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Directive 2013/35/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 June 2013 on the Minimum Health and Safety Requirements Regarding the Exposure of Workers to the Risks Arising from Physical Agents (Electromagnetic Fields)

Preview: Learn more about Directive 2013/35/EU and the European Union requirements for protecting workers from electromagnetic-field risks.

Directive 2013/35/EU establishes minimum European Union requirements for protecting workers from risks arising from electromagnetic fields between 0 Hz and 300 GHz. It is the twentieth individual directive made under the EU occupational-safety framework established by Directive 89/391/EEC. The Directive was adopted on 26 June 2013, repealed Directive 2004/40/EC, and required Member States to transpose its requirements into national law by 1 July 2016.

Unlike Council Recommendation 1999/519/EC, which concerns the general public and is not binding legislation, Directive 2013/35/EU creates obligations that Member States must implement through national law. Employers are therefore subject to the national legislation transposing the Directive, together with any more protective national requirements and the general duties of the EU workplace-safety framework.

Purpose and scope

The Directive addresses risks to workers’ health and safety arising from known direct biophysical effects and indirect effects caused by electromagnetic fields. Direct effects include stimulation of muscles, nerves, or sensory organs and tissue heating. Indirect effects include interference with medical devices, projectile risks from ferromagnetic objects in strong static magnetic fields, contact currents, spark discharges, and the initiation of electro-explosive devices or fires and explosions involving flammable materials.

Its limits are designed to protect against scientifically well-established short-term effects. The Directive states that it does not address suggested long-term effects because, at the time of adoption, there was no well-established scientific evidence of a causal relationship. The European Commission is required to keep scientific developments under review and may propose appropriate measures if such evidence emerges.

The Directive does not govern risks arising from contact with live conductors, which are addressed through electrical-safety requirements. It also operates alongside, rather than replacing, broader employer duties concerning risk assessment, prevention, worker consultation, training, health surveillance, and protection of particularly sensitive workers.

Exposure limit values and action levels

The technical framework distinguishes exposure limit values (ELVs) from action levels (ALs). ELVs are based on biophysical and biological considerations and are expressed in quantities related to effects within the body. ALs are operational levels expressed in quantities that can generally be measured or calculated more readily in the workplace. Compliance with the relevant AL normally demonstrates compliance with the associated ELV.

An AL exceedance does not automatically establish that an ELV has been exceeded. The employer may instead demonstrate compliance with the ELV through a more detailed assessment, provided the risks associated with indirect effects and other applicable duties are controlled. Where ELVs are exceeded, the employer must act immediately to reduce exposure, identify why the exceedance occurred, and adapt protective measures to prevent recurrence.

The Directive distinguishes health-effects ELVs from sensory-effects ELVs. Health-effects ELVs protect against adverse effects such as thermal heating or stimulation of nerve and muscle tissue. Sensory-effects ELVs address transient effects such as vertigo, visual sensations, or auditory effects that may impair a worker’s ability to work safely. Certain sensory-effect limits may be exceeded temporarily under controlled conditions if the specified safeguards are satisfied and health-effects ELVs remain respected.

Frequency ranges and annexes

Annex I defines the physical quantities used, including electric-field strength, limb current, contact current, magnetic-field strength, magnetic flux density, power density, specific absorption rate, and specific energy absorption. These definitions are essential because each limit is tied to a particular physical quantity and averaging condition.

Annex II provides ELVs and ALs for fields from 0 Hz to 10 MHz. These provisions principally address non-thermal effects, including stimulation and sensory responses associated with static, low-frequency, and intermediate-frequency fields. Separate tables cover internal electric fields, external electric and magnetic fields, static magnetic flux density, contact current, and limb current.

Annex III provides ELVs and ALs from 100 kHz to 300 GHz, principally addressing thermal effects. It includes whole-body and local SAR, specific energy absorption for pulsed exposure, and power density at higher frequencies, together with external electric- and magnetic-field ALs. The overlap from 100 kHz to 10 MHz reflects the transition in which both non-thermal and thermal criteria may need to be considered.

Low and high action levels

The Directive uses low and high ALs for some external fields. A low AL is associated with the conditions under which sensory-effects and health-effects ELVs can be expected to be satisfied without additional measures. A high AL is linked to the health-effects ELV and may be used where the required protective measures, information, training, and controls are in place.

Separate ALs also apply to limb current, contact current, and static magnetic fields. Compliance cannot therefore be established by checking one broadband field-strength value alone. Frequency, waveform, multiple sources, spatial variation, exposure duration, grounding, contact with conductive objects, and the particular task may all affect the assessment.

Employer assessment duties

Article 4 requires employers to assess all risks to workers arising from electromagnetic fields and, where necessary, measure or calculate exposure. The assessment must use appropriate standards or scientifically based guidance and take account of information supplied by equipment manufacturers. It may make use of emission levels, databases, or other relevant information where these provide a reliable basis for the conclusion.

The assessment must consider the frequency, level, duration, and type of exposure; the applicable ELVs and ALs; effects on workers at particular risk; indirect effects; the existence of replacement equipment designed to reduce exposure; information from health surveillance; multiple sources; simultaneous exposure to several frequencies; and any other relevant health and safety information.

Workers at particular risk include people who have declared the use of active or passive implanted medical devices, such as cardiac pacemakers, and workers with body-worn medical devices. Pregnant workers may also require particular consideration. These workers can be affected by interference or other mechanisms at field levels below the general ALs, so compliance with the ordinary exposure tables does not end the employer’s assessment duty.

A documented assessment may conclude that the nature and extent of exposure make a more detailed evaluation unnecessary. The assessment must nevertheless be kept current and reviewed when circumstances change, when equipment or work practices are modified, or when health surveillance or other information indicates that it may no longer be valid.

Avoidance and reduction of risks

Article 5 applies the general hierarchy of prevention. Where ALs are exceeded or the assessment identifies other relevant risks, the employer must establish and implement an action plan containing technical and organisational measures. Elimination or reduction at source is preferred over reliance on individual behaviour.

Possible measures include alternative working methods, lower-emission equipment, technical controls such as shielding or interlocks, maintenance of equipment and workplaces, improved layout, limitation of exposure duration and intensity, suitable personal protective equipment, access control, signs, floor markings, and procedures for managing spark discharges and contact currents.

Areas in which ALs may be exceeded must be identified and access restricted where this is technically possible and justified by the risk. Signs and other warnings may be unnecessary where the area is already restricted for another reason and workers have been adequately informed about the electromagnetic-field risk.

The employer must adapt measures to workers at particular risk and, where appropriate, carry out individual assessments. Controls must remain effective under normal operation, maintenance, testing, fault conditions, and other foreseeable activities rather than being based only on a convenient operating state.

Information, training, and consultation

Article 6 requires workers likely to be exposed to relevant risks, or their representatives, to receive information and training. Topics include the measures taken to implement the Directive, the meaning of ELVs and ALs, possible direct and indirect effects, how to detect and report adverse health effects, circumstances in which health surveillance is available, safe work practices, and the needs of workers at particular risk.

Article 7 applies the general requirements for consultation and participation of workers and their representatives. Effective implementation therefore requires more than an expert assessment held by management. Workers must understand the controls applying to their tasks and have an opportunity to contribute information about actual operating and maintenance conditions.

Health surveillance and incidents

Article 8 requires appropriate health surveillance where indicated by the risk assessment and general occupational-health requirements. Records must be maintained in a suitable form while respecting confidentiality. Workers are entitled to access their personal health records.

If a worker reports an undesired or unexpected health effect, or if exposure above an ELV is detected, the employer must arrange an appropriate medical examination or individual health surveillance in accordance with national law and practice. The risk assessment and preventive measures must then be reviewed, taking account of advice from the occupational-health professional.

Derogations

Article 10 permits limited derogations in specified circumstances. Exposure associated with the installation, testing, use, development, maintenance, or research of magnetic-resonance-imaging equipment for patients in the health sector may exceed ELVs where detailed conditions are satisfied, including a demonstrated need, application of state-of-the-art controls, consideration of manufacturer instructions, and protection against adverse health effects and safety risks.

Member States may permit an equivalent or more specific protection system for personnel working in operational military installations or involved in military activities, including joint international exercises, provided adverse health effects and safety risks are prevented. Temporary derogations may also be authorised for specific sectors or activities in duly justified circumstances, subject to risk assessment, use of state-of-the-art measures, and enhanced worker protection.

Implementation and practical guidance

The European Commission published non-binding practical guides to assist employers, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises, in applying the Directive. These guides support source identification, initial screening, detailed assessment, control selection, and consideration of workers at particular risk. They are explanatory aids rather than substitutes for the national implementing law.

Because a directive is implemented nationally, the exact competent authority, enforcement arrangements, penalties, documentation rules, and available derogations differ between Member States. Employers must therefore consult the law applicable in the country where the work is performed and cannot rely solely on the text of the EU Directive.

Relationship to other standards

Directive 2013/35/EU defines the legal duties and exposure framework but does not prescribe one measurement procedure for every workplace. EN 50499 provides a general European procedure for assessing worker exposure, while source-specific EN, IEC, and national standards address particular equipment and environments. These standards support compliance but do not displace the employer’s legal responsibility.

Council Recommendation 1999/519/EC remains relevant to members of the public who may be exposed near the same source. A workplace transmitter can therefore require assessment under the occupational directive for workers and under the applicable public-exposure framework for visitors, neighbours, or other people who are not protected by the occupational arrangements.

Practical significance

Directive 2013/35/EU is the central EU occupational instrument for electromagnetic-field safety. Its importance lies not only in the numerical ELVs and ALs but also in the duties to assess risk, implement a hierarchy of controls, protect particularly sensitive workers, provide information and training, consult workers, maintain health-surveillance arrangements, and investigate suspected overexposure.

For an RF or electromagnetic-energy safety program, the Directive supplies the legal framework; technical standards supply assessment methods; and the employer’s procedures convert the results into continuing control of work. A compliant program must therefore connect source information, exposure assessment, worker status, engineering and administrative controls, training, incident response, and periodic review.