What is an OJT checklist?

A checklist the trainer follows while teaching a job at the workstation, with sign-offs as each stage is done and a record of when the trainee was qualified.

What is TWI Job Instruction?

A method for teaching a job quickly and correctly, developed by the Training Within Industry program in the United States in the 1940s. The trainer breaks the job down into important steps, key points and reasons, then teaches in four steps: prepare the worker, present the operation, try out performance and follow up.

Anything in a step that could hurt the worker, spoil the part or make the job easier: a knack, a feel, a special timing. Each key point has a reason, so the trainee understands why it matters.

When is a trainee qualified?

When they can do the job safely, to the quality standard and in the expected time without help, and can explain the key points. This template records the tries observed and the qualified date.

Free template

On-the-job training (OJT) checklist

An on-the-job training (OJT) checklist guides a trainer through teaching one job at the workstation and records when the trainee is qualified. This one is based on TWI Job Instruction, the method developed in the United States in the 1940s and still used as the base of standard work training. Page 1 is the job breakdown the trainer prepares first: the important steps (what to do), the key points for each (how: safety, quality and the knack) and the reason for each key point (why), with a check that the workstation and materials are ready. Page 2 has the four steps of job instruction, prepare the worker, present the operation, try out performance and follow up, each with a trainer and trainee sign-off, then the tries observed, the qualified date and the skills matrix level.

Free to use: print it, copy it and edit it for your team. Enter your name and work email once to download.

Page 1 of the OJT checklist: fields for trainee, trainer, job, station, work instruction and start date, a job breakdown table with columns for the important steps, key points and reasons, and a box of checks to make before training. — Job breakdownKey points and reasonsWorkstation readyThe four steps of job instructionTrainer and trainee sign-offTries observedQualified date

When to use it

When to use an OJT checklist

When training a new operator on a job, or an experienced one on a new job.
When the same job is taught differently by different trainers.
When a job changes and people need retraining on the new method.
To give each qualified person a record of how and when they were trained.

How to fill it in

1
Break the job down
Before training, write the important steps, the key points for each and the reason for each key point.
2
Get the workstation ready
Set it up the way the worker will use it, with tools, materials, PPE and the work instruction at hand.
3
Prepare the worker
Put them at ease, name the job, find out what they know and position them so they can see.
4
Present the operation
Tell, show and illustrate one important step at a time, stressing each key point and its reason.
5
Try out performance
They do the job while you correct errors, then again explaining the steps, key points and reasons, until you know they know.
6
Follow up and qualify
Put them on their own, say who to ask for help, check often and then less, and record the qualified date.

A filled-in example

Illustrative, not a benchmark

An example: a job breakdown for loading a CNC lathe (illustrative).

Important step: clamp the part. Key point: seat it against the jaw stop. Reason: a gap changes the length and scraps the part.
Key point: check the chuck pressure gauge reads in the green. Reason: low pressure lets the part move under cut.
Important step: start the cycle. Key point: close the door fully until it clicks. Reason: the interlock will not allow the cycle otherwise.
Tries: two supervised tries with corrections, then two made to standard, safe and in cycle time.

The trainee was qualified at level 3 on the skills matrix on the fifth day, with follow-up checks booked for the next two weeks.

Common mistakes

Training without a breakdown
Without the key points written down, each trainer teaches something different. Break the job down first.
Too much at once
Present one important step at a time, no faster than the person can take in.
Qualifying too soon
Keep them trying and explaining until you know they know, then check again during follow-up.
Leaving them alone after training
Follow up: tell them who to ask, check often and taper off.

Download the template

Free to use: print it, copy it and edit it for your team. Enter your name and work email once to download.

Run this template in LeanSuite

In LeanSuite a designated trainer, coordinator or supervisor checks the new hire against a standard OJT checklist on a tablet; every sign-off is time-stamped, and the person's level updates on the Skill Matrix.

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