A safe and healthy workplace does not happen by chance or guesswork. The best way to prevent injuries or illness in your workplace is to find the hazards that could cause them, assess how serious and likely the hazards are, and then fix them. This process is known as risk assessment.
When to do a risk assessment
Conducting a risk assessment should be done both regularly and when any changes affect your work activities. Examples of when you should do a risk assessment include but are not limited to:
- changing work practices, procedures or the work environment
- purchasing new or used equipment, or using new substances
- responding to concerns raised by workers, health and safety representatives or others at the workplace.
Involve your workers
The workers using the equipment or chemicals, performing the tasks and being in the work environment every day are essential to help you identify hazards. Don’t underestimate your workers’ input: they often have first-hand knowledge, experience and ideas about how to reduce safety risks, make improvements and find solutions.
Get the code
The code of practice for ‘How to manage work health and safety risks’ provides practical guidance on doing risk assessments in your workplace, with examples and a sample risk register.
How to manage work health and safety risks’ code of practice
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If you’re a small or medium sized business, our Advisory Service can help you manage safety in your workplace, including risk assessment.