HSE Guidance on Home Working
Under HSE guidance, DSE duties are not limited to employees who are contractually designated as remote workers. If an employee works from home as part of their normal working arrangement, including hybrid working, and uses display screen equipment daily for continuous periods of an hour or more, they should be treated as a DSE user.
This means that hybrid employees who are permitted to work from home should be included in the organisation’s DSE assessment process, even if homeworking is described as a benefit or flexible working arrangement rather than a contractual requirement.
The approach can be proportionate. HSE does not generally require employers to visit employees’ homes. A trained self-assessment process, supported by DSE training and review by a competent assessor, is usually appropriate. Where an employee works both at home and in the office, the assessment should consider both setups.
If the assessment identifies issues, the employer should take reasonably practicable steps to reduce the risk. This may include advice, changes to working practices, use of suitable equipment, or requiring the employee to work from the office where the home environment is unsuitable and cannot reasonably be made safe.
If homeworking is more of a “perk” than a contractual place of work, this does not remove the employer’s DSE obligations
The key test is not whether the employee is contractually remote. The key test is whether the worker uses DSE daily, as part of their normal work, for continuous periods of an hour or more. HSE describes these people as “DSE users”, and the regulations apply whether they are at a fixed workstation, mobile, hot-desking or working from home.
For home and hybrid workers, HSE is explicit that employers have the same health and safety responsibilities for people working at home as for any other worker, and that this guidance applies both to people who work at home long term and those who routinely split their time between workplace and home — i.e. hybrid working.
Therefore, where the organisation permits hybrid employees to work from home and they use a laptop/computer at home as part of their normal work, the employer should treat that homeworking arrangement as within scope of DSE management. HSE says employers must protect workers from health and safety risks from working on a computer or laptop at home, check whether the DSE regulations apply, and where they do, carry out a DSE assessment for individual workers.
The distinction between contractually remote and hybrid/homeworking by permission is therefore more of an HR/contractual distinction than a DSE compliance distinction. If the employer knowingly allows homeworking as part of the working arrangement, it should not rely on the “perk” argument to avoid assessment. HSE’s recent messaging is also clear that home and hybrid workers must be protected like office-based staff and that this is a legal duty, not optional guidance.
A proportionate approach is acceptable. HSE does not usually expect employers to visit employees’ homes. It recommends a balanced approach, using practical methods such as advice, guidance, questionnaires or self-assessment tools, and considering the type of work, how long it is done for, and whether control measures are needed.
For DSE specifically, HSE says that where workers use DSE in both the home and office, assessments should cover both situations. Workers can complete a self-assessment if they have suitable training. The assessment should consider whether the person can achieve a comfortable, sustainable posture, whether equipment is safe and suitable, and whether additional measures are required.
Where risks are identified, the employer must take steps to reduce them. HSE also states that where the assessment indicates action is needed — for example providing DSE equipment — the worker cannot be charged for it.
Practical recommendations
1. Treat both remote and hybrid workers as in scope where they are DSE users.
Do not limit home DSE assessments only to those whose contracts say “remote”.
2. Use ErgoPro to assess both office and home setups.
For hybrid staff, the assessment should capture whether they work at home, how often, what equipment they use, and whether they have a suitable setup.
3. Make homeworking conditional on a suitable setup.
The employer can reasonably say that employees may work from home only where they complete the DSE process, follow training, report issues, and have a suitable working environment.
4. Use proportionate controls.
Not every hybrid worker will need a full office chair and desk supplied at home. HSE recognises that office-type furniture may not always be necessary, but equally that a worker’s own furniture may not be suitable. The assessment should determine what is reasonably required.
5. Offer the office as the fallback if homeworking is unsuitable.
HSE says alternative arrangements should be agreed if someone’s home is not a suitable work environment or reasonably practicable measures cannot protect them.