If you work at a computer every day, your job is governed by Real Decreto 488/1997 of 14 April on minimum safety and health provisions for work with equipment that includes display screens. In the BOE (Spain's official gazette) it remains in force, unamended, and it is the specific rule for these jobs.
Who it protects
The royal decree speaks of the user worker: the person who uses screen equipment habitually and for a significant part of their normal work. Excluded, among others, are driving cabs of vehicles, calculators and cash registers, and portable systems that are not in continuous use at a workstation.
A laptop used every day as the main tool is covered, including in remote work.
What the employer must do (article 3)
- Assess the risks of the job, paying special attention to risks to eyesight, physical problems and mental workload.
- Eliminate or reduce the risks to the minimum possible.
- Make sure the workstation meets the minimum conditions in the annex of the royal decree.
- If there is a risk, organise the work to reduce continuous screen time: alternate tasks or set breaks. A collective agreement can specify the breaks.
Health surveillance (article 4)
The employer must guarantee adequate health surveillance:
- before you start working with screens;
- periodically, as often as the health professionals decide;
- when disorders appear that may be due to screen work.
If the result makes it necessary, you have the right to an eye examination. If special glasses or other corrective devices are needed and normal ones are no use, the employer provides them at no cost to you.
Information and training (article 5)
Before you start and every time the organisation of your job changes significantly, the employer must inform and train you about the risks and the preventive measures.
What the annex requires
Screen
- Clear, stable characters, with adjustable brightness and contrast.
- It must be easy to tilt and swivel, without annoying reflections.
Keyboard and desk
- The keyboard must be separate from the screen and tiltable, with a matt surface.
- The desk must have a low-reflectance surface and enough room to arrange everything flexibly.
Chair
- Stable, with adjustable height and an adjustable backrest. If needed, a footrest.
Environment
- Adequate space and light, without glare or reflections.
- Windows must have an adjustable covering.
- Noise and heat from the equipment must not be a nuisance.
Software
- It must suit the task and be easy to use. If a quantitative or qualitative monitoring system is used on the work, workers must be informed beforehand and their representatives consulted.
In practice
If your chair does not adjust, the monitor reflects the window or you feel persistent discomfort in your eyes or neck, say so to your superior or to your prevention service. Asking for an improvement is not complaining: it is the procedure the law provides for.