Workplace Health And Safety Hazards

Identifying workplace health and safety hazards is usually done by inspection, and inspection alone finds a predictable subset. Four methods used together find considerably more.

• Inspection. Good for physical hazards you can see. Blind to anything intermittent, and blind to psychosocial hazards entirely.
• Asking workers. The fastest route to the hazards that only appear under pressure or at night, and it is a consultation duty in its own right.
• Reviewing your own data. Incidents, near misses, hazard reports, absence patterns and turnover by team.
• Reviewing external information. Regulator alerts, industry codes, and safety data sheets for anything you use.

The second and third find most of what the first misses, and neither requires a specialist. Run all four on a cycle rather than choosing one.

Safe Work Australia publishes hazard guidance. This is general information rather than legal advice, and obligations vary by state and territory.

See Sentrient’s risk management system and incident reporting software.