Accident Risk for New Starters: The First 90 Days

Why do new starters carry a higher work accident risk?

There is a sentence often heard in accident investigations: "He had only just started." A new starter carries a higher work accident risk not because of poor attention but because of the things they do not know:

They do not know the site. They have not yet learned the forklift route, the blind corners, which door must stay locked or the escape route.
They do not know the equipment. Even if they have used the same type of machine at another factory, this machine's guard, emergency stop location and fault habits are different.
They do not know the unwritten rules. Nobody has told them the rules everyone on the team knows but that are not in the instructions, such as "nobody opens this cover while this line is running".
They hesitate to ask questions. In the first days, saying "I don't know" feels like looking incompetent.
They try to keep up with the pace. They skip steps to keep up with a fast-working team.
They think they are experienced. An experienced employee coming from another workplace brings the habits of the old workplace to the new one.

All of these reasons diminish over time; the problem is that the period until they diminish is not managed. The legislation sets a starting point for this period but does not describe the full first 90 days. For the two-hour induction training programme, see our article on the induction training programme; this article covers what comes after those two hours.

The framework set by the legislation

When planning the first 90 days, the following obligations should already be in the calendar:

Pre-employment examination: Under Art. 15 of Law No. 6331 on Occupational Health and Safety, in hazardous and very hazardous jobs nobody may start work without a fitness-for-work report.
Induction training: Under Art. 7 of the 2026 OHS training regulation, it is given to everyone, including apprentices and interns, before starting work, for at least 2 hours, face to face and in practical form. The training may be delivered by the OHS specialist, the workplace physician or knowledgeable and experienced employees appointed by the employer; the record is placed in the employee's personnel file.
Basic training: Under Art. 8, it is completed in any case within 3 months at the latest of starting work. The concept of the first 90 days coincides directly with this period.
Vocational training: In jobs in the hazardous and very hazardous classes that require vocational training, an employee without a certificate may not be employed in that job.
An employee arriving to do the same job: For an employee arriving from another workplace to do the same job, only the job- and workplace-specific risks section of basic training is repeated. This section is the legal counterpart of an experienced employee learning the new workplace.

There are additional rules for young workers; see our article on child and young workers.

The first 90 days plan

The plan below is a sample framework for a manufacturing business. Adapt the periods and tasks to your own work.

Period	Actions	Responsible	Record
Before starting work	Examination, vocational certificate check, PPE preparation, choosing the employee to pair with	HR, workplace physician	Report, issue record
Day 1	Induction training, site tour, meeting the paired employee	Specialist, department manager	Training record
Week 1	Only low-risk tasks under supervision; a short interview every day	Paired employee, supervisor	Task list
Weeks 2–4	"Shown, practised, independent" sign-offs for the tasks on the task list	Supervisor	Signed task list
Month 2	Completion of basic training sessions, authorisation assessment for risky jobs	Specialist, supervisor	Training records
Month 3	Basic training exam, day-90 review, ending the pairing	Specialist, supervisor	Exam, review form

How is a mentor system set up for OHS?

A pairing (mentor or "buddy") system means that in the first weeks the new employee has someone beside them to ask questions. The training regulation states that induction training may also be delivered by knowledgeable and experienced employees appointed by the employer; pairing is this approach spread across daily work.

For good pairing:

Choose the right person. Not the fastest worker but someone who follows the rules, likes explaining and works the same shift.
Define the role. The paired employee supervises the work the new employee does, explains the unwritten rules and answers their questions. They do not do the new employee's work for them.
Give them time. The mentor's production target is adjusted accordingly in the first weeks; otherwise the pairing stays on paper.
Limit the numbers. An experienced employee is not given many new employees at the same time.
Do not leave the new employee alone. If the mentor is on leave, who covers for them is decided in advance.

Phased tasks and authorisation

A new employee should not do every job from the first day. Prepare a task list for the department and divide the jobs into three groups by risk level:

Can be done under supervision: Preparing materials, cleaning, simple assembly.
Can be done independently after being shown and practised: Machine operation, setting, quality control.
Cannot be done until authorised: Interventions requiring lockout-tagout, forklift use, work at height, confined spaces, electrical work, hot work.

For each job, the "shown", "practised" and "independent" columns are completed with the supervisor's signature. Authorisation for jobs in the third group is not given until the required certificate, training and assessment are completed. This list is the on-site counterpart of job-specific risk training; for topic content, see our article on job-specific risk training.

Close supervision: interview days

Supervision should not be left to the assumption that "the supervisor is on site anyway". Hold short, structured interviews on set days: days 1, 3, 7, 30, 60 and 90 are a practical pattern. Three questions are asked in each interview:

Has anything happened so far that you were unsure about, afraid of or found dangerous?
Has there been a rule you were told whose reason you did not understand?
Is there any job you rush to keep up with?

The answers are noted, and if a shared hazard emerges it is passed on to the specialist. Because the new employee sees things with fresh eyes, they may notice hazards the team no longer sees; every situation they report should go into the near-miss reporting system.

First-week workplace safety: shifts and lone working

If possible, start the first week on the day shift. On the night shift, it is harder to reach the supervisor, the specialist and the maintenance team; the number of people the new employee can ask decreases. If starting on nights is unavoidable, plan the induction training before the first shift at a time when someone who can deliver it is present, and put the mentor on the same shift. Throughout the first week, the new employee is not left alone on any job: counting stock alone in a corner of the warehouse or being alone at the end of a line means being unable to call for help when a problem arises.

Common mistakes

Squeezing training into the first day and calling it done: The two-hour induction training is the start; basic training must be completed within 3 months.
Exempting experienced employees from pairing: A foreman coming from another workplace also needs to learn the new workplace's rules.
Putting people straight on the line in a busy period: In mass hiring, stagger the start dates; if there are not enough mentors, the hiring schedule is adjusted accordingly.
Forgetting temporary and subcontractor employees: Under Art. 17 of Law No. 6331, providing training for an employee who comes through a temporary employment relationship is the obligation of the employer with whom the temporary relationship is established; for contractor employees coming to your site, see our article on contractor induction training.

For businesses in Bursa and the surrounding provinces, we plan induction and basic training through our OHS training service and prepare department-level task lists through our OHS specialist service. You can track training dates and 3-month periods with the OHS calendar tool.

Frequently Asked Questions

By when must a new starter's basic OHS training be completed?

Under Art. 8 of the 2026 training regulation, basic training is completed within 3 months at the latest of the employee starting work. Induction training, by contrast, is given before starting work, for at least 2 hours and face to face.

Is a mentor system a legal requirement?

No, there is no obligation in the legislation under the name "mentor". However, the Regulation states that induction training may also be delivered by knowledgeable and experienced employees appointed by the employer; pairing is the day-to-day application of this approach.

Should an experienced foreman also receive induction training?

Yes. Induction training is given to everyone, including apprentices and interns. For an employee arriving from another workplace to do the same job, only the job- and workplace-specific risks section of basic training is repeated.

Can a new employee use a forklift?

Self-propelled work equipment such as forklifts may only be used by employees who have received appropriate training; for valid certificates, see our article on the forklift operator certificate. Even with a certificate, they should not use it independently until they have been shown the site's routes, pedestrian rules and equipment and have been authorised.