Health and safety training for subcontractors before they enter the facility cannot be reduced to simply signing a sign-in sheet. When an outside company enters a production hall, warehouse, laboratory, or production area, it must be familiar with the local rules: traffic routes, required protective equipment, emergency procedures, and access restrictions. If this process is handled manually, gaps are easy to miss, and the scale of the risk is not abstract. According to preliminary data from the Central Statistical Office (GUS) for 2025, 66,733 people were reported injured in workplace accidents in Poland, including 486 in serious accidents and 189 in fatal ones.
How can you train subcontractors so your company doesn’t contribute to these statistics?
- Why is it so important for subcontractors to receive health and safety training before entering the facility?
- Why is traditional health and safety training for subcontractors often ineffective?
- What should an effective health and safety training program for subcontractors look like?
- What should an effective health and safety training program for subcontractors look like?
- How do audits and inspections affect the process of recording occupational safety and health training?
- Case study – how to eliminate accidents among subcontractors and reassure auditors?
- HRcode Visits: a guest check in system – why choose it?
Why is it so important for subcontractors to receive health and safety training before entering the facility?
The National Labor Inspectorate reported that in 2024 alone, 1,717 workplace accidents were reported to it, in which 1,956 workers were injured, 174 people died, and 511 suffered serious injuries. Therefore, occupational safety and health is a system of decisions designed to reduce the likelihood of a hazardous incident, not just a document for a filing cabinet.
In the case of subcontractors, the issue is particularly sensitive, because liability does not disappear simply by signing a contract with an outside company. An organization that allows contractors onto its premises must ensure that work is organized safely on its own premises. The Labor Code stipulates that the employer is responsible for occupational safety and health conditions at the workplace, and when persons employed by different employers work at the same location, the employers must cooperate, appoint an OSH coordinator, and establish rules for cooperation (Art. 207 § 1 and § 2, Art. 208).
The greatest risks usually arise in three areas.
- At the entrance. Security or reception staff do not always have clear information on whether a person is authorized to enter, whether they have completed the required health and safety training before entering the facility, whether they have valid documents, and who they should report to.
- On the job itself. A subcontractor may take a shortcut, enter a zone with additional requirements, fail to use the required protective equipment, or not know how to respond to an alarm signal.
- During an audit or inspection. If a company lacks organized documentation, it is difficult to quickly demonstrate who underwent training, when they completed it, what test they passed, and on what basis they were granted access to the facility.
Therefore, verification of health and safety training should be part of a broader process for admitting a subcontractor to the facility.
Why is traditional health and safety training for subcontractors often ineffective?
Traditional health and safety training for subcontractors often falls short because the process starts too late. If the briefing takes place only at the entrance, at the gatehouse, or just before work begins, the organization inevitably tries to juggle several tasks at once:
- verify identity,
- check documents,
- convey the rules,
- admit the crew to work,
- and avoid delaying the job.
In such a model, it is easy to overlook important issues. Operationally, this process does not ensure that the subcontractor understands the rules in effect at the facility.
What should an effective health and safety training program for subcontractors look like?
An effective health and safety training process is one in which subcontractor registration, digital health and safety training, and training verification are integrated and flow seamlessly into one another. The process can be broken down into six steps.
1. Registration and notification of subcontractors
The first step is to gather information before the visit. The company should know who is entering the facility, from which organization, for what purpose, to which area, for how long, and who is the point of contact at the facility. Without this information, security or reception staff will only see the person at the entrance, not the risk context. A well-designed subcontractor notification process should also include the scope of work.
2. Verification of documents and entry requirements
The second step is to verify whether the subcontractor meets the requirements for admission to work or entry into a specific zone. The subcontractor’s employer is responsible for providing formal health and safety training to its employees, but the company admitting outside personnel should ensure that the required documents have been submitted and are up to date.
Depending on the type of work, these may include, among other things, training certificates, qualification certificates, medical examinations, authorizations for particularly hazardous work, knowledge of company procedures, or confirmation of the use of specific personal protective equipment.
3. Assigning training or on-the-job instruction
The third step is to provide information on the rules in effect at the specific facility. This material should primarily cover:
- rules for moving around the facility,
- pedestrian and transport routes,
- restricted access areas,
- required personal protective equipment,
- emergency and evacuation procedures,
- how to report incidents,
- rules for performing particularly hazardous work,
- contact information for the person in charge at the facility.
This is where online health and safety training for visitors and subcontractors works well. A person can complete the training before arrival, without tying up the reception desk and without having to involve a health and safety officer from scratch each time.
4. Post-training knowledge test
A signature on the statement alone does not indicate whether the person has understood the rules. A knowledge test addresses this issue. It does not have to be long. It should cover the most important decisions a subcontractor must make in practice: where they are allowed to enter, what they are not permitted to do, how to respond to an alarm, whom to notify of a hazard, and what protective equipment to use.
The test also serves as evidence. In the event of an inspection or audit, the company can provide not only confirmation that the material has been reviewed but also the test results.
5. Security check upon entering the facility
Step five takes place at the entrance, but it shouldn’t be the starting point of the entire process. Security, reception, or the person responsible for admitting subcontractors should see a simple status: person registered, training completed, test passed, documents verified, access granted.
6. Archiving and Reporting
The final step is well-organized documentation. The company should be able to quickly verify who entered the facility, when, for what purpose, what training they completed, what score they achieved, and who approved their entry. This is particularly important during audits, inspections, and incident analyses.
A digital process has a significant advantage over paper in this regard.
What should an effective health and safety training program for subcontractors look like?
The process should include subcontractor registration, training assignment, a knowledge test, onboarding verification, and the archiving of confirmations. Let’s take a look at how to navigate each step.
1. Registration and notification of subcontractors
The first step is to gather information about the person or team that is to enter the facility. The company should know:
- who is coming,
- from which company,
- for what purpose,
- which zone they are to enter,
- for how long,
- who is the point of contact at the facility,
- and what work will be performed.
As early as the notification stage, it is possible to determine whether the subcontractor needs additional documents, authorizations, permits, or instructions regarding a specific zone.
2. Assigning training or on-the-job instruction
A subcontractor may have completed current health and safety training with their employer, but that does not mean they are familiar with evacuation routes, traffic rules, restricted-access areas, or local emergency procedures.
Therefore, digital health and safety training for subcontractors should cover:
- rules for moving around the facility,
- required personal protective equipment,
- hazardous and restricted-access areas,
- emergency and evacuation procedures,
- how to report incidents,
- rules for performing particularly hazardous work,
- contact information for the person in charge at the facility.
In this model, online health and safety training for visitors and subcontractors does not replace the legal obligations of the external company’s employer, but it streamlines on-site instruction and allows the rules to be communicated before arrival.
5. Archiving confirmations
A company should be able to quickly verify who attended the training, when they completed it, what score they received on the test, and on what basis they were granted access to the facility. This is particularly important during audits, inspections, and incident investigations. Digital archiving organizes records and reduces the time needed to retrieve them.
How do audits and inspections affect the process of recording occupational safety and health training?
An audit or inspection quickly reveals any shortcomings or a well-prepared process. Auditors and inspectors pay particular attention to three areas.
- Documentation. Does the company have records confirming that training or on-site instruction has been completed? Does it know which individuals were on the premises? Can it verify the date of entry, the scope of the training, and the test results?
- Process consistency. Does every external visitor follow the same procedure?
- Data currency. Does the training cover current procedures?
A lack of records creates a problem even if the training took place. In the event of an incident, it may be difficult to demonstrate that the organization communicated safety rules and verified their understanding.
Case study – how to eliminate accidents among subcontractors and reassure auditors?
At a manufacturing plant, it’s easy to say that safety is a priority. It’s harder to build a process around it, but… the Bunge plant in Karczew has succeeded. It’s a manufacturing environment where employees, visitors, drivers, and subcontractors move among machines, forklifts, and trucks.
This place is unique because not a single accident has occurred here in four years. The company attributes this result to a systematic approach to safety, regular audits, training, and procedure checks.
Bunge has always had strict health and safety rules in place, but before implementing HRcode, safety experts had to visit subcontractors two or three times a day to train them. This took time and did not provide full assurance that people entering the plant premises had fully absorbed the information.
After implementing HRcode Visits, anyone entering the factory premises can complete the training on their own: via a link, QR code, smartphone, tablet, or computer. The system then verifies the test results and records the data in a report. Security personnel have access to up-to-date information about authorized visitors, and the occupational safety and health department no longer has to interrupt their work every time to repeat the same training from the beginning.
“Everything started working very quickly. I was completely shocked because I thought we’d need a month to get things up and running. And that ‘setup’ took… half a week,” says Weronika Zdanowicz, Human Resources Manager at Bunge.
The company no longer has to reconstruct the history from paper lists, emails, and verbal confirmations. It can show that a person was registered, completed training, passed a test, and only then was granted access to the facility.
HRcode Visits: a guest check in system – why choose it?
The HRcode Wizyty visitor registration system streamlines several processes at once: visit registration, policy communication, knowledge testing, entry verification, and confirmation archiving.
As a result, subcontractors don’t have to wait at the front desk for someone to find the person in charge of training. They can review the material in advance, online, in a format tailored to the specific facility’s rules. Security can see the visitor’s status at the entrance, and the health and safety team doesn’t waste time repeating the same instructions several times a day.
The most important benefits are very practical:
- less chaos at the entrance,
- knowledge transfer via e-training in occupational safety and health for companies,
- less manual document checking,
- a consistent process for all subcontractors,
- digital training completion confirmations,
- easier verification of occupational safety and health training,
- a ready-to-use entry history for audits or inspections.
This makes it much easier for the organization to control who enters its premises and whether they are familiar with the rules in effect at a specific facility.
Do you need a solution like this for your business?
Bibliography:
GUS, Wypadki przy pracy w 2025 r. – dane wstępne, 2025 https://stat.gov.pl/obszary-tematyczne/rynek-pracy/warunki-pracy-wypadki-przy-pracy/wypadki-przy-pracy-w-2025-r-dane-wstepne,3,62.html;
PIP, Ubywa najcięższych wypadków. Celem Państwowej Inspekcji Pracy dalsza poprawa bezpieczeństwa, 2025 https://www.pip.gov.pl/aktualnosci/mniej-wypadkow-w-2024-roku-wstepne-dane-panstwowej-inspekcji-pracy;
Martyna Kosienkowska, HRcode Wizyty w Bunge – case study, https://hrcode.io/bunge-case-study/.
Mariusz Andreasik
Mariusz knows HR from the business side, from clients, and from everyday conversations that lead to real change in organizations. He listens to companies' needs and shows them that HRcode can do more: implement faster, manage better, and develop people more effectively.
He is the originator of many solutions in the HRcode system, and his sales experience translates into a practical approach to technology.
On his blog, he shares inspirations, trends, and examples of implementations that show that automated, modern HR is not the future—it is the present.
