Paving SWMS

Suits landscapers, paving contractors and builders laying concrete or natural stone pavers and slabs for paths, driveways and patios. It follows the job in order, from service checks and deliveries through base preparation, compaction, screeding, laying, cutting with silica dust control, jointing, weather and clean-up. Retaining walls and asphalt paving need their own SWMS.

Paving is construction work, and the contaminated atmosphere item (WHS Regulation s 291(l)) is pre-ticked because cutting pavers and slabs creates silica dust, which the approved silica code treats as high risk construction work; a SWMS is then required before it starts (s 299). A job that needs no cutting is not high risk construction work by that item (untick it); unless another item applies, this document then works as a written safe work procedure and task risk assessment. Tick powered mobile plant (s 291(o)) when machines move through the work area, and the road in use item (s 291(n)) when the paving is on, in or next to a road open to traffic.

New to SWMS? Read What Is A Safe Work Method Statement?

What Is Covered In Our Paving SWMS?

After the standard pre-start checks, the job steps run from “Plan the job and check the site” to “Clean up, hand over and pack up”. The hazards and controls include:

• Silica dust from cutting pavers and slabs
• Saw blade contact and kickback
• Strains from lifting heavy pavers and slabs
• Crushed fingers and hands when laying
• Plate compactor injuries and hand-arm vibration
• Striking underground services when digging
• Delivery trucks and mini plant near workers
• Overhead power lines and tipper bodies
• Electric shock from wet saws and leads
• Cement and sealer burns and irritation
• Noise from saws and compactors
• Heat, UV and slippery wet pavers

High Risk Construction Work

These high risk construction work items (WHS Regulation 2011 (Qld) s 291) are already ticked because they are part of this work. Tick any others that apply to your job:

• Is carried out in an area that may have a contaminated or flammable atmosphere

Licences, Training and Competency

• General construction induction training card (white card) for construction work, and site induction
• Operators of mini loaders, skid-steers, dumpers, excavators and plate compactors trained and assessed as competent on the machine (no high risk work licence class in Schedule 3 covers these machines)
• Crystalline silica training (VET accredited course or training approved by the regulator) for workers who may do, or be exposed to, high risk silica processing (s 529CD)
• Respirator training and fit test for each wearer before first use and at least yearly
• Spotter briefed on exclusion zones and hand signals
• Accredited traffic controllers where traffic must be stopped or directed at a crossover or road edge
• Competent person for service locating and for any engineering advice on base and drainage
• An adequate number of workers trained in first aid (WHS Regulation s 42)

Legislation and Codes of Practice Referenced

• Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld)
• Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld)
• Managing respirable crystalline silica dust exposure in construction and manufacturing of construction elements Code of Practice 2022
• Hazardous Manual Tasks Code of Practice 2021
• Managing Risks of Plant in the Workplace Code of Practice 2021
• Managing Risks of Hazardous Chemicals in the Workplace Code of Practice 2021
• Managing Noise and Preventing Hearing Loss at Work Code of Practice 2021
• Managing the Work Environment and Facilities Code of Practice 2021
• How to Manage and Control Asbestos in the Workplace Code of Practice 2021
• Excavation Work Code of Practice 2021 (underground services and plant and people rules)
• First Aid in the Workplace Code of Practice 2021
• How to Manage Work Health and Safety Risks Code of Practice 2021
• Traffic Management for Construction or Maintenance Work Code of Practice 2008 (work beside a road)
• Electrical Safety Act 2002 (Qld)
• Electrical Safety Regulation 2026 (Qld): ss 10 to 13 and schedule 2 (exclusion zones), ss 139 and 140
• Electrical Safety Code of Practice 2020 – Working near overhead and underground electric lines (distances come from the 2026 Regulation)

What You Get

• An editable Microsoft Word document (14 A4 landscape pages). Type your business, client and job details once and they fill in on every page, with a space for your logo
• 11 job steps for this work, each with its hazards, controls, initial and residual risk scores and the person responsible
• PPE listed for this job: fit-tested respirator complying with AS/NZS 1716 and selected and maintained under AS/NZS 1715, such as a half-face respirator with P2 filters (minimum protection factor 10)
• Emergency arrangements for: strike on an underground service, saw cut, kickback or crush injury and heat illness (confusion, collapse, hot dry skin or heavy sweating)
• Plus the parts every Work Safety QLD SWMS shares, from the s 291 checklist to the worker sign-on sheet (see the layout in our free SWMS template)

Adjust it for your site, plant and crew, and talk it through with your workers before work starts. Please make sure you read our Disclaimer before downloading this SWMS.

Checked against the Queensland laws and codes of practice listed above. Last reviewed October 2026.