Onboarding new employees: checklist

What the law requires

• A written employment contract. Every employment relationship must have a written contract. If it lasts more than one month, the contract must be in place as soon as possible and no later than seven days after the work starts. If it is shorter, or it is hire from a staffing company, it must be in place immediately (section 14-5 of the Norwegian Working Environment Act). What the contract must contain is in section 14-6.
• Training and information about hazards. The employer must make sure the employee becomes familiar with accident and health hazards, and gets the necessary training, practice and instruction (section 3-2). If you have a working environment committee, it must see that new employees get training as soon as possible (Regulations on Organisation, Management and Employee Participation section 2-3).
• The a-melding. The employment is reported in the a-melding, which is filed every month. The start date must be the one in the employment contract. Check the current deadlines with the Norwegian Tax Administration.
• Tax card. The employer must collect the employee’s tax card electronically from the Norwegian Tax Administration before running payroll.
• Pension. Businesses that meet the conditions in the Act on mandatory occupational pensions must have a pension scheme. Check that the new employee is covered under the scheme’s rules.
• Occupational injury insurance. Employers must take out occupational injury insurance.

Checklist

What is above is legal requirements. The rest of the list is a suggestion, so adapt it to the company.

Before the first day

• Send the employment contract for signing, and check that it has what section 14-6 requires.
• Ask for the information you need: bank account number, emergency contact and any certificates.
• Report the employment in the a-melding, and collect the tax card.
• Arrange pension and occupational injury insurance.
• Appoint a buddy or contact person.
• Set up access to systems and email, and prepare equipment and workplace.
• Send information about the first day: time, place, who will receive them, and parking.

The first day

• Welcome them, and show them around. Introduce colleagues, the manager, the safety representative and any employee representatives.
• Go through fire procedures, escape routes, first aid and how to report a deviation. See the guide on deviations.
• Give the necessary training in equipment and protective equipment, and go through the hazards in the workplace.
• Hand over the staff handbook and the company’s procedures, and ask for read confirmation. See the guide on the staff handbook.
• Hand out equipment, keys and access cards, and note what has been handed out.

The first week

• Go through tasks and goals, and agree follow-up with the manager.
• Confirm that the training has been completed, and document it.
• Record competence and any courses that must be taken.
• Check that pay, timesheets and absence work.

The first month

• Have a conversation: how is it going, what is missing, what works?
• Remember that the employment contract must be updated if the employment changes.
• If there is a probationary period, agree when and how it will be evaluated.
• Plan further training and any courses.

How the portal helps

The HR system has onboarding and offboarding from a template, with tasks, owners and deadlines. You gather documents per employee, and record competence and equipment per employee. Employees can take courses and get certificates in the training portal.

Read about the HR system

Sources

The rules change. Always check the current text with the sources below. Most sources are in Norwegian. This guide is general information and not legal advice.

• Working Environment Act sections 14-5 and 14-6 on written employment contracts (Lovdata, Norwegian)
• Employment contract (Norwegian Labour Inspection Authority, Norwegian)
• Working Environment Act section 3-2 on training, information and competence (Lovdata, Norwegian)
• The a-melding report (Norwegian Tax Administration, Norwegian)
• Tax deduction and tax cards (Norwegian Tax Administration, Norwegian)
• Act on mandatory occupational pensions (Lovdata, Norwegian)
• Occupational Injury Insurance Act (Lovdata, Norwegian)