Training and instruction of workers and employees on occupational health and safety rules
In the current publication on our blog, we will examine various details related to safety and health training and instructions at work.
The Law on Healthy and Safe Working Conditions requires the employer to provide suitable safety and health training and instructions to each employee and worker, tailored to the specific nature of their workplace, position, and profession. Employees must familiarize themselves with the detailed and concrete working conditions, which depend on various factors:
1. Workers face specific dangers and risks associated with their tools – machines, equipment, technologies, materials, environmental conditions, and other factors that jeopardize their health and lives.
2. Normative requirements for safe labor, tailored to the specific profession, job, and other relevant factors.
3. Requirements for workers' behavior at the specific workplace, within the company, during the execution of maneuvers and other activities.
4. Specific regulations outlining limitations and prohibitions.
5. Requirements related to specific working conditions, such as working with hazardous substances and materials.
6. Basic rules for fire prevention and the organization of this activity.
Individuals conducting training and instruction.

The employer has the right to select individuals to conduct training and instruction. This may include various types of specialists, such as occupational health and safety experts, authorized officials for supervision and prevention of high-risk facilities, heads of structural units and their respective supervisors, and other specialists like doctors, biologists, chemists, and others. Training sessions are conducted during working hours, and the responsibility for the expenses associated with their conduct falls on the employer. Documentation for all guided training sessions is prepared according to the provided templates in the regulation.
The purpose of the training is to direct the attention of workers and employees towards the rules for safely performing specific tasks and to acquaint them with the potential hazards associated with the job activity.
The training sessions can be divided into the following categories depending on the timing:
1. Initial training;
2. On-the-job training;
3. Periodic training;
4. Daily briefing or daily training.
5. Emergency training.
Conducting training or instruction

Training is conducted in the following cases:
1. Upon starting employment.
2. For individuals on business trips – at the location of the assignment.
3. For individuals enrolled in training, educational internships, retraining, and skills enhancement.
4. Transferring an employee to a different job, department, production area, workplace, etc.
5. At specific intervals.
6. When introducing new technologies, machinery, equipment, raw materials, etc.
7. When forming groups of various professions for the execution of specific tasks.
8. When providing personal protective equipment for use.
9. After severe and fatal occupational accidents.
10. After accidents, fires, explosions, and other incidents, as well as in cases of significant violations of work organization and safety, occupational hygiene, and fire protection requirements.
11. As ordered by regulatory authorities.
Training sessions - organization of conduct
The responsibility for organizing training sessions falls on the employer. These training sessions are determined based on the specific working conditions and the risk assessment conducted in the enterprise, the nature of the work being performed, and existing production risks. The following aspects are covered within the training sessions:
1. Types of training sessions.
2. The scope of workers and employees who need to go through different types of training for specific production areas, departments, workplaces, professions, or types of work.
3. Various types and forms of training are provided, tailored to the specific conditions and requirements of the respective activities for workers and employees on business trips or engaged in training, production internships, or skills enhancement.
4. On-the-job training.
5. The topics covered in the training sessions.
6. The duration of the training sessions.
7. Individuals responsible for conducting the training sessions.
In all cases, the employer must organize and conduct the following types of training:
1. Initial training.
2. On-the-job training.
3. Periodic training for workers and employees.
The daily briefing - application

The daily briefing is applicable in specific situations and is conducted for workers and employees who engage in activities with high production risks. These activities include work in diverse environments such as underground, mining, construction and exploration sites, quarries, oil and gas extraction, and production and use of explosives and hazardous chemicals. Initial and on-the-job training can be organized for companies with up to 50 employees and limited activities. This option should be regulated in the document that governs the organization of training and should be specified concerning workplaces, productions, types of activities, professions, and other factors.
When performing work involving the operation, maintenance, and repair of machinery and other technical equipment, as well as work that poses a danger to the health and life of individuals, special on-the-job training must be conducted. This on-the-job training should be supplemented or combined with training on safe work methods. The employee can work independently after completing the training and passing an examination on secure work methods. The employer determines, by order, the workplaces, topics, duration of the movement, instructors, and the examination format. The training time is specified in hours or working days, depending on specific conditions, risk factors, regulatory requirements, and established rules within the enterprise.
Duration of training

The duration of the training sessions is determined based on the risk assessment and specific working conditions in various departments, units, sections, positions, types of work, and professions. In industries and activities involving significant risks, minimum durations for initial and on-the-job training have been defined. This applies to work in underground facilities, open-pit mines, construction, production of construction materials, metallurgical and chemical plants, and machinery, equipment, and processes with high risks. In such cases, the employer must ensure compliance with the minimum training durations and, if necessary, determine longer durations based on the risk assessment and working conditions.
Training provides practical guidelines for safe work in specific conditions, and it is therefore of utmost importance to define the core topics and programs for training. The employer determines these topics and should adapt to the type of training.
What does the initial training include?
The initial training includes the following categories of topics:
1. Labor legislation and company internal rules:
- Rights and obligations of employees.
- Working hours.
- Internal work order.
- Protection of specific categories of workers.
- Implementation of control.
- Occupational accidents.
2. Occupational safety:
- Prior knowledge of the activity's nature and the enterprise's premises.
- Specific requirements related to energy management.
- Hazardous areas.
- Nature and the manifestation of professional risks.
- Used signs and safety signals.
- Personal protective equipment.
- Collective protective measures.
3. Occupational hygiene:
- Factors of the work environment.
- Used hazardous substances.
- Specific hazards.
4. Fire protection:
- Fire and explosion hazardous zones and premises.
- Symbols for their marking.
- Protective measures.
- Notification methods.
- Methods and means of fire extinguishing.
- Signs and signals for specific behavior.
5. First aid for accidents and poisonings.
6. Safety of movement within and outside the enterprise and others.
Workplace Training
Workplace training is conducted before an employee or worker is allowed to work independently. Therefore, it is of utmost importance for them to be familiar with the existing rules, norms, and requirements. Additionally, they must be acquainted with the employer-approved regulations and instructions for safe work. The content and duration of the training should align with all other requirements specified in specific regulatory acts that pertain to the particular activity or type of work. This ensures more effective training and preparation of the employee or worker, contributing to a higher level of safety and proficiency within the working environment.
Within the training program, the following aspects may be included:
- Job responsibilities.
- Nature of the work, including work equipment, processes, organization, approaches, and outcomes.
- Tools and equipment used in the work.
- Safety and health regulations at work.
- Familiarization with collective protection means, personal protective equipment, and the rules for their use and storage.
- Specific risks associated with the type of work or workplace, assessment of their extent, and ways to mitigate or avoid them..
- Potential damage and faults that may occur in the equipment used, along with measures for their removal and repair.
- Emergency routes and escape paths.
- Sanitary facilities.
- Areas with dust, fumes, gases, and their impact on humans, as well as protective measures and similar topics.
Training – Procedure and Documentation
Conducting training sessions is documented in a specific manner and order as stipulated by the Regulation. This is necessary to ensure that the information can be used when needed and to reflect the following: that all employees have been instructed; how the employer has fulfilled their duties; the nature of the training and which key topics were presented to the employees, which is confirmed by their signatures.
Documentation of conducted training sessions is subject to inspection by labor inspectors. They have the right to halt the work of employees and workers who have not been instructed, whether due to an omission on the part of the employer or negligence on the part of the respective employee or worker. This can have legal consequences only for them. Furthermore, adequately documenting the knowledge of safety rules can help an employee or worker exercise their right to refuse to perform a specific task if it poses a danger to their life or health.
Training and Instruction

Healthy and safe working conditions
The training aims to provide specialized knowledge and practical skills for correctly applying OHS (Occupational Health and Safety) regulations. According to the timeframes established in regulatory acts, employers must organize and conduct periodic training for their employees and workers. Training results are assessed through an examination, determining whether the employee or worker is qualified and ready to be allowed to work. If the test is passed successfully, the employee is permitted to work; if not, they are not allowed.
Forms of training
There are various forms of training and qualification improvement for employees and workers in occupational safety, including courses, seminars, and other educational events. These training sessions must adhere to the general rules for healthy and safe working conditions established for the relevant job or activity and must also be included in the OHSMS (Occupational Health and Safety Management System) of the enterprise. Such educational activities provide proper training for employees and workers, contributing to the improvement of working conditions and the prevention of workplace risks.
The requirement for "possessing the necessary qualifications and competence" is stipulated in numerous specific regulatory documents related to occupational safety. This is particularly important for employees and workers involved in facilities with increased risk. Only qualified employees and workers with specific professional qualifications (specialized practical knowledge and skills for working with the respective technical equipment or facility) can perform such tasks.
Professional qualification

A professional qualification is certified through a particular certificate. Unique regulatory acts regulate the procedure and requirements for acquiring the respective competence.
Such acts may cover the following areas:
- Servicing steam and hot water boilers.
- Welding.
- Operating electric forklifts and stackers.
- Installation, maintenance, and repair of elevators.
- Working in an environment with ionizing radiation.
- Working with electrical current.
- Other health and safety risks.
Professionals with managerial roles in the enterprise and workers and employees tasked with performing relevant jobs and professions by the requirements of regulatory acts are subject to mandatory occupational safety training.
According to the specified regulatory documents, employees and staff members servicing electrical facilities, communication systems facilities, and non-electrical facilities in thermal power plants, combined heat and power plants, and others must undergo training and examinations to be awarded a qualification group for occupational safety. Training and examinations are annual for them. For managerial personnel, they are conducted every two years.
Professional training
Operators of lifting equipment (cranes), hook-on workers (attachers), electric forklift operators, stacker operators, and operators of high-pressure equipment and others must undergo periodic training and demonstrate their knowledge of safe job performance.
The employer is responsible for not allowing individuals who are not competent or do not possess the necessary knowledge and skills corresponding to the requirements for safe and healthy working conditions at the enterprise to work.. This includes the employer's obligation to provide training and ensure that employees have the necessary knowledge and skills by industry or internal workplace safety and health rules.
According to its judgment, the employer appropriately checks for these knowledge and skills. The subject of such a check includes personnel who supervise and manage work processes, including those who instruct employees. The employer must organize annual training sessions to enhance workplace safety and health knowledge.
Similar to instructions, regulatory authorities for labor law compliance have the right to remove workers or employees who do not possess the necessary knowledge and skills for safe work.
HBWS – healthy and safe working conditions

The rules for workplace safety and health, as well as other internal policies of the enterprise, are established by the employer. They must ensure their development, and this task can be delegated to:
- Occupational health and safety authorities within the enterprise;
- The occupational health service;
- Other employees with the necessary qualifications;
Regardless of who develops the rules, they must be discussed in labor condition committees or groups and receive approval from any labor unions within the enterprise if they exist.
These rules expand upon the general requirements of labor safety and health legislation, taking into account the specifics of the production processes within the enterprise. They cannot contradict established standards and requirements.
Through these rules, the following are determined:
- Particularities of the production and technological processes.
- Execution of specific tasks.
- Handling relevant machinery, equipment, materials, substances, and products.
- Behavioral guidelines and other relevant aspects.
- They establish obligations to preserve employees' lives, health, and safety.
The employer must acquaint all workers and employees with the rules for safe work, and they must be well-versed in these rules. These rules must be followed from the moment of introduction until the end of the employment relationship. If workers and employees fail to comply with the laws and obligations outlined, the employer has the right to impose disciplinary measures.
The employer can choose how they will familiarize workers and employees with the rules for safe work. This can be done through:
- Establishing a procedure for training and instruction.
- Holding events to verify employees' knowledge.
- Displaying the rules prominently and making them accessible to all.
- Other suitable methods.