In brief
A contractor worker's own employer is responsible for their OHS training; the host employer explains workplace-specific risks before work starts and, in the hazardous and very hazardous classes, does not let them start without seeing a training certificate. In practice this means a short induction and quiz, a contractor card showing authorisations, permits to work for high-risk jobs and an escort on site where needed. If card, permit and training records are linked, the question of who is working where, with what authority, can be answered at any time.
Contractor induction: who provides what?
Two technicians from the maintenance company arrived at the gate this morning, and in an hour they will be on the roof. What needs to happen in between is contractor induction and a permit check. The legislation clearly divides this responsibility between the two employers:
- The contractor's employer provides their own worker's basic OHS training, health surveillance and vocational certificate. Art. 22 of the 2026 Regulation on the Procedures and Principles of OHS Training for Workers states that in a principal employer–subcontractor relationship, each employer is responsible for training its own workers.
- The host employer, under the same article, checks the training certificates of the subcontractor's workers and provides information about workplace-specific risks before work starts.
- Art. 17/5 of Law No. 6331 on Occupational Health and Safety: in workplaces in the hazardous and very hazardous classes, workers coming from other workplaces to work may not start without a certificate showing that they have received training containing sufficient information and instructions on the risks of the work to be done. Art. 5/4 of the training regulation repeats the same rule.
- Law 6331 Art. 16/2-b: the employer gives the necessary information to the employers of workers coming from other workplaces so that they can learn the risks at the workplace.
In short, a subcontractor worker's OHS training is given by their employer; your job is to see the certificate at the gate and teach the rules specific to your facility. For details of the contract and the division of responsibilities, see our article on subcontractor OHS responsibility.
Contractor orientation: content and duration
Induction should be short, but it should not be a generic slide show. The legislation sets no duration for this training; you build its content around your facility and the work the contractor will do. The framework below can be applied in most factories:
| Topic | What is explained | Verification |
|---|---|---|
| Site map | Entry and exit, pedestrian walkways, prohibited and restricted areas | Pointing out the work location on the map |
| Emergencies | Alarm sound, escape route, assembly point, emergency phone number | Stating the assembly point |
| Traffic | Forklift areas, speed limit, vehicle parking | Question |
| PPE | Mandatory equipment site-wide and specific to the area | Check |
| Permit to work | Which jobs start with a permit, who issues the permit | Question |
| Energy and machinery | Lockout-tagout rule, ban on interfering with machines | Question |
| Fire and hot work | Smoking area, hot work permit, extinguisher locations | Question |
| Chemicals | Chemical store and process areas, what to do in a spill | Question |
| Reporting | Who accidents, near misses and dangerous situations are reported to | Question |
| Stopping work | The right to stop work in serious and imminent danger | Question |
End the training with a short quiz: 8–10 questions specific to your facility are enough. The quiz is not a grading exercise but a way of identifying what has not been understood; any topic answered wrongly is explained again on the spot. For workers who do not speak Turkish, the explanation is given through an interpreter or visual materials; training that has clearly not been understood does not achieve its purpose even if it has been recorded.
Factory entry rules and document checks
Induction is carried out after the document check. Items to be checked at the gate or by the security unit:
- Identity and SGK registration: A record showing that the worker is insured by the contractor company.
- Basic OHS training certificate: In facilities in the hazardous and very hazardous classes, work does not start without this certificate.
- Pre-employment or periodic examination report: Fitness for work, especially for jobs such as working at height and in confined spaces.
- Vocational certificate: The relevant certificate for jobs such as welder, electrician, forklift and crane operator.
- Equipment documents: The periodic inspection report for scaffolding, platforms or lifting equipment brought by the contractor.
The full list of documents and the method of checking are in our article on the OHS documents to request from subcontractors. For short jobs, asking the contractor to email the documents before the work starts, rather than doing this check at the gate, shortens the wait at the gate.
The contractor card: identity and authorisation together
A worker who has completed the induction and the check is issued a contractor card. The card shows at a glance who is working on site with what authority. Information recommended for the card:
- Name, surname and photo
- Contractor company and the person responsible at the facility
- Date of induction and the card's expiry date
- Areas where they may work
- Authorisations: hot work, working at height, confined spaces, electrical work, forklift or crane use
- Emergency phone number and assembly point
Carrying the card visibly within the facility is made mandatory; cards for completed work or past their expiry date are collected at the gate. The validity period is set by site policy; for long-term contractors, a practical approach is to renew induction once a year and update it when site rules change.
Permits to work and escorts on site
The card shows authorisation to work; it is not permission to start a specific job. High-risk jobs also start with a separate written permit to work. An escort, on the other hand, means that someone from the facility stays with the contractor where the contractor does not know the facility and its risks.
| Type of work | Written permit to work | Escort | Pre-permit check |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hot work (welding, cutting, grinding) | Yes | Fire watch | Flammable materials, extinguisher |
| Working at height | Yes | On first entry | Anchorage, platform check |
| Confined space | Yes | Attendant mandatory | Gas testing, rescue plan |
| Electrical panels and lines | Yes | Site electrician | Isolation and lockout |
| Machine maintenance | Yes | Area supervisor | Lockout-tagout |
| General assembly, cleaning | Area permit | May not be needed | Boundary of the work area |
We explained how to set up a permit system in our article on the permit to work system, the rules specific to hot work in our article on the hot work permit, and energy isolation in our article on LOTO lockout-tagout.
The escort does not do the contractor's work; they show them the facility's risks, stop them entering prohibited areas and warn them when something changes (a line is about to be started, forklift traffic is about to increase). If more than one contractor is working in the same area, employers work in cooperation and coordination under Law 6331 Art. 23; a short coordination meeting at the start of the day shows everyone who is working where.
When the work ends: close-out and evaluation
When the contractor finishes the work, the process ends not with leaving through the gate but with handing back the area:
- The permit to work is closed after checking the work area; after hot work, the fire watch period is completed.
- Locks and tags are removed according to the procedure; the machine is handed back to the person responsible.
- Waste, materials and equipment are removed from the site.
- The card is collected and the entry-exit record is closed.
- The contractor's OHS practice on site is evaluated with a short form; this evaluation is used when selecting contractors for the next job.
The most common failures on site are:
- Giving the induction to the team leader but not the team: Induction is given individually to every person who will enter the site, and each signs in their own name.
- The team changing during the day: A second team arriving in the afternoon does not count as having benefited from the morning's induction; the gate check is repeated for every new person.
- The card being handed to someone else: This is why a photo card matters; if someone other than the card holder is using it, work is stopped.
- Permits left open: If the work is finished but the permit has not been closed, the next shift cannot know whether the area is still under work.
In factories in Bursa and the surrounding provinces, annual maintenance shutdowns are periods when several contractors enter the site at the same time. Planning induction and card printing in advance for these periods prevents queues at the gate. In our OHS training service we prepare induction content and quizzes specific to your facility, and in our OHS specialist service we set up the card, permit and document check arrangements. You can enter shutdown dates and renewal periods in the OHS calendar tool.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who gives subcontractor workers their OHS training?
Each employer is responsible for training its own workers; basic training is given by the contractor's employer. The host employer checks the training certificates and provides information on workplace-specific risks before work starts.
Can a contractor worker without a training certificate start work?
Not in workplaces in the hazardous and very hazardous classes. Under Law 6331 Art. 17/5, a worker coming from another workplace may not start work without a certificate showing that training on the risks of the work to be done has been received.
How long should contractor induction last?
The legislation sets no duration. The content is determined by your facility's risks and the work the contractor will do. What matters is not the duration but verifying with a quiz that the site map, emergencies, permits to work and prohibited areas have been understood.
Does a contractor card replace a permit to work?
No. The card shows that the worker has been trained and the jobs they are authorised for. Jobs such as hot work, working at height, confined spaces and electrical work start each time with a separate written permit to work.
Induction, basic and refresher training in line with the 2026 regulation; on your premises, with examples from your own site and fully documented.
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.