New Hire and Temporary Worker Safety Orientation
Day one and first week safety orientation for new hires and agency temporary workers covering the facility hazard overview and zone walk, emergency action plan review on initial assignment, hazard communication training before any chemical exposure, PPE issue and training before any task requiring it, the absolute rule that nobody operates a powered industrial truck without completed certification for that truck type, pedestrian conduct around forklifts, incident and near miss reporting expectations from the first day, buddy assignment through the probation window, the host employer and staffing agency split of training duties for temporary workers, signed documentation of every orientation element, and the triggers that require re-orientation.
- Audience
- All newly hired warehouse employees and agency temporary workers before their first unsupervised floor work, the supervisors and assigned buddies who deliver and verify orientation, the staffing agency coordinator for temporary workers, and the person who owns the orientation program and its records
- Review cycle
- annual
- Last reviewed
- 2026-08-17
- Revision
- 1
What is in the procedure
7 sections. Regulatory language is fixed and passes through verbatim. Sections marked customized get rewritten around your facility, your equipment, and your job titles.
- 01
Purpose
FixedThis procedure governs the safety orientation that every new hire and every agency temporary worker completes before performing unsupervised work on the warehouse floor.
- 02
Scope
CustomizedThis procedure applies to every newly hired employee, permanent or seasonal, before their first unsupervised floor work; to every agency temporary worker on their first assignment at this facility, regardless of their...
- 03
Responsibilities
CustomizedThe orientation owner maintains the orientation checklist and this procedure, schedules orientation so it is complete before floor work begins, keeps the signed records, audits a sample of completed checklists, and...
- 04
Procedure: Day One, Before Any Floor Work
Customized1. Verify prerequisites before floor access.
- 05
Procedure: First Week, Mentorship, and Release to Unsupervised Work
Customized1. The supervisor assigns each new worker a buddy on day one, working the same shift and zone.
- 06
Procedure: Temporary Worker Duties Split, Documentation, and Re-Orientation
CustomizedDuties split with the staffing agency: before any temporary worker is assigned, the orientation owner sends the agency a written task description stating the tasks the worker will perform, the equipment involved, the...
- 07
References
Fixed29 CFR 1910.38 Emergency action plans. 29 CFR 1910.1200 Hazard communication.
OSHA references
New Hire and Temporary Worker Safety Orientation: 29 CFR 1910.38(f)
Every SOP generated from this template cites the paragraphs below, with a plain-language summary of what each one requires. Citations are informational and are not legal advice.
| Standard | Title | What it requires |
|---|---|---|
| 29 CFR 1910.38(f) | Emergency action plans: review of the emergency action plan | The employer must review the emergency action plan with each employee covered by the plan on three occasions: when the plan is developed or the employee is assigned initially to a job, when the employee's responsibilities under the plan change, and when the plan is changed. The first of those occasions, review on initial assignment to a job, is the review this orientation delivers, and the other two are re-orientation triggers under this procedure. |
| 29 CFR 1910.1200(h) | Hazard communication: employee information and training | Employers must provide employees with effective information and training on hazardous chemicals in their work area at the time of their initial assignment, and whenever a new chemical hazard the employees have not previously been trained about is introduced into their work area; the trigger is a new hazard, not every new chemical, and chemical-specific information must always be available through labels and safety data sheets. Employees must be informed of the requirements of the standard, the operations in their work area where hazardous chemicals are present, and the location and availability of the written hazard communication program, the required list of hazardous chemicals, and safety data sheets. Training must cover at least the methods and observations used to detect the presence or release of a hazardous chemical, the physical, health, simple asphyxiation, combustible dust, and pyrophoric gas hazards of the chemicals in the work area along with hazards not otherwise classified, the measures employees can take to protect themselves, and the details of the employer's hazard communication program, including an explanation of shipped-container labels, the workplace labeling system, and how to obtain and use a safety data sheet. |
| 29 CFR 1910.132(f) | Personal protective equipment: training | The employer must train each employee required by the section to use PPE to know at least when PPE is necessary, what PPE is necessary, how to properly don, doff, adjust, and wear it, its limitations, and its proper care, maintenance, useful life, and disposal. Each affected employee must demonstrate an understanding of that training, and the ability to use the PPE properly, before being allowed to perform work requiring the use of PPE, and must be retrained when changes in the workplace or in the types of PPE used render earlier training obsolete, or when inadequacies in the employee's knowledge or use of assigned PPE show that the understanding or skill was not retained. Paragraph (f) itself requires no written training certification; the only written certification in the section is the hazard assessment certification under paragraph (d)(2), so the signed orientation record this SOP requires is facility practice, not a requirement of this paragraph. Under paragraph (g), these training duties apply to eye and face, head, foot, and hand protection and to personal fall protection systems; respirators and electrical protective equipment carry their own training requirements in their own standards. |
| 29 CFR 1910.178(l)(1) | Powered industrial trucks: operator training completed before operation | The employer must ensure that each powered industrial truck operator is competent to operate the truck safely, as demonstrated by successful completion of the training and evaluation specified in paragraph (l), and prior to permitting an employee to operate a powered industrial truck, except for training purposes, must ensure that the operator has successfully completed that training, subject only to the credit for prior training that paragraph (l)(5) allows for an operator already evaluated and found competent. Trainees may operate a truck only under the direct supervision of persons who have the knowledge, training, and experience to train operators and evaluate their competence, and only where the operation does not endanger the trainee or other employees, per paragraph (l)(2)(i). Paragraph (l)(4)(ii) requires refresher training when an operator is assigned to drive a different type of truck, which is why certification is per truck type at this facility, and paragraph (l)(6) requires the employer to certify each operator's training and evaluation with the operator's name, the date of training, the date of evaluation, and the identity of the person performing the training or evaluation. |
| 29 CFR 1910.157(g) | Portable fire extinguishers: training and education upon initial employment | Where the employer has provided portable fire extinguishers for employee use in the workplace, the employer must provide an educational program that familiarizes employees with the general principles of fire extinguisher use and the hazards involved with incipient stage fire fighting, and must deliver that education upon initial employment and at least annually thereafter. Employees designated to use fire fighting equipment as part of an emergency action plan must additionally be trained in the use of the appropriate equipment upon initial assignment to the designated group and at least annually thereafter. |
Compliance checklist
What an inspector looks for
The emergency action plan is reviewed with each new worker on initial assignment, and again when the worker's responsibilities under the plan change or the plan changes
29 CFR 1910.38(f)
Hazard communication information and training are delivered at initial assignment and before any task involving a hazardous chemical, and redelivered when a new chemical hazard the worker has not been trained about is introduced
29 CFR 1910.1200(h)
Each worker required to use PPE is trained on when and what PPE is necessary, how to wear it, its limitations, and its care, and demonstrates understanding and proper use before performing work requiring it
29 CFR 1910.132(f)
No worker operates a powered industrial truck without successfully completed training and evaluation for that truck type, and trainees operate only under the direct supervision of a qualified trainer where the operation endangers no one
29 CFR 1910.178(l)(1)
Powered industrial truck operator certifications record the operator's name, training date, evaluation date, and the identity of the trainer or evaluator, and prior certification from another site is credited only after verification and an on-site evaluation
29 CFR 1910.178(l)(6)
Fire extinguisher education on general principles of use and incipient stage fire hazards is delivered upon initial employment and at least annually thereafter
29 CFR 1910.157(g)
A written task description is sent to the staffing agency before each temporary worker assignment, the agency's training confirmation is on file before day one, and the agency is notified in writing before any task change
Every orientation element carries the trainee's signature and the deliverer's initials and date, and the completed checklist is filed before release to unsupervised work
Re-orientation is delivered, with the affected elements documented and re-signed, on transfer, return from long absence, introduction of a new hazard, or observed loss of the training
Waitlist
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This page is informational and is not legal advice. Have a qualified safety professional review any procedure before it goes into service at your facility.