Basic OHS Training in Bursa

Article 17 of Law No. 6331 on Occupational Health and Safety requires every employer to provide occupational health and safety training to its employees. Training is given before work begins, renewed when work, equipment or technology changes, and repeated at regular intervals. The Regulation on the Procedures and Principles of Occupational Health and Safety Training for Employees, which sets out how this training is delivered, was republished in the Official Gazette of 2 April 2026 and repealed the 2013 regulation. The key rules employers in Bursa planning basic OHS training need to know are:

• Induction training: Given to every employee, including apprentices and interns, before they start work: at least 2 hours, face to face and hands-on. This time does not count towards basic training and is documented with a signed record.
• Basic training: Completed as soon as possible after starting work and in any case within 3 months at the latest. The minimum duration is 8 lesson hours for less hazardous, 12 for hazardous and 16 for very hazardous workplaces.
• Job-specific risks: At least 2, 3 or 4 lesson hours are allocated to the fourth topic group; in hazardous and very hazardous workplaces this topic is delivered face to face only.
• Refresher training: Every year for very hazardous, every 2 years for hazardous and every 3 years for less hazardous workplaces; at least 8 lesson hours in every class.
• Exam: At the end of basic training a score of at least 60 out of 100 is required; there are at most two resits.

Training delivered and certificates issued under the old regulation remain valid; the new rules apply to training from now on.

Time spent in training counts as working time, and the cost of training may not be passed on to employees. In 2026, failure to provide training carries an administrative fine of TRY 8,980 per employee. Fines calculated per employee are not increased according to hazard class or workplace size; but because the amount is calculated separately for each untrained employee, the total grows quickly.

Bursa Sistemer’s OHS specialists and workplace physicians deliver training on your premises, in sessions that fit your shift pattern. We teach the fourth topic group with examples from your own machinery, your chemicals and incidents that have occurred at your workplace, because what employees remember on the shop floor is the example from their own workstation.

The four topic groups and the weight of the fourth

Annex 1 of the regulation divides training into four topic groups: 1) general topics, 2) health topics, 3) technical topics, 4) job- and workplace-specific risks. The first three groups form a common foundation for all employees. The fourth group is what makes the difference.

In hazardous and very hazardous workplaces, the content of the fourth group is prepared specifically for the job and the workplace, taking into account the workplace’s risk assessment document, emergency plan and, if any, explosion protection document. In less hazardous workplaces it covers the general hazards and risks of the activity. Giving the same presentation at every workplace is incompatible with this provision; without an up-to-date risk assessment and emergency plan, the fourth group cannot be prepared properly either. When preparing the fourth group, we base it on the high-scoring risks in your risk assessment, the occupational accident and near-miss records of the last two years, and departmental instructions.

Remote training: what is possible and what is not?

• Topic groups 1, 2 and 3 may be delivered remotely, face to face or blended; the employer chooses the method.
• Topic group 4 is delivered face to face only in hazardous and very hazardous workplaces; in less hazardous workplaces it may also be delivered remotely.
• Induction training is face to face and hands-on in every class.
• The remote training system records log-ins and log-outs, completion rates and assessment results; fast-forwarding, skipping and closing the window are blocked.

What to do in special situations

Exam and measuring effectiveness

Before basic training, each participant’s individual level is assessed, and assessment and evaluation take place at the end of the training. A score of at least 60 out of 100 is required to pass. An employee who fails may sit the exam at most twice more; if they fail again, they attend basic training again. The employer is also required to evaluate the effectiveness of the training and, if necessary, change the programme or the trainer. We analyse exam results by topic and revisit in later sessions the subjects most participants found difficult.

Who delivers induction training?

Induction training may be delivered by the OHS specialist, the workplace physician or a knowledgeable and experienced employee designated by the employer. In businesses that hire frequently, preparing foremen or shift supervisors for this training ensures it is delivered on the first day without disruption. We prepare a checklist showing which topics to cover and a record template for these people.

Basic OHS training does not replace the vocational training certificate required for hazardous work or the hands-on fire training expected of the firefighting team; we track these training types as separate items in the same annual plan.