According to OSHA, there is often a shared responsibility for contract worker safety. The extent of those responsibilities varies based on who controls the work, who supervises the work, who creates the hazards, who is exposed to the hazards, and other factors.

If your company merely allows the contractor to come onsite to service a photocopier, you may not be responsible for conducting comprehensive safety training, overseeing the work, directing the work, and providing tools or materials. On the other hand, if you have a temporary worker coming onsite to help out on the assembly line, you will have more training responsibility. Generally, your responsibility depends on the nature of the work being performed, the nature of the hazards in your facility, and the level of day-to-day supervision you exercise over the worker.