Training, separation and stability — keeping operators and people on foot safe
Forklifts and other mobile plant are among the most dangerous equipment in any workplace, and the people most often hurt are pedestrians, not the operator. In New Zealand, operators must be trained and certified to the WorkSafe Approved Code of Practice, with refresher training at least every three years, and an F endorsement to drive on a road. Keep people and machines apart, load and travel within limits, and check the machine before every shift.
Under the HSWA you must provide safe plant, safe systems of work, and the training, instruction and supervision needed to use it. For forklifts, WorkSafe's Approved Code of Practice for Training Operators and Instructors of Powered Industrial Lift Trucks sets the training standard.
Operators must be trained and certified through a registered trainer, with refresher training at least every three years. An F endorsement on the driver licence is required to operate where the workplace includes a road. Holding a car licence — or even an F endorsement — does not by itself authorise someone to operate a forklift at work; workplace certification is still required.
Only someone who is trained and certified to the code, authorised by the PCBU for that machine and site, and supervised until they are competent. Keep certificates and authorisations on file, and diary the three-yearly refresher so no one drifts out of currency.
| Risk | What it looks like |
|---|---|
| Pedestrian strike | A person on foot is hit or crushed — the most common cause of serious harm. |
| Tip-over | The forklift rolls sideways or pitches forward; often fatal. Wear the seatbelt and stay in the cab. |
| Falling loads | Unstable, overweight or poorly secured loads coming off the forks. |
| Overhead & edges | Contact with racking, power lines, mezzanine edges and loading-dock edges. |
| Using as a person-lift | Lifting people on the forks instead of an approved work platform or cage. |
The most effective control is separation. A traffic management plan should split pedestrian and vehicle routes, with marked walkways, barriers, designated crossings, mirrors at blind spots, exclusion zones, speed limits and clear give-way rules. Add high-visibility clothing, reversing alarms and a no-go discipline around an operating machine. See traffic management plans for how to build this.
Stay within the rated capacity and the load chart for the load centre being carried, tilt the mast back and travel with the load low, and never carry riders. Slow down at corners and on ramps, look in the direction of travel, and sound the horn at blind spots and doorways. Keep clear of the mast and never reach through it.
Run a daily pre-operational check — forks, tyres, hydraulics, brakes, steering, horn, lights, seatbelt and leaks — and take any defective machine out of service until it is fixed. Keep to a scheduled maintenance programme, and refuel or recharge safely: manage LPG changeovers, battery charging and the carbon-monoxide risk from running diesel or petrol forklifts in enclosed spaces.
The same principles — competent operators, separation and stability — apply to other mobile plant. Mobile elevating work platforms (scissor and boom lifts) need trained operators, a harness in boom-type lifts, a firm assessed surface, and no overreaching. Telehandlers, loaders and similar plant each need their own competency, ground assessment and exclusion zones.
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Operators must be trained and certified to the WorkSafe Approved Code of Practice through a registered trainer before they operate. To operate on a road, they also need an F endorsement on their driver licence.
It is an endorsement on a New Zealand driver licence required to operate a forklift on a road. It is in addition to workplace operator certification, not a replacement for it.
The WorkSafe code of practice requires refresher training at least every three years to keep an operator current.
Pedestrians. People on foot are the ones most often seriously hurt by forklifts, which is why separating people from machines is the most important control.
No. People must not be lifted on the forks. If people need to be raised, use an approved work platform or cage designed and secured for that purpose, following the manufacturer's and the code's requirements.
