General training is the foundation, but it is not enough. This last lesson explains what comes next and what you can ask your employer.
The specific training
The specific training covers the risks of your job and the measures the company has adopted. The content depends on the risk assessment and on the sector. Under the 2025 Agreement it lasts at least:
- 4 hours in low-risk sectors;
- 8 hours in medium-risk sectors;
- 12 hours in high-risk sectors.
The risk class depends on the company's sector, based on the ATECO codes in Annex IV of the Agreement. For example, retail and office services fall into low risk, construction into high risk. A worker who, in any sector, does not carry out duties that take them into the production departments, even occasionally, may take the low-risk course.
The total training of workers is therefore 8, 12 or 16 hours, including the 4 hours of general training. Hours of practical instruction are added on top.
When it must be done
Under Article 37, paragraph 4, training must take place:
- when the employment relationship begins;
- on transfer or change of duties;
- when new equipment, technologies or dangerous substances are introduced.
Refresher training
Training is repeated at regular intervals. For workers the Agreement provides a refresher every 5 years, of at least 6 hours. It is also needed earlier when the risks in the assessment change. A change of duties requires separate training.
Practical instruction
Practical instruction (addestramento) is hands-on practice in the correct use of equipment, machines and PPE, carried out by an experienced person at the workplace and recorded in a register (Art. 37, paragraph 5). For some equipment, such as forklift trucks, specific courses with a practical test are also required.
Foreign workers
Training must be easy to understand (Art. 37, paragraph 13). For foreign workers the employer first checks their understanding of the language in which the course is given and, if necessary, uses a mediator or a translator.
What to ask your employer
- When did I do my general training and where is the attestation?
- Did the course comply with the Agreement (qualified trainer, 4 hours, assessment, attestation)?
- When do I do the specific training and when the refresher?
- Who are the RSPP, the RLS, the occupational physician, my preposto and the emergency officers?
- Where are the emergency plan and the assembly point?
How to use this course
This course is for reviewing the concepts before or after the real training. Your certificate of completion shows that you have studied and passed the test, but it does not replace the attestation of the general training required by law. It is up to the employer to decide whether and how to take it into account, in compliance with the Agreement.