Occupational safety and health training in an FDI factory is not one common class for every worker each year: the law divides employees into six groups with different content, duration and update cycles, and the training file is the first document a labour inspection team asks for after any accident. This article sets out the correct cycles under Decree 44/2016/ND-CP, each group’s content, and how records must be kept to withstand inspection.
Training cycles by group: group 4 yearly, certificate groups every two years
Under the Law on Occupational Safety and Health 84/2015 and Decree 44/2016/ND-CP, the six training groups are: group 1, managers in charge of safety; group 2, dedicated safety officers; group 3, workers in jobs with strict safety requirements; group 4, the remaining employees; group 5, medical staff; and group 6, safety and hygiene network members. In a factory, most direct production workers fall into group 3 where their job is on the strict-requirements list, or group 4 as ordinary labour.
On update cycles: group 4 employees receive periodic training at least once a year at fifty per cent of the initial duration; holders of training certificates or safety cards in the other groups must attend a knowledge update at least once every two years from the certificate’s effective date, also at no less than half the initial duration. Applying one two-year calendar to the whole factory — a very common error — puts every group 4 worker out of date between sessions without anyone noticing until an inspection arrives.
What the content covers, and the events forcing retraining
The foundation content covers the occupational safety and health policy and law system; knowledge of dangerous and harmful factors at the workplace and preventive measures; safe work procedures, incident response and first aid; and the position-specific part: machine operation, chemicals, electricity, confined spaces or work at height — this specific part is where the programme must be built from each line’s own risk assessment file instead of one common syllabus for the whole plant.
Beyond the periodic cycle, three events force early retraining: an employee changes job or the plant changes equipment or technology — matched content must be trained before assignment; an employee returns after six months or more away, or a suspended facility resumes — retraining on the initial content at half duration; and a new hazard appears through risk assessment or after an incident or accident. The factory’s training calendar must therefore live alongside its equipment and staffing change calendars, not only the civil year.
How records are kept, and the fine for not training
Each training round’s file contains the programme and materials used, the attendee list by correct group with duration and test results, the training certificate or safety card issued to each person in a certified group, and the decision or contract with any external training provider — which must be an organisation eligible for training activities under the regulations. This file is kept at the enterprise with the plant’s safety records and must be producible immediately on a labour authority’s request, above all during an occupational accident investigation.
Failing to organise training, or training the wrong group with the wrong content, is an administrative violation in the labour sector under Decree 283/2026/ND-CP, which replaced Decree 12/2022/ND-CP, with fines scaled by the number of untrained employees. The heavier consequence sits beyond the fine: a worker not properly trained for a strict-requirement job worsens the enterprise’s position in the accident investigation and in later compensation and insurance disputes.
Frequently asked questions
How often must factory workers receive safety training?
By group: group 4 workers — ordinary labour — at least once a year; holders of training certificates or safety cards, including group 3 workers in strict-requirement jobs, update at least once every two years from the certificate’s effective date. Each update lasts at least fifty per cent of the initial training duration under Decree 44/2016/ND-CP.
What does safety training content include?
The common part on occupational safety and health law and policy; identifying dangerous and harmful workplace factors and preventive measures; safe work procedures, incident response and first aid; and the position-specific part — machinery, chemicals, electricity, work at height — built from the line’s risk assessment file. Groups 2 and 6 add professional safety work content and safety network member skills.
What training records must be kept?
The round’s programme and materials; the attendee list in correct groups with duration and test results; the training certificate or safety card of each person in a certified group; and the file of any external provider, including its eligibility for training activities. Records are kept at the enterprise with the safety file and must be producible immediately at inspection.
What is the fine for not training workers in safety?
The enterprise faces administrative sanctions for failing to organise occupational safety and health training under Decree 283/2026/ND-CP — the current labour sanctions decree replacing Decree 12/2022/ND-CP — with fines rising by the number of untrained employees. If an accident involves an untrained worker, the liability and compensation consequences are far heavier than the fine itself.
Must workers be retrained when machinery changes or they move jobs?
Yes. A change of job, equipment or technology requires matched safety content training before assignment, even where the old certificate is still valid. Likewise, an employee returning after six months or more away must be retrained on the initial content at half duration. The training calendar must track the plant’s equipment change and staff transfer calendars.
Contact FLAT Law Firm
FLAT Law Firm reviews an FDI factory’s safety training programme across the six statutory groups, builds the update calendar tied to equipment and staffing changes, and checks the training file before labour inspections.
This article has been quality-reviewed by the FLAW AI Legal Council