Why do I have a new required training after I've already started working?
Last updated: October 6, 2026
Applies to: US W-2 employees on an Ascen assignment. Required trainings are an employment or state-law requirement, so independent contractors are generally not assigned them and will not see this.
Summary: Not every required training appears on your first day. Some courses are added to your onboarding checklist only after you have been on your assignment for a set number of days or have worked a set number of hours, and some apply only to certain work locations or types of work. A new training showing up weeks into your assignment is expected. It does not mean anything you completed earlier was lost, and the time you spend on it is paid.
Why a training can appear after you started
Each required course has its own rules for who receives it and when. Depending on the course, it can be:
due within a set time from your first day on the assignment;
added only after you have been on the assignment for a set number of days;
added only once you have worked a minimum number of hours;
required only for particular work locations, types of work, or clients.
Some states require specific trainings, such as workplace violence prevention or harassment prevention, so whether you receive one varies by your work location. Two people who started on the same day can be given different courses at different times.
I think I already did this training
Check the course name first. The most common explanation is that you finished one or two courses when you started and the new step is a different course. For example, you may have completed other state training at the start, and the new item is a separate workplace violence course. If it really is the same course, one of these usually explains it:
It renews on a schedule. Some trainings must be retaken, for example every year. See My required training is expiring or has expired: how do I renew it?.
It did not register as finished. Many courses require you to pass the quiz, not just reach the end. If you did not pass, the course is not marked complete and sends you back to the start. See Required training courses: are they paid, and why does a course keep restarting?.
You took it with another employer. If you completed the same training recently somewhere else and have a certificate or completion record, email it to support@ascen.com. We will review it, and in some cases we can record it. Wait for our confirmation before treating the step as done.
Does it stop me from working?
An open training keeps the onboarding reminder emails coming, but it does not by itself stop you entering your hours. Finish it anyway, because it is a requirement of your assignment and sometimes of state law. If you are told that an open training is the reason your hours cannot go in, email support@ascen.com and we will check. See Why am I still getting onboarding reminder emails: and how to stop them.
How to complete it
Log in at app.ascen.com and open your onboarding checklist.
Work through the whole course, not just the quiz.
Pass the quiz if the course has one. If you do not pass, retake it.
Let the course finish and return you to Ascen before you close the window, so your result is recorded.
Required training time is paid. The time is added to your record after you complete the course and shows up on an upcoming paycheck. See Required training courses: are they paid, and why does a course keep restarting?.
Who to contact
Why a training was assigned, a course you finished that still shows as incomplete, or a certificate from another employer: email support@ascen.com.
Finding time in your schedule to complete it: talk to your staffing Partner, the agency that placed you.