A risk assessment for a construction task lists what could hurt people, who is exposed, how likely and how serious the harm is, and the controls that bring the risk down. Below are three worked examples for Queensland jobs: an excavator trench beside a buried service, cutting a concrete slab, and a hand-carried load. Each uses the same layout, so you can copy the method for your own work.
These are illustrations only. The hazards, ratings and controls are examples of how the method works. Your own assessment has to reflect your site, your plant, your people and your conditions.
How to read the examples
Regulation 35 of the Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld) requires a duty holder to eliminate risks so far as is reasonably practicable and, if that is not reasonably practicable, to minimise them. Regulation 36 sets the order for minimising: substitute the hazard, isolate it or use engineering controls first, then administrative controls, then personal protective equipment (PPE) last. The controls in each table follow that order. “Residual risk” is the risk that remains after the controls are in place.
The Act and the Regulation don’t set a risk matrix, so this guide uses a simple one. The five likelihood levels come from the approved How to Manage Work Health and Safety Risks Code of Practice 2021 (Qld). The consequence levels and the ratings are this guide’s own scale. In particular, “major” here is not the legal definition of a “serious injury or illness” that triggers notification (section 36 of the Act).
- Likelihood: certain to occur, very likely, possible, unlikely, rare.
- Consequence: minor (first aid only), moderate (medical treatment or time off work), major (serious injury or illness), catastrophic (death or permanent disability).
| Likelihood | Minor | Moderate | Major | Catastrophic |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Certain to occur | Medium | High | Extreme | Extreme |
| Very likely | Medium | High | High | Extreme |
| Possible | Low | Medium | High | High |
| Unlikely | Low | Low | Medium | High |
| Rare | Low | Low | Low | Medium |
Example 1: excavator trench beside a buried service
A crew is digging a trench about 1.8 metres deep with an excavator to lay a stormwater pipe. The service plans show an electricity cable running close to the trench line.
| Hazard | Who is at risk | Likelihood | Consequence | Rating | Controls (most effective first) | Residual risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bucket strikes the buried cable | Operator, spotter, workers nearby | Possible | Catastrophic | High |
|
Rare, catastrophic: Medium |
| Trench wall collapses | Anyone in the trench | Possible | Catastrophic | High |
|
Rare, catastrophic: Medium |
| Excavator strikes a worker on foot | Ground workers, other trades | Possible | Major | High |
|
Unlikely, major: Medium |
Where the law sits. A trench with an excavated depth greater than 1.5 metres, and work on or near energised electrical installations or services, are both high risk construction work under regulation 291(g)(i) and (k), so a safe work method statement (SWMS) is needed before the work starts (regulation 299). Regulation 304 requires the person with management or control of the workplace to take all reasonable steps to obtain current underground essential services information before directing or allowing excavation, and to give it to the people doing the digging. Regulation 306 sets the trench rules used above. Contact with an underground electric line is also an electrical safety matter: the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld) doesn’t apply to the extent the Electrical Safety Act 2002 does (schedule 1, section 4(2) of the Act), and sections 14 and 15 of the Electrical Safety Regulation 2026 (Qld) require a person conducting a business or undertaking to ensure that no person, plant or thing damages an underground electric line, so far as is reasonably practicable, and to conduct a risk assessment where work involves a risk of contact.
Our Excavator SWMS is a ready starting point for this kind of job, and the 7 steps to safe excavation guide covers the practical side.
Example 2: cutting a concrete slab with a walk-behind saw
A concreter is cutting joints in a 150 mm ground slab with a petrol walk-behind saw. The first rating assumes the saw is run dry with no other controls, then the controls are added.
| Hazard | Who is at risk | Likelihood | Consequence | Rating | Controls (most effective first) | Residual risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Respirable crystalline silica dust | Operator, anyone downwind | Very likely | Major | High |
|
Unlikely, major: Medium |
| Noise from the saw | Operator, nearby workers | Very likely | Moderate | High |
|
Possible, moderate: Medium |
| Blade contact or kickback | Operator | Possible | Major | High |
|
Unlikely, major: Medium |
Where the law sits. Chapter 8A of the Regulation covers crystalline silica. Cutting with a power tool or mechanical plant is “processing” of a crystalline silica substance, which means material with at least 1% crystalline silica (section 529A of the Regulation). Whether a particular concrete or masonry material reaches that 1% threshold depends on what is in it, so check the product’s safety data sheet or ask the supplier. This example assumes it does. Queensland also has an approved code of practice on managing respirable crystalline silica dust exposure in construction and manufacturing of construction elements; it is guidance, not law, but a court can rely on it (section 275 of the Act). The processing must be “controlled” (section 529B): control measures to eliminate or minimise the risk so far as is reasonably practicable, at least one of the listed measures such as wet dust suppression or on-tool extraction, and respiratory protective equipment for anyone still at risk. A person conducting a business or undertaking must not carry out, or allow a worker to carry out, processing that isn’t controlled (section 529C). Before the processing starts it must also assess whether it is reasonably likely to risk anyone’s health and record that assessment in writing (section 529CA). If the processing is high risk, a silica risk control plan is needed (section 529CB), and a SWMS can serve instead where the work is also high risk construction work and the SWMS contains the same content.
A slab cut like this isn’t automatically high risk construction work, but it becomes so if it is, for example, near energised electrical services (regulation 291(k)) or in an area where powered mobile plant is moving (regulation 291(o)). Our Concrete Saw SWMS is written for this work. For a step-by-step version of a similar task, see our JSA guide.
Example 3: a hazardous manual task
Two labourers unload sixty 20 kg bags of premix from a delivery truck and carry them 30 metres over uneven ground to the mixing area on a hot day.
| Hazard | Who is at risk | Likelihood | Consequence | Rating | Controls (most effective first) | Residual risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Repeated heavy lifting and carrying | The two labourers | Very likely | Moderate | High |
|
Possible, minor: Low |
| Trips and slips while carrying | The two labourers | Possible | Moderate | Medium |
|
Unlikely, minor: Low |
| Heat while doing heavy work outdoors | The two labourers | Possible | Major | High |
|
Unlikely, major: Medium |
Where the law sits. A hazardous manual task is one that requires a person to lift, lower, push, pull, carry or otherwise move, hold or restrain something and involves repetitive or sustained force, high or sudden force, repetitive movement, sustained or awkward posture, or exposure to vibration (schedule 19 of the Regulation). Regulation 60 requires the risk of a musculoskeletal disorder to be managed, and it lists the matters to consider, including postures, movements, forces, duration and frequency, environmental conditions, the layout and systems of work, and the weight, size and number of things handled. Carrying and unloading are not on the regulation 291 list in themselves, but the work becomes high risk construction work if it is carried out in an area at a workplace where powered mobile plant is moving (regulation 291(o)). Powered mobile plant means self-propelled plant that is ordinarily under an operator’s direct control (schedule 19), so a delivery truck or forklift working on the site can bring an unloading job within that item. Our Risk Assessment for Manual Tasks template and Manual Handling SWMS cover this task type, and our free manual tasks guide shows the approach.
A blank table to copy
| Hazard | Who is at risk | Likelihood | Consequence | Rating | Controls (most effective first) | Residual risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
The free risk assessment template gives you this layout in a Word file. Add a name against each control and a date for review, because regulation 38 requires control measures to be reviewed when they stop controlling the risk, before a change likely to create a new or different risk, and when a new hazard or risk is identified.
From assessment to paperwork
A risk assessment isn’t the same as a SWMS. If any part of the task is high risk construction work (regulation 291), you need a SWMS before it starts, and the assessment feeds into it. Otherwise the assessment itself, kept with the job, is a sensible record of what you decided and why. If you’re unsure whether to do one, read when should a risk assessment be carried out. If you want to understand the terms first, see hazard vs risk.
This guide is general information, not legal advice. Check the current law or talk to WorkSafe Queensland for your situation.
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