# Track skills, certifications and expiry dates

> Record trade skills, licences and safety certifications on an employee, attach the certificate, mark it verified, and keep expiry dates from catching you out on site.

- Product: WorkSkedge
- Section: Employees & Skills
- Canonical: https://workskedge.com/help/people/skills-and-certifications-on-an-employee
- Updated: 2026-08-31T19:21:35.63988+00:00
- Source: EMPLOYEES.md
- Keywords: employee skills workskedge, certifications, licence expiry, skill verification, osha certification tracking, certificate upload

## Steps

1. Add the skill to the company catalog first: Settings, Team & Access, Skills & Certifications.
2. Open Employees under Resources and click the person.
3. Open the Skills tab on their detail panel.
4. Click Manage Skills and pick the skill from the catalog.
5. Fill in the certification number, issue date, expiry date and issuing authority the skill requires.
6. Attach the certificate file and tick Verified once you have seen the documentation.
7. Save, then review expiry dates periodically and update them at renewal.

## Before you start

Skills come from a company-wide catalog, so the skill has to exist before you can attach it to a person. The catalog lives in Settings under Team & Access, as Skills & Certifications. Adding and verifying skills on an employee is a management task.

## The skill catalog

Each catalog entry has a name, a category and a description, and can be deactivated when you stop using it. Categories are:

- **skill** - a competency with no paperwork behind it
- **certification**
- **licence**
- **training**
- **equipment operation**

Each catalog entry also decides which extra fields are mandatory when someone claims it: certification number, issue date, expiry date and issuing authority. That is why one skill asks for a licence number and another does not.

## What to fill in on the employee

- **Skill** - picked from the catalog.
- **Certification or licence number** - required only if the catalog entry demands it.
- **Issue date** and **expiry date** - leave expiry empty when the skill never expires.
- **Issuing authority** - who granted it, for example OSHA.
- **Verified** - a manager confirmation that the documentation was actually seen.
- **Notes** - endorsements, restrictions, conditions.
- **Document** - the certificate itself, up to 10 MB as PDF, PNG, JPEG or WebP. Uploading a new one replaces the previous document on that row.

## Why it matters for scheduling

Work orders can state the skills they require, and the scheduler uses employee skills to decide who fits. Missing or expired qualifications surface as warnings on assignment, so the crew you dispatch actually holds the paperwork the job needs.

## Notes and limits

- One row per skill per employee. To change dates or a number on a skill someone already holds, edit the existing row rather than adding it again.
- Certificates are stored privately - they are not published anywhere in the app.
- Unverified skills are flagged, so verification is worth doing on anything regulated.

## Common errors

- **This skill requires additional fields** - the catalog entry marks a number, date or authority as mandatory. Fill those in and save again.
- **The skill you want is not in the list** - it has not been added to the company catalog yet, or it has been deactivated. Add it under Settings, Team & Access, Skills & Certifications.
- **A certificate upload is rejected** - check the file is under 10 MB and is a PDF, PNG, JPEG or WebP.

## Related articles

- [Skills and certifications in scheduling](/help/scheduling/skills-and-certifications-in-scheduling)
- [Add an employee and complete their profile](/help/people/add-an-employee-and-complete-their-profile)
- [Roles, departments and who can do what](/help/people/roles-departments-and-permissions)

## Screenshots

- WorkSkedge employee detail panel with the Overview, Skills and Time Off tabs: https://workskedge.com/api/public/help-image/app/v2/people-employee-detail.webp

## FAQ

### Why does one skill ask for a licence number and another does not?

Each catalog entry carries its own required-field flags for certification number, issue date, expiry date and issuing authority. The form follows the flags on the skill you chose.

### What does Verified actually mean?

It records that a manager reviewed the underlying certificate or licence, rather than just taking the claim at face value. Unverified skills stay flagged.

### What file types can I attach to a certification?

PDF, PNG, JPEG and WebP, up to 10 MB. A new upload replaces the previous document on that skill row.

### What happens when a certification expires?

The record keeps the expiry date and it is flagged, so the person is not treated as holding a current qualification for work that requires it.

### How do I renew a certification?

Update the expiry date and the new number on the existing skill row at renewal time.