HAZARDOUS MANUAL HANDLING TASKS
Conducted for:
Location:
Date:
Auditor name:
Auditee representatives:
Individual responses to questions can have associated notes and are marked as YES, NO, PARTIAL or N/A.
The overall topic assessment is summarised as COMPLIANT, OBSERVATION or NON-COMPLIANT with associated notes. Evidence must be provided to support all responses. This can be in the form of documentary evidence or by physical confirmation by a topic specialist.
1 / Do manual handling risk management plans take layout and design of the work area, equipment, environmental factors and nature of the load into consideration?Sight evidence that the following have been considered in the Risk Register/Manual Handling Risk Management Plan:
· Layout and design of the work area, (i.e. space, work benches, conveyors, furniture and fittings, and equipment used by workers).
· Provision of equipment which is readily available to awkward reaching postures with one or both hands above shoulder height (e.g. footstools, step ladders, hydra ladder/cheery pickers) that meet relevant Australian Standards.
· Environmental factors which influence the risk of manual handling been considered in the planning for work (i.e. manual handling risk management plan).
· Note: environment risk factors may include vibration, temperatures, humidity, wind, slippery or uneven surfaces, obstructions and lighting.
· appropriateness of the nature, size and weight of things requiring manual handling (e.g. tools, humans, and animals) in regards to the skills and abilities of the involved worker(s) as well as the number of persons available, been considering in the planning for the work (e.g. MHRMP).
See section 3.4 What are the sources of risk (pages 16-19) in Hazardous Manual Tasks - Code of Practice - Dec 2011 for further information.
AS/NZS4801 4.4.6.2 Q3 / YES PARTIAL NO N/A
2 / If a manual handling risk management plan exists, have items been actioned?
Sight evidence that items have been actioned. / YES PARTIAL NO N/A
3 / Have specific hazardous manual tasks been considered in the local safety management plan for the workplace?
Sight the Risk Register or specific Manual Handling Risk Management Plan / YES PARTIAL NO N/A
4 / Have staff/students that undertake jobs involving heavy or repetitive manual handling tasks attended manual handling training in the past 2 years?
Sight the training records. Note: these must be kept by the responsible work area (not safety and health)
· Heavy load - determined by the workers personal capacity in conjunction with the nature, size, and weight of the load and number of persons available to handling the load.
· Repetitive - a movement or force repeated more than twice a minutes
· Sustained - posture or force is held for more than 30 seconds at one time
· Awkward – where any part of the body is in an uncomfortable or unnatural position.
· Vibration – two types: whole body vibration often transmitted via a supporting surface (e.g. driving vehicle on rough terrain, operating heavy earth moving machinery etc.) or hand-arm vibration occurs when vibration is transferred through a vibrating tool, steering wheel or controls in heavy machinery to the hand and arm (e.g. using impact wrenches, chainsaws, jackhammers, grinders, drills or vibrating compacting plates).
For more detail on characteristics of hazardous manual handling tasks see chapter 2 Identifying hazardous manual tasks (page 7) and 2.2 (page 9) in the Hazardous Manual Tasks - Code of Practice - Dec 2011 / YES PARTIAL NO N/A
5 / Are new or inexperienced workers safety inducted into the workplace including being informed of policies and procedures regarding hazardous manual handling?
Sight induction records.
AS/NZS4801 4.4.2 Q(b) / YES PARTIAL NO N/A
6 / Are staff members who complete hazardous manual handling tasks provided with work-readiness interventions to reduce work-related musculoskeletal disorders as part of the planning process for tasks and activities (e.g. staff education, warm-up stretching programs, posters or flyers on display in areas where manual handling frequently occurs etc)? Sight evidence of posters, flyers or similar guidance. Also, records of the any training or education such as emails or training records. / YES PARTIAL NO N/A
7 / Is appropriate manual handling equipment available for staff to use (e.g. trolleys, conveyors, lifting hoists, forklifts, turntables and others)?
For more information on mechanical aids see section 4.5 Using Mechanical Aids in the Hazardous Manual Tasks - Code of Practice - Dec 2011 / YES PARTIAL NO N/A
8 / Are mechanical aids maintained by carrying out regular inspections and servicing in accordance with the manufacturer specification? Sight manufacturer instructions indicating servicing requirements and evidence of compliance. / YES PARTIAL NO N/A
9 / Are regular inspection of the workplace practices and equipment conducted by senior management?
Sight inspection register, reports or other written evidence. / YES PARTIAL NO N/A
10 / Is there a mechanism in place for staff to report new or modified hazards in the workplace?
Sight evidence of use of hazard reporting form. / YES PARTIAL NO N/A
COMPLIANT OBSERVATION NON-COMPLIANT
Topic Evaluation – HAZARDOUS MANUAL HANDLING TASKS / Published: / April 2012 / Version 1.0
Authorised by UWA Safety and Health / Review: / April 2017 / Page 1 of 2
This document is uncontrolled when printed - the current version is on the Safety and Health website