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Manage Subcontractors - Best Practices

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Overview

This workflow lets you manage subcontractors without joining their company or manually creating their workers. Instead, you control access from your own account: connect or invite the subcontractor company, assign them to a site, share the forms they need, and post a QR code for their workers to scan.

Use this approach when you want to avoid admin overhead, skip joining subcontractor companies directly, and get subcontractor workers submitting forms as quickly as possible.

The flow in short: you set up access, subcontractors scan a code, workers submit forms.

Note: This entire workflow takes place in the Salus web app. Workers scanning a QR code can use any device with a camera and browser: they do not need the Salus mobile app installed.

Navigation

Subcontractors › Invitations or Active

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. Connect or invite the subcontractor company

Most subcontractor companies already have a Salus account. Check first before creating a new one.

  1. Click Subcontractors.
  2. Click the Invitations tab.
  3. Click Invite Subcontractor.
  4. Search for the company by name, or filter by Country and Province/State.
  5. If the company appears in the results, click Connect on their card.

If the company doesn't appear, they may not have a Salus account yet.

  1. Click Can't Find Subcontractor? in the top right of the modal.
  2. Enter the Company Name and a Site. Enter an Email or Phone number so the company can be reached.
  3. Click Add Row to invite more than one company at once.
  4. Click Send Invite.

Company Name

The name of the subcontractor company you're inviting. Required.

Use it when: setting up a brand-new subcontractor that isn't already in Salus.

Email

Where the invite email is sent. Enter an email, a phone number, or both.

Use it when: you have a contact email for the subcontractor's office or owner.

Phone

An alternative to Email for reaching the subcontractor. Enter an email, a phone number, or both.

Use it when: you only have a phone number on file for the subcontractor.

Site

The site this subcontractor will work on. Required.

Use it when: you already know which site the subcontractor is assigned to. This assigns the site as part of the invite, so you won't need Step 2 below for this company.

Tip: Search carefully before inviting a new company, including partial names and common misspellings. Many "missing" subcontractors already exist under a slightly different spelling. Creating a duplicate company can cause confusion later. If you're not sure, contact Salus Support to check.

2. Assign the subcontractor to a site

If you invited a new company using Can't Find Subcontractor, you already assigned their site in Step 1. Skip ahead to Step 3.

If you connected with an existing company, connecting only adds them to your subcontractor list. It does not give them access to a site yet.

  1. Click Subcontractors.
  2. Click the Active tab.
  3. Select the subcontractor company.
  4. Click the Sites tab on their company page.
  5. Click Add to Site and select the site.

Note: Adding a subcontractor to a site grants access immediately, with no email sent. If you'd rather notify the company's owners with a link to the site dashboard, use an invite-based option instead if one is available in your account.

3. Share forms with subcontractors

  1. Click Forms.
  2. Open Templates.
  3. Select a form template.
  4. Click Edit.
  5. Under Template Visibility, enable Share with subcontractors.

Warning: Sharing a form this way shares it with all subcontractors connected to your account, not just one company. There's no way to share a form with a single subcontractor company through this setting.

4. Create a QR code for the site

Only Full Access/Admin users can create QR codes. If you have Site Access/Foreman permissions, skip to Step 6 below, or view existing codes for your site from Sites › [Site Name] › QR Codes.
  1. Click QR Codes.
  2. Click the Sites tab.
  3. Click Create QR Code.
  4. Enter a name in QR Code Name.
  5. Select the site in Select Site.
  6. Click Add Item and select Form, then choose the forms you shared in Step 3 (for example, Daily Task Analysis or Toolbox Talk).
  7. Under Access Control, check Subcontractors Access to allow subcontractor workers with an existing profile to use the code.
  8. Also check Join Subcontractors if new subcontractor workers should be able to create a profile and join their company through this code.
  9. Click Create QR Code.

Tip: Checking Subcontractors Access on its own only lets workers who already have a Salus profile use the code. Check Join Subcontractors as well if you also want brand-new workers to be able to create a profile through the code.

5. Distribute the QR code

Choose whichever method fits how workers access the site:

  • Download the QR code and post it in a visible location on site, such as a site entrance or trailer.
  • Copy the QR code's link and send it directly by email or text.

6. Worker self-registration

Workers complete this step themselves, without any action from you:

  1. Scan the QR code.
  2. Enter their phone number.
  3. Enter the SMS verification code they receive.
  4. Enter their name and select their company.
  5. Start submitting forms.

What Happens Next

Once a worker scans the code and completes registration, Salus automatically creates their worker profile, assigns them to the subcontractor company, links them to the site, and grants access to the forms you shared. They can start submitting forms right away, and you don't need to add them manually.

To monitor activity, use any of the following:

  • Dashboards › Subcontractors, to see form submissions by subcontractor, activity by site, and worker counts.
  • Subcontractors › [Company Name] › Sites › Forms, to see a specific company's submissions on a specific site.
  • Sites › Forms › Subcontractors tab, then filter by subcontractor.

Frequently Asked Questions

What's the difference between Connect and Invite?

If the company already uses Salus, search for them and click Connect. This adds them to your subcontractor list immediately, with no email sent. If the company isn't in Salus yet, use Can't Find Subcontractor and enter their name, email, and phone. This sends them an email invite to create their own account.

Why can't my subcontractor see my site after I connected with them?

Connecting with a subcontractor adds them to your subcontractor list, but it doesn't automatically give them access to any specific site. You'll need a second step: open Subcontractors, select the company from the Active tab, and click Add to Site.

Why can only some of my subcontractor's workers sign forms for other people via QR code?

New workers are set up with a Worker role by default, which only allows them to sign a form for themselves when scanning a QR code. If someone needs to sign on behalf of a crew, such as a foreman, their role needs to be changed to Foreman from the Subcontractors page.

What do the QR code Access Control checkboxes actually control?

Subcontractors Access lets only workers who already have a Salus profile use the code. Join Subcontractors lets a worker without an existing profile create one, join the selected subcontractor company, and gain access through the code. Make sure the option you choose matches your intent: leaving Join Subcontractors unchecked can unexpectedly block brand-new workers, while checking it allows account creation you may not have intended.

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