorders – depending on the type of position, type of working day, or exposure to severe traumatic events.

What are the employer’s obligations?

To establish and disseminate policies that promote:

• Commitment to preventing psychosocial risk factors
• Preventing workplace violence
• Promoting a culture that favors the work environment

What do workers commit to in NOM-035?

To comply with this standard, employees must:

Follow all of the preventive measures established by the employer to control psychosocial risk factors.

• Avoid practices that threaten the organizational climate and encourage acts of violence in the workplace
• Participate in the identification of psychosocial risk factors, and in evaluating the organizational environment
• One way to identify factors that are affecting your workforce is to create a work climate survey.

In NOM-035, what aspects of the workplace need to be evaluated?

To comply with this standard, it is important to evaluate aspects such as:

• Conditions in the work environment
• Workload
• Lack of control overwork
• Workdays and shift rotation that exceed the provisions of the Federal Labor Law
• Interference in work-family relations

How does one identify psychosocial risk factors at work?

NOM-035-STPS-2018 requires companies to take all preventive measures to control psychosocial risk factors; for example, by conducting employee surveys that identify these risk factors and assess the work environment.

Among the main psychosocial factors that can occur are:

• Workplace Violence
• Risk conditions in the work environment
• Specific risk working conditions
• Lack of decent working conditions
• Inadequate working environment

There are six methods that can facilitate identifying psychosocial issues in the work environment, for example:

• Qualitative study of the work environment
• Diagnostic study of safety and health at work
• Study of workloads
• Participation analysis
• Analysis of communication channels
• Social support analysis

NOM-035-STPS-2018 states that workplaces with 16 to 50 employees should only carry out the identification/analysis of psychosocial risk factors, including all employees. While workplaces with more than 50 employees must carry out both the identification/analysis of psychosocial risk factors and the evaluation of the organizational environment, these may be carried out with a representative sample.

By complying with NOM-035-STPS, you’ll develop a new culture of workplace wellness and create health programs that benefit employees. This positive culture creation is at the very heart of CERTOLAB’s business medical services, which are designed to maintain positive workplace health – making them a highly qualified team to help your company to comply with NOM-035.

Keep in mind that managing stress or burnout, as well as establishing flexible working hours, helps you to be happy at work and improve the productivity of your employees.

Since 2013, the International Labor Organization has noted that traditional threats to safety at work have been reduced; however, employees continue to affect workplace health. Therefore, the establishment of NOM-035 is imminent. Companies must attend to these indicators as of October 1, 2019, as “there’s no date that’s unmet, no deadline that expires, nor any debt unpaid.” 

When applying the Official Mexican Standard 035 of the Ministry of Labor and Social Security (STPS), it is possible to create a strong environment of high productivity and collaboration in workplaces, as applying NOM-035 implies developing talent, training organization, respect, and conserving a healthy work environment.

It is important to understand, then, that the application of NOM-035 is more than simply the work environment – it involves aspects not only of form, but of substance; i.e. managing and preventing threats to work schemes, such as work slowdowns and the harmful behaviors of toxic people.

Therefore, it is top priority to apply and understand the recommendations of NOM-035.

Summary: What Aspects Does NOM-035 Cover?

1. Preventing psychosocial risk factors
2. Preventing workplace violence
3. Preventing psychosocial risk factors that drive: social support, the dissemination of information and training.
4. The standard has secure and confidential systems for handling complaints about practices opposed to a favorable organizational environment, and for reporting acts of workplace violence.
5. Meetings to address areas for improvement, in order to analyze problems in the workplace and determine solutions.
6. Regarding social support: NOM-035 includes activities that allow the improvement of relations between workers, supervisors, managers, and employers so that they can exchange support with one another.
7. Promoting mutual aid and the exchange of knowledge and experiences among workers
8. Integration, through the organization of sports and / or recreational activities
9. Regarding recognition at work: NOM-035 has systems for the recognition of outstanding performance (above expectations) of workers.
10. Spreading & recognizing the achievements of outstanding workers.

How Can Companies Implement NOM-035?

With the preventative health services of CERTOLAB, companies can receive support with NOM-035 compliance, implementing and monitoring company policy.

CERTOLAB has a global company program for prevention, detection, and timely treatment. Taking and collecting samples with the chain of custody in toxicological and breathalyzer tests, which can be carried out either in your facilities or in CERTOLAB laboratories. This program aims to minimize accident risks, improve productivity and undesirable and risky behavior for your company.

Those wishing to learn more about CERTOLAB’s NOM-035 compliance program can contact the company online at its contact page, or by calling the customer service department at +52 1 55 58 72 46 52.

CERTOLAB has a national network for continuous branch services, with offices in Monterrey, Guadalajara, Queretaro, and Mexico City.

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