In brief
Art. 18 of Law No. 6331 requires the employer to seek workers' views on OHS matters, give them the right to make proposals and consult them on new technology, equipment and working conditions; on matters such as assignments, risk assessment and the training plan, support staff and employee representatives are consulted in advance. Participation can be achieved through surveys, meetings and representatives; what matters is documenting that views were sought and what was done as a result.
Why is worker participation an OHS obligation?
The person who knows best why the guard on a press line keeps being bypassed is the person who works on that line. The operator also sees in the first week how a newly purchased forklift manoeuvres in a narrow aisle. Worker participation in OHS is the legal name for bringing this knowledge into decision-making; it is not a well-meant suggestion but an employer obligation defined in Art. 18 of Law No. 6331.
In practice, the most common problem is not that views are never sought, but that it cannot be shown that they were. In workplaces where the specialist and physician talk to workers on site but none of it is recorded, it becomes hard to say "views were sought" during an inspection. In this article we explain what Article 18 requires, which methods work and how to document participation.
What does Article 18 of Law 6331 require?
Article 18 sets up two separate layers.
The first paragraph is general participation. The employer provides the following to workers or, in workplaces with two or more employee representatives, to the workplace's authorised trade union representatives if any, or otherwise to the employee representatives:
- Seeking their views on OHS matters, recognising their right to make proposals and including them in discussions,
- Seeking their views on the effects on health and safety of introducing new technologies, the work equipment to be chosen, and the working environment and conditions.
The second paragraph is prior consultation. The employer consults support staff and employee representatives in advance on the following:
- The assignment of the workplace physician, OHS specialist and other personnel to be designated from within the workplace or obtained as an external service, and of the persons responsible for first aid, firefighting and evacuation,
- Carrying out the risk assessment and determining protective and preventive measures and the protective equipment to be used,
- Preventing health and safety risks and running protective services,
- Informing workers,
- Planning the training to be given to workers.
The third paragraph is a safeguard: The rights of workers and representatives who apply to the competent authority where measures are inadequate, or during an inspection, cannot be restricted.
This provision is also linked to risk assessment legislation. Art. 7/2 of the Risk Assessment Regulation requires workers' views to be sought by involving them at every stage of the risk assessment where needed; Art. 8 lists "the experience and opinions of workers" among the information to be collected when identifying hazards.
On which matters are whose views sought?
| Matter | From whom | When | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Assignment of the specialist, physician or OSGB | Employee representative, support staff | Before the contract | Consultation record |
| Assigning people to emergency teams | Employee representative, support staff | Before the assignment | Record, signed team list |
| Risk assessment and PPE selection | Representative; workers in the relevant department | During the work | Team list, meeting notes |
| New machinery, technology or layout | Workers who will do the job | Before purchase and installation | Survey or meeting record |
| Annual training programme | Representative, support staff | Before the programme is approved | Written opinion, draft programme |
| General OHS suggestions | All workers | Continuously | Suggestion forms, action list |
The number of representatives is set by headcount in Art. 20: one for 2–50 workers, two for 51–100, three for 101–500, four for 501–1000, five for 1001–2000 and six for 2001 and above. For the election procedure, see our article on electing an employee representative, and for the representative's rights, employee representative training and rights. In workplaces with fifty or more workers, the OHS committee is also a formal channel for participation, but the committee does not remove the obligation to seek the views of workers who are not on it.
Methods of worker participation
The legislation does not prescribe a specific method. Depending on the size of the workplace and the topic, the following methods can be used together.
OHS surveys
A survey is the most systematic way to gather views from many workers in a short time. A good OHS survey:
- Is short: 8–12 questions are enough; long surveys are abandoned halfway.
- Asks concrete questions: Instead of "Is workplace safety important to you?", it asks "Which task in your department causes you the most difficulty?" or "In the last three months, have you seen a hazard you did not report?"
- Includes an open question: "If you could change one thing first, what would it be?"
- Can be completed anonymously: For questions on psychosocial risks and management, an anonymous survey gives more honest results.
- Suits language and literacy: If there are foreign workers, it is prepared in a language they understand; if necessary, it is administered verbally.
Feeding the survey results back to workers is as important as the survey itself. If results are not shared, participation in the next survey falls.
Meetings and toolbox talks
If new equipment is to be purchased, a 20-minute meeting with the team who will use it is cheaper than changes made after purchase. Short talks at the start of a shift can also be used to gather views; for how to structure them, see our article on toolbox talks.
Participation through the representative
The representative is the person who collects workers' views and passes them on to the employer. Setting aside a regular meeting day for the representative, inviting them on site tours and giving them a role on the risk assessment team take participation beyond paper.
Suggestion and reporting system
Channels such as a suggestion box, a QR-code form or a messaging group provide continuous participation. The same channel can also be used for near miss reporting; for how to set it up, read our article on the near miss reporting system.
How is participation documented?
To show in an inspection that views were sought, it is enough to keep the following records regularly:
- Consultation record: Topic, date, participants, views expressed and decision taken. It carries the representative's signature.
- Survey report: Date administered, number of participants, summary of results and resulting actions.
- Action list: Owner, deadline and outcome for each suggestion. Rejected suggestions are recorded with the reason.
- Feedback record: A note showing that the results were posted on the noticeboard or shared at a meeting.
- Prior consultation documents: The representative's views obtained before a change of OSGB, the assignment of emergency teams and the annual training programme.
For example, if new people are to be assigned to emergency teams, a short prior consultation record can be set out like this: topic ("three new support staff for the firefighting and rescue team"), proposed names and their shifts, the views of the representative and existing support staff (e.g. "no substitute on the night shift"), the employer's decision and the change made in response. The record must be dated before the team list was posted; otherwise the views will not count as having been sought "in advance".
The employer has the annual training programme prepared and approves it (2026 training regulation Art. 11); seeking the representative's views before approving the programme also satisfies Art. 18/2-d. For how to structure the programme, see our article on the annual OHS training plan. For tracking suggestions, you can use the table in our article on tracking corrective and preventive actions.
Common mistakes
- Seeking views after the decision: A meeting held after the team list has been posted or the machine installed does not count as "prior consultation".
- Asking only the representative: Where new equipment is involved, the direct views of the workers who will use it should also be sought.
- Running a survey and not sharing the results: If workers think their views were of no use, they will not speak up next time.
- Mistaking a signature list for participation: A training attendance list does not show that views were sought; the content of the views must be written down.
- Rejecting a suggestion without recording the reason: Not every suggestion can be implemented, but the reason why it was not should be recorded.
In the workplaces we serve in Bursa and neighbouring provinces, we carry out site tours together with the representative and keep consultation records and the action list as part of the monthly report. For details, see our OHS specialist services page; for the culture dimension, our article on how to build an OHS culture also offers guidance.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is a survey mandatory for consulting workers?
No. The Law does not specify a method; a survey, meeting, discussion with the representative or suggestion form can be used. What matters is that views are actually sought and recorded.
In a small workplace without an employee representative, whose views are sought?
The workers' directly. Art. 18/1 requires the opportunity to give views to be provided to workers; the option of working through representatives is for workplaces with two or more representatives. Even so, every workplace with two or more workers should have a representative under Art. 20.
Do we need to ask workers when changing OSGB?
Yes. The assignment of an externally sourced workplace physician and OHS specialist is among the matters on which support staff and employee representatives must be consulted in advance.
How do I prove in an inspection that views were sought?
With dated and signed consultation records, survey reports and an action list showing the outcome of suggestions. Also add a record showing that the outcome was communicated to workers.
A certified specialist matched to your hazard class: site inspections, approved logbook, training plan, annual plan and report follow-up.
Bursa SİSTEMER OSGB Technical Team — written from the field experience of our OHS specialists and workplace physicians. Legal information is valid as of the publication/update date; contact us for an assessment specific to your business.