Baseline Health Surveillance Checks

Jobs that involve hazardous exposures are a common reason for employer liability claims. Health checks provide a baseline to show whether your new starter has any health issues related to previous employment or leisure activity. Workability Solutions offers a range of pre-placement health checks designed to enhance your hiring process while helping you manage employment risk. Pre-placement health questionnaires are delivered online via our sister service Intelligent OH.

When Is an Occupational Health Pre-Employment Assessment Appropriate?

A pre-employment occupational health assessment is useful in several situations:

To identify necessary adjustments and assess whether the Equalities Legislation applies, particularly in relation to disability.
As a baseline for health surveillance or to detect any specific health-related concerns.
To inform managers about a candidate’s fitness for a specific role.

A Shift Towards Targeted Health Screening

The approach to pre-employment health assessments is evolving. Rather than using a blanket questionnaire covering a wide range of health conditions, best practice now emphasizes a targeted, job-specific approach. According to the Information Commissioner’s guidance, health questionnaires should “only elicit information that is relevant and necessary.”

Modern health assessments focus on enabling candidates to work with reasonable adjustments, reducing the likelihood of job offers being withdrawn due to existing health conditions.

If your current screening process applies broad health criteria that may not be relevant to specific roles, it may be worth reassessing your approach. While asking health-related questions after a conditional job offer aligns with the Equality Act, a more streamlined and role-specific assessment can improve efficiency and compliance.

Is Your Approach Targeted and Job-Specific, or Do You Screen Everyone for Everything?

Since the introduction of the Equality Act 2010, most employers understand that occupational health pre-employment assessments should take place after a conditional job offer. However, if your screening process applies to all candidates, it’s worth asking:

What value does this approach add?
Is it truly necessary for every role?
Could it be creating unnecessary costs?

A targeted, job-specific approach ensures that assessments are relevant and necessary, aligning with best practices and reducing superfluous expenses while maintaining compliance with legal requirements.