HIPAA Glossary · Entities & roles
Workforce
Employees, volunteers, trainees, and others under the entity's direct control.
Context
Defined at §160.103. The workforce is broader than paid employees — it includes volunteers, trainees, and contractors acting under direct control. Everyone in the workforce must be trained (§164.308(a)(5), §164.530(b)) and subject to sanction policies. The common gap: contractors with ePHI access who were never enrolled in training.
Related terms
- Privacy Officer / Security Officer — The individuals a regulated entity must designate, in writing, as responsible for privacy compliance and the security programme.
- Sanction policy — The required written policy for disciplining workforce members who violate privacy and security policies.
Where this fits
This is one of 50+ terms in the HIPAA Glossary. For how HIPAA is structured end-to-end, see the Security Rule guide and the Privacy Rule guide.