BG BAU funding
BG BAU occupational safety premiums
Working with large machines, on tall buildings and on shaky scaffolding every day is not without its dangers. Anyone who works in the construction industry knows that absolute caution is required in this environment. High-quality protective equipment is essential to ensure that construction workers are well equipped and to help prevent occupational accidents from happening in the first place. The BG BAU provides an occupational safety premium so that you do not have to bear the costs alone. This article explains to business owners how exactly they can obtain this funding, which requirements must be met and what funding amounts are available to them. We will answer these and other questions on this page.
Save money with the BG BAU occupational safety premium
Who can apply for funding from the BG BAU?
What kind of amounts can you expect from the BG BAU grant?
Step by step: How to obtain the BG BAU occupational safety premium
Why does the BG BAU offer an occupational safety premium?
You can obtain a BG BAU occupational safety premium for the following products
FAQ section: Further questions about the BG BAU occupational safety premium
Looking for more information about the BG BAU occupational safety premium or need help?
Save money with the BG BAU occupational safety premium
The German employers' liability insurance association for the construction industry (Berufsgenossenschaft der Bauwirtschaft, or BG BAU for short) is the body responsible for statutory accident insurance for the building trades and construction-related services in Germany. According to its articles of association, the duties of the BG BAU include promoting occupational safety and protecting health in business operations throughout the construction sector. But what else does the BG BAU do? The following responsibilities are discussed in detail:
- Prevention of occupational accidents and work-related illnesses and health hazards.
- Ensuring effective first aid in the event of accidents.
- Cover for the costs of property damage: The insurance cover also includes aids that employees need for their work, such as spectacles or hearing aids.
- Restoring the health and ability to work of the insured after an accident or work-related illness through appropriate measures.
- Financial security for the insured or their surviving dependants in the form of compensation payments.
In principle, the BG BAU wants to avoid occupational accidents on construction sites with its protection premium. To this end, the BG BAU works according to the motto: "Prevention before compensation" — since foresight is better than hindsight. Ultimately, even small acts of negligence on and around the construction site can result in severe injuries. With the aid of occupational safety premiums, the BG BAU aims to help companies equip their staff with products to protect their health.
Good to know
What is an occupational accident?
An occupational accident is an accident that occurs during an activity that is covered by statutory accident insurance. This can be both during work and on the way to work, in which case it is referred to as a commuting accident. This also includes unavoidable detours on the way to or from work. However, as soon as you interrupt your commute or working hours for private matters, you are no longer covered by accident insurance and any accidents that occur during this time do not fall under the category of occupational accidents. In addition, injuries or health impairments that occur by chance during the insured activity and not as a result of external influences, such as a heart attack, are not considered occupational accidents.
What employers' liability insurance associations are there?
As the name suggests, the BG BAU occupational safety premium applies to the construction industry. This industry includes, among others, building construction and civil engineering, interior finishing, and gardening and landscaping. However, the list of industries can be continued, which raises the question of further employers' liability insurance associations.
- BG RCI: Raw materials and chemical industry
- BG ETEM: Energy, textiles, electrical and media products
- BGHM: Wood and metal
- BGN: Food and restaurants
- BG BAU: Construction industry
- VBG: Administration
- BG Verkehr: Transport and transport industry
- BGW: Health service and welfare work
- BGHW: Trade and distribution of goods
Who can apply for funding from the BG BAU?
Only members of the BG BAU may apply for the various occupational safety premiums, namely:
- Commercial member companies of the BG BAU with one or more employees who have a complete annual wage statement from the previous year
- Commercially active sole traders who have voluntary insurance with the BG BAU
- The membership contributions to the BG BAU must amount to at least €100
What kind of amounts can you expect from the BG BAU grant?
Providing employees with personal protective equipment (PPE) is essential for every company, but it often poses a financial challenge. The BG BAU offers the occupational safety premium to support companies with procurement. It subsidises certain PPE measures with up to 50% of the purchase costs, however, maximum limits apply depending on the protective equipment:
- Safety spectacles: Maximum of €20 per item
- Safety helmets: Maximum of €30 per item
- Prescription safety spectacles: Maximum of €50 per item
- Hearing protection otoplastics: Maximum of €100 per item
How much is the maximum grant per year?
If you wish to submit an application for a BG BAU occupational safety premium, you should also familiarise yourself with some of the general conditions. The following guidelines apply to this construction site safety funding programme:
- A maximum amount per year is available to your company.
- The total sum available to you each year depends on your membership contributions to the BG BAU over the previous year.
- Once you have spent this amount, you will not receive any further funding for your measures for the rest of the year.
- The funding can range from €100 to €20,000
- As a business owner, you can take advantage of the BG BAU occupational safety premium for protective measures, equipment or PPE.
For detailed information on your annual grant amount and current balance, please get in touch with your relevant contact at the BG BAU.
Step by step: How to obtain the BG BAU occupational safety premium
Interested in this funding for your company and wondering how to apply for a BG BAU grant? We will explain the three most important steps to apply for the BG BAU occupational safety premium and thus ensure comprehensive occupational safety for the construction sector.
Buy products that are eligible for funding
You can purchase uvex products that are eligible for funding from our business shop or from retailers.
All products for which you can obtain a BG BAU occupational safety premium can be found below or in our BG BAU information flyer.
Good to know
When does the application for the BG BAU occupational safety premium have to be submitted?
Please note that the application must be made in the same year in which the product was purchased. The cut-off date is 1 January.
The invoice date on which you purchased the products is also relevant.
Why does the BG BAU offer an occupational safety premium?
The occupational accident statistics in Germany show that in 2023, on average, each employee was absent from work for 15.1 working days due to illness. By comparison, the average in 2021 was 11.2 working days. In addition, 783,426 reportable occupational accidents resulting in more than 3 days of incapacity to work were recorded in 2023. Each day that employees are absent results in costs for the company. These costs show why occupational safety on construction sites is so important. Apart from the physical well-being of employees, cost reduction is an important aspect of why the use of the BG BAU occupational safety premium makes sense for business owners in the construction industry.
The following costs of occupational accidents should be considered by business owners:
- During the first six weeks, the employer must continue to pay wages.
- Despite the absence, the salary must be paid in full.
- The relevant employers' liability insurance association will only provide the payout once the illness passes the six-week threshold.
- This is paid by the health insurance provider as injury benefit.
These are the expenses associated with continued wage payments.
In addition to the continued payment of wages, however, there are many other costs for the company:
- The costs of production downtime are the most serious here.
- No matter what industry you are in, a staff shortage means work is left undone.
- This means that planned services cannot be provided and the production schedule cannot be met.
- In 2023, the costs of production downtime due to incapacity to work in Germany in the area of "public and other service providers, education and health" amounted to €48.2 billion,€27.8 billion in the manufacturing industry and €6.9 billion in the construction industry.
- Service providers in the finance, insurance and business sectors also lost €14.4 billion.
In addition, further costs may be incurred:
- Additional costs are incurred for overtime and replacement staff, as well as for organising the work schedule and acquiring personnel.
- In the event of an occupational accident, the employer must also bear the costs of any property damage caused by the accident.
- If contractually agreed deadlines with customers cannot be met due to a staff shortage, the company is faced with contractual penalties.
- If the occupational accidents that occur in the company result in excessive costs for the employers' liability insurance association, the contribution can increase by up to 30%.
To protect themselves from these costs, reducing occupational accidents, protecting the insured and improving occupational safety is of high importance for the company and the employers' liability insurance association for the construction industry.
You can obtain a BG BAU occupational safety premium for the following products
As a business owner, it is important for you to know what the BG BAU pays for and for which components of personal protective equipment you will receive an additional payment. Here you will find an overview of protective items that are eligible for funding.
Important!
Please note that you can only obtain funding from the BG BAU for the uvex products that are listed here. Other uvex products are excluded from the funding scheme.
BG BAU funding for high-visibility shirts with UV protection (size L-6XL), certified in accordance with EN 20471 and tested in accordance with EN 13758
The BG BAU funding for high-visibility shirts is 50% of the procurement costs, up to a maximum of €30 per item.
BG BAU funding for safety spectacles with sun protection, certified in accordance with EN 166 and EN 172
The BG BAU grant for safety spectacles is 50% of the procurement costs, up to a maximum of €20 per item.
If you use the BG BAU occupational safety premium for a pair of uvex safety spectacles, your employees will receive above-average UV protection up to 400 nm, filtering out all UVA and UVB rays.
BG BAU funding for safety helmets with four-point chin strap and sun protection, certified in accordance with EN 397
If you apply for BG BAU funding for safety helmets, you will receive a reimbursement of 50% of the procurement costs, up to a maximum of €30 per item.
BG BAU funding for prescription safety spectacles, certified in accordance with EN 166
The BG BAU will pay 50% of the procurement costs of prescription safety spectacles, up to a maximum of €50 per item.
By requesting the covering of costs for prescription spectacles, you enable your employees to work safely with integrated prescription lenses. This eliminates the need to switch between overspecs and reading glasses in the work area.
BG BAU funding for otoplastics (hearing protection adapted to the individual user) with sound damping and recurring functional tests
For costs to be covered by the BG BAU for individual hearing protection, employers should be aware of the following conditions: The grant for otoplastics is 50% of the procurement costs, up to a maximum of €100 per item.
FAQ section: Further questions about the BG BAU occupational safety premium
The additional payment for protective equipment is an important aid for business owners in ensuring the safety of their employees. Therefore, it is important to ask further questions. You can find additional information about BG BAU funding here.
On average, up to 850,000 occupational accidents occur in Germany every year. Every occupational accident is associated with high costs, depending on the circumstances. In Germany, there is a statutory accident insurance scheme to ensure that employees do not have to bear these and possible consequential costs themselves. Every employee receives this insurance cover, regardless of their salary. In addition to employees, the following groups of people are also compulsorily insured:
- Apprentices
- Volunteers
- Aid workers, blood donors, witnesses
- First responders
- Self-employed people in agriculture — including family workers
- Development aid workers
- People in rehabilitation
- Domestic caregivers
- Unemployed persons who, at the request of the employment agency, visit the agency or job centres
- Children in day care centres, pupils and students at schools and universities
Since 2015, the administrative employers' liability insurance association (VBG) has been subsidising a wide range of measures to prevent occupational accidents as part of its new premium system. This includes personal protective equipment (PPE), covering up to 40% of the procurement costs. The funding is aimed exclusively at companies in selected industries whose accident rates and average accident occurrence are at least 50% higher than the VBG average.
The VBG premium catalogue details all the industries and measures that are eligible for funding. We have summarised the most interesting premiums for you below.
- Security companies in risk category 07:
To counteract the increased risk of accidents caused by slipping, tripping or falling, the VBG subsidises, among other things, ankle-high safety shoes and boots in protection class S3 (EN ISO 20345:2011) by covering 40% of the procurement costs. - Glass industry, heavy ceramics and fine ceramics in risk categories 17, 18 and 19:
In the glass processing and ceramics industry, there is an increased risk of injury to eyes and ears. For this reason, VBG subsidises individually adapted personal protective equipment such as prescription safety spectacles and otoplastics (adapted hearing protection), covering 40 % of the procurement costs. - Temporary employment agencies/personnel service providers in risk category 15:
Here, too, the VBG covers 40% of the procurement costs of individually adapted personal protective equipment such as prescription safety glasses and otoplastics (adapted hearing protection).
For uvex customers with a framework agreement in the field of temporary employment, the application process with the VBG is especially simple:
- At the end of the year, you will receive an invoice journal that has been agreed with the VBG.
- This shows how many pairs of prescription safety spectacles have been charged to you by uvex.
- This means that you do not have to search for and submit any individual invoices to VBG.
- To apply for the premium, all you need is this journal in conjunction with the application and the supporting documents for the other funding measures utilised.
If you would like to become a uvex framework agreement customer, simply get in touch.
Already familiar with the topic of occupational accidents and how you can avoid them in your company? Read more about STF accidents on our blog and find out about other funding opportunities in the field of occupational safety, e.g. otoplastics, inserts for safety shoes and industrial safety helmets.
Looking for more information about the BG BAU occupational safety premium or need help?
Download Info-Flyer
You can download our flyer about BG BAU occupational safety premiums here.
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Our service team will be happy to help you further.
Telephone: +49 800 66 44 893
E-Mail: serviceteam@uvex.de
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You can download our flyer about MIPS safety helmets here.