Contractor-Visitor Orientation

Everyone needs to have an on-boarding process and/or orientation for contractors and visitors.  Often we have good intentions and we think we’ll cover things as we go along and that logic will dictate response, however there are several things you can inform new comers about up front eliminating some guess work and creating the proper setting for safety and/or other matters.

Create an information guide and delivery system.  Utilize a quiet area with no distractions for delivery and include a tour or walk through if appropriate.  When contractors and visitors come to your facility, you need to ensure they are protected and that they understand how to protect others around them in your environment.  Contractors must also understand the competencies needed to perform the jobs they are hired to complete.  You may have a contractor qualification process which evaluates a contractor’s work history, safety record, insurance requirements, etc. however, once contractors are on site, they need to know about that specific facility and how to keep themselves and others safe.

There are three general areas that you can start with to educate your contractors and visitors, general safety requirements, site/job specific requirements and emergency actions.   Of course you will want to include any other important information and requirements.

First:  Most of your contractors will have had some type of safety training prior to entering your site.  The first area to address with the contractors is a review of general safety requirements.  Most of these requirements are regulatory in nature.  Review your program requirements such as lockout/tagout, confined space and personal protective equipment (PPE).  In the event you have new workers that have not had any training, this will serve as an eye opener to the requirements for your site.

Second:  Review any site/job specific information.  For example, if vehicles are allowed, tell your contractors and visitors what the speed limit is for vehicles traveling on site.  Most sites require safety glasses, safety shoes and hard hats and you’ll need to let contractors and visitors know if there are any other (PPE) requirements such as hearing protection or heat protection.    Let people know if there are certain areas where no PPE is required, such as break rooms, rest rooms or dedicated smoking areas.  Provide details for programs such as Hazard Communication, chemical hazards and chemical restrictions.  Review the chemicals that they may come in contact with as part of your processes.  Explain required permits such as confined space, hot work, excavations and line breaks.  Permit requirements must be reviewed with the contractor so they know what is expected.

Third:  Every contractor and visitor should know what to do in the event of an emergency.  Review emergency procedures.  Go over your emergency alarm and if you have more than one type of alarm, explain what each of the different alarms mean.  Remember alarms can be sound, site or other indicators.  Explain and if possible show them where they are to go and what they are to do in the event of an emergency or alarm.  Explain your accountability process.  Provide contractors and visitors with the requirements for reporting near misses and injuries.  If you have a response team, let your contractors and visitors know who the response team is and how to engage your response team.  If you have emergency facilities on site, include the facilities on your tour.

Be sure this information is presented in a classroom type setting as free from distraction as possible.  Certainly a video delivery of this information could be effective.  No matter how the training is delivered, it is best practice to require completion of a quiz where the answers reviewed would satisfy an evaluation of the passing of knowledge.  A simple multiple choice quiz would suffice and will drive the answers into the minds of your contractors and visitors.  This could be done on paper, computer or web based.

You are responsible for everyone on your site.  Ensure that your contractors are qualified and all your contractors and visitors understand your requirements so they can safely complete whatever they set out to do.