Contrary to what many plant managers assume, a first-aid team is not voluntary: Circular 19/2016/TT-BYT sets concrete first-aider staffing ratios by workforce size and requires every shift to have a person responsible for first aid. For an FDI factory with thousands of workers, this is an organisational duty that must be designed from the day operations start.
First-aid staffing ratios under Circular 19/2016/TT-BYT
Article 7 of Circular No. 19/2016/TT-BYT provides that the first-aid and emergency force comprises workers assigned by the employer and the facility’s medical staff. At production or business facilities performing jobs on the strict occupational safety list: at least one first-aider for fewer than 100 workers, and at least one additional first-aider for each further 100 workers. At other facilities: at least one for fewer than 200 workers, and one more for each further 150 workers. In all cases, every work shift or mobile work group must have a person or team responsible for first aid and emergency care.
Equipment is equally mandatory: first-aid kits placed in work areas, visible and accessible, marked with a cross, in the quantities set by Appendix 4 of the Circular — at least one type A kit for an area of up to 25 workers, one type B kit for 26 to 50 workers, and one type C kit for 51 to 150 workers. A facility where more than 300 people work on the same floor must set up a dedicated first-aid area under Article 8.
Who may serve as a first-aider and what training is required
An assigned worker must meet three criteria in Clause 1 of Article 7 of Circular 19/2016/TT-BYT: be healthy and volunteer for first-aid activities; be able to reach the accident location earliest during working hours; and have completed first-aid training under Article 9 of the Circular. Training covers bandaging, bleeding control, fracture immobilisation, resuscitation, victim transport and industry-specific scenarios such as chemical burns and electric shock.
The employer may run training in-house with medically qualified instructors or contract a medical facility or safety-training provider. Two points are often missed: training must be refreshed periodically, and records must be kept together with the first-aid team list publicly posted in the work area — kit locations and team membership are mandatory disclosures under Clause 1 of Article 5 of the Circular so workers know where to turn in an emergency.
Legal consequences when an accident is not given timely first aid
The Law on Occupational Safety and Hygiene 84/2015/QH13 obliges the employer to organise timely first aid and emergency care for injured workers and to bear the related costs. When an accident occurs, whether a first-aid force was present and how long the victim waited are among the first facts accident investigators record; a facility that never staffed first-aiders to the prescribed ratio faces administrative fines for failing to organise first-aid activities under the current labour penalty decree, independently of accident compensation and allowance liability.
From a risk-management standpoint, FDI employers should treat first-aid documentation as part of the overall safety file: shift-by-shift assignment decisions, training certificates, periodic kit inspection minutes and a log of actual first-aid events. In a serious accident, this file proves the employer performed its organisational duty and helps separate the company’s organisational responsibility from force majeure elements of the incident.
Frequently asked questions
Are factories required to have a first-aid team?
Yes. Article 7 of Circular 19/2016/TT-BYT requires the employer to staff a first-aid and emergency force: facilities with strict-list jobs need at least one first-aider for under 100 workers plus one more per additional 100 workers; other facilities need at least one for under 200 workers plus one more per additional 150 workers. Every shift or mobile group must have a designated person responsible for first aid.
Who may work as a first-aider and what certificate is needed?
An assigned worker must be healthy, volunteer, be able to reach the accident site earliest during work hours, and have completed first-aid training under Article 9 of Circular 19/2016/TT-BYT; the facility’s own medical staff are members by default. The Circular does not require a standalone state-issued ‘first-aid certificate’ — the legal basis is the employer’s assignment decision together with completed training records.
Is there a penalty if a workplace accident is not given timely first aid?
There is penalty risk. Failing to staff first-aiders to the prescribed ratio, or failing to organise timely first aid when an accident occurs, breaches the employer’s duties under the Law on Occupational Safety and Hygiene 84/2015/QH13 and is fined under the current labour penalty decree, in addition to accident compensation and allowances; delayed first aid is also recorded adversely in the accident investigation conclusion.
This article has been quality-reviewed by the FLAW AI Legal Council
