Safety (WHS)

A construction management plan (CMP) is a document setting out how a building project will be run to manage its impact on neighbours, traffic and the environment, covering hours, access, deliveries, noise, dust and safety. Councils often require one as a condition of development consent or planning permit.

A duress alarm is a device that lets a worker call for urgent help, usually by pressing a button, that instantly alerts nominated people such as first aiders, supervisors or a monitoring service. On construction sites they are used by lone and remote workers and as fixed emergency call points across large sites.

An EWP (elevating work platform) is mobile plant with a platform that lifts people, tools and materials to work at height, such as a scissor lift, boom lift or vertical lift. In Australia, operating a boom-type EWP with a boom length of 11 metres or more requires a WP high risk work licence.

The hierarchy of controls is a ranked list of ways to control a workplace hazard, from most to least effective: elimination, substitution, isolation, engineering controls, administrative controls and personal protective equipment (PPE). Under the model WHS Regulations, Australian businesses must work down it in order when managing risks.

High risk construction work (HRCW) is construction work listed in the model WHS Regulations as carrying a higher risk of serious harm, such as work with a fall risk over 2 metres, work near energised electrical services, trenches deeper than 1.5 metres and work involving asbestos. A SWMS must be prepared before any HRCW starts.

A high risk work licence (HRWL) is a licence issued by a state or territory work health and safety regulator that lets a person carry out specified high risk work, such as operating cranes, forklifts or boom-type EWPs, scaffolding, dogging or rigging. The classes are set out in the model WHS Regulations.

A JSA (job safety analysis) is a written risk assessment that breaks a task into steps, identifies the hazards in each step and records the controls that will be used. On Australian construction sites it is used for everyday tasks that are not high risk construction work and so do not legally need a SWMS.

LTIFR (lost time injury frequency rate) is the number of lost time injuries for every 1,000,000 hours worked in a given period. A lost time injury is one that stops a worker from working at least one full shift. Australian construction companies use LTIFR to compare safety performance over time and between projects.

Mobile plant is any plant that moves under its own power on a construction site, such as excavators, forklifts, telehandlers, EWPs, mobile cranes, rollers and dump trucks. Under the model WHS Regulations, powered mobile plant has specific control requirements for overturning, falling objects and collisions with people.

A notifiable incident is a workplace death, serious injury or illness, or dangerous incident that must be reported to the work health and safety regulator immediately after the business becomes aware of it. The incident site must also be preserved until an inspector arrives or directs otherwise.

A PCBU (person conducting a business or undertaking) is the legal term in Australian WHS laws for the business, organisation or individual that carries the primary duty of care for health and safety at work. On a construction site the builder, every subcontractor and the client can all be PCBUs.

A permit to work is a written authorisation, issued by a competent person, that must be in place before a specific high risk task such as hot work, confined space entry, excavation or electrical isolation starts. It confirms the hazards have been checked, controls are in place and who is allowed to do the work.

A plant risk assessment is a documented process of identifying the hazards of a specific item of plant, assessing the risks and setting controls so it can be used safely. In Australia it is the main way businesses meet their plant duties under the model WHS Regulations, and most sites require one before plant starts work.

Prequalification is the process of checking a contractor's or subcontractor's capability, financial capacity, safety and quality systems, licences and insurances before inviting them to tender. In Australia, head contractors prequalify subcontractors for their approved lists, and governments run prequalification schemes for public construction work.

A prestart meeting is a short briefing held on a construction site at the start of each shift, where the supervisor runs through the day's work, hazards, controls, site changes and coordination between trades. Workers sign on to confirm they attended and understood.

A safety data sheet (SDS) is a document prepared by the manufacturer or importer of a hazardous chemical that describes its hazards, safe handling and storage, required PPE, and first aid and emergency measures. Australian WHS laws require businesses using hazardous chemicals to have the current SDS readily accessible.

A SWMS (Safe Work Method Statement) is a site-specific document that lists the high risk construction work being done, the hazards it creates and the control measures that will be used. Under Australian WHS laws it must be prepared before high risk construction work starts, and the work must follow it.

A Take 5 is a quick personal risk assessment a worker completes before starting a task, usually on a pocket card or app, by stopping to look for hazards, assessing the risk and putting controls in place. It takes about five minutes and is widely used on Australian construction and mining sites.

A toolbox talk is a short, informal safety meeting held on site, usually 5 to 15 minutes, where a supervisor and the crew discuss a specific hazard, task or recent incident. It is one of the main ways Australian builders consult workers and pass on safety information.

TRIFR (total recordable injury frequency rate) is the number of recordable injuries, usually lost time, medical treatment and restricted work injuries plus fatalities, for every 1,000,000 hours worked. Australian builders and clients use it to compare safety performance across projects, companies and time periods of different sizes.

Working at heights is any work where a person could fall from one level to another and be injured, such as on roofs, scaffolds, ladders, open edges or near holes and penetrations. Australian WHS laws require businesses to manage fall risks at any height, with a SWMS needed for construction work with a fall risk of more than 2 metres.