Ensuring your employees are safe and healthy should be a no brainer, but many industries struggle to keep up with safety practices. Failing to do so can result in catastrophic consequences, for both employees and for your business. An easy fix that promotes a healthier and safer working environment for everyone is to strengthen your contractor compliance management, which ensures your third-party contractors comply with expectations.  

Managing contractor compliance can be complex and challenging. But, if you work with leadership and your legal team, while also keeping a record of all relevant documentation for contractors, it can make things much simpler.  

When your contractors meet standards and expectations set by both your business, customers and regulatory organizations, you will see operating costs reduce, an increase in contractor retention and an overall boost in productivity.  

Contractor management addresses challenges such as coordinating multiple contractors, consistency in safety practices among workers, and ownership of contractor safety responsibility. With all this in mind, it’s certainly worth considering ways to stay on top of contractor compliance.

What is contractor compliance?

Contractor compliance is a piece of contractor management that is concerned with how or if a contractor is operating in accordance with the terms of their contract and specific requirements of your organization, normally written out as criteria. Employers have the right to monitor a contractor’s compliance—either through assessing potential liabilities or by prequalifying them.

It is vital that the compliance criteria are thorough and complete, only finalized after consulting relevant internal stakeholders, seeking expert advice from industry leaders, and taking into account the appropriate regulatory and industry best practices. But that’s just the start. Prior to starting work, every contractor should explicitly agree to compliance laid out in the criteria.  

Why do you need contractor compliance management?

Ensuring contractor compliance will reduce workplace safety risks, financial risks, insurance liabilities and legal risks to both the business and its officers.  

To create an effective contractor compliance process, you need to have an organized framework that enables you to prequalify contractors, monitor their activities and stay on top of their documentations. It may be beneficial to engage with an external provider to help.  

How can a contractor management company help you reach your goals?

Multiple contractors performing simultaneous operations and lack of standardization of safety practices internally are the top two challenges for effectively managing contractors. Traditional approaches to contractor management are no longer fit for purpose.  

In fact, technology-driven solutions deliver major efficiencies versus traditional tools. IT systems are viewed as effective tools to help with contractor compliance management.  

For example, Avetta’s platform is an easy, low-cost solution to managing contractor compliance. Within the system, employers are able to quickly vet contractors and keep track of their certifications and insurance documents.  

• Staying Ahead of Your Audit—contractor management allows you to keep on top of the proper documentation needed as proof of a contractor’s qualifications. You’ll have the audit trail you need so you can demonstrate a process for exercising your legislated due diligence.
• Meet Your Workplace Health and Safety Obligations—it’s crucial to ensure that your contractors are kept safe, receiving clear information regarding your safety processes and are fully aware of their workplace health and safety obligations. Most importantly, a contractor needs to understand what compliance looks like for them.
• Contractor Data All in One Place—when you work with contractors, you need to collect a surplus of data. Using tools like a contractor management system can help create a repository for this important information. It can also pinpoint where the gaps in a contractor’s compliance are.  
• Keep Documents Updated—contractor compliance management is an ongoing process; documents can come up for renewal and regulations can evolve. Having an automated system that can send notifications of renewals can keep contractors on top of their requirements.  

‍