Make sure workers can do the job safely — and prove it
Under the HSWA you must give workers the information, training, instruction and supervision they need to work safely. The regulations are specific: a worker must either have adequate knowledge and experience for the work, or be adequately supervised by someone who does. A course is not proof of competence — you verify it by watching the work. New, young and inexperienced workers need closer supervision until they have shown they are competent, and you must keep training records.
You cannot expect people to work safely if they do not know how. The HSWA requires you to provide, so far as is reasonably practicable, the information, training, instruction and supervision needed to protect workers — and others, such as visitors and contractors — from the risks of your work. It should be specific to the job and the risks involved.
The General Risk and Workplace Management Regulations put it plainly: a worker must either have adequate knowledge and experience of the work, plant or substances to do it without putting anyone at risk, or be adequately supervised by a person who has that knowledge and experience. The supervision and training you provide must be suitable and adequate, having regard to the work, the risks at the time, and the controls in place.
A competent person is someone who can consistently demonstrate the skills and knowledge from training and experience for the work they are doing.
Sitting through a course does not make someone competent. Verify competence by observing the worker doing the task. Some workers may need extra on-site training or retraining before they start, especially after a gap in employment. New, young or inexperienced workers should be more closely supervised until they have shown they can work unsupervised, and even experienced workers need supervision for tasks that are new to them. See young & new workers.
Make training understandable: consider age, experience, first language, literacy and culture, and use demonstrations, pictures or a buddy where reading is difficult. Make sure trainers and supervisors are themselves competent. Keep a record of the training and instruction each worker has received, and review training and supervision when the work, the workplace, the plant, or the roster changes. Engage workers in decisions about how training and supervision are provided — see health & safety training and inductions.
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You must provide, so far as is reasonably practicable, the information, training, instruction and supervision workers and others need to be protected from the risks of your work, specific to the job and the risks involved.
A competent person is someone who can consistently demonstrate the skills and knowledge, from training and experience, needed for the work they are doing.
No. A completed course is not proof that someone can do the job safely. Verify competence by observing the worker doing the task, and provide extra training where needed.
Yes. New, young or inexperienced workers should be supervised more closely until they have shown they can carry out the task unsupervised, and experienced workers still need supervision for tasks that are new to them.
Yes. You must keep a record of the training and instruction each worker has received, and review training and supervision when the work, workplace, plant or roster changes.
