Safe work method statements

The safe work method statement (SWMS) is a tool that identifies hazards, assesses the risks and identifies control measures to be implemented to reduce the risks. It guides safe work practices and is commonly used across all industries in Western Australia.

Identifying the hazards, assessing risks and considering control measures is required across all industries. When conducting high risk construction work, the SWMS tool is a mandatory requirement. In other industries it is adopted by common practice. While it is commonly used, it has been recognised nationally that it may not be used as intended.

For high risk construction work, the SWMS must be in writing and should, as far as is practicable, set out:

• each high risk construction work activity that is or includes a hazard to which a person at the construction site is likely to be exposed

• the risk of injury or harm to a person resulting from any such hazard

• the safety measures to be implemented to reduce the risk, including the control measures to be applied to the activity or hazard

• a description of the equipment used in the work activity

• the qualifications and training (if any) required for persons doing the work to do it safely.

In 2019, the WA Commission for Occupational Safety and Health expressed a number of concerns with the use of SWMS in construction. They included:

• SWMS being prepared by persons who are not in a position to assess the high risk work being carried out

• generic SWMS not being reviewed and updated for specific tasks

• main contractors not reviewing the content of subcontractor SWMS before work commences

• on-site employees not receiving instruction and training in SWMS or not reading the SWMS before signing it

• main contractors not stopping work when a SWMS was not being complied with.

A parliamentary report published in 2020 found the production and use of a SWMS for use in high risk construction work is beneficial if that document is properly used. The report went on to state that the SWMS is a critical and useful safety tool if:

• it is prepared by trained and skilled people who understand the work

• it is regularly updated for the specific work being undertaken

• the work is carried out in accordance with the SWMS

• workers receive instruction and training regarding the work method before undertaking the work

• workers read and understand the SWMS before signing it

• the main contractor stops the work if it does not comply with the SWMS.

A SWMS can be useful in any industry, but only if:

• workers are trained in its proper use

• it is specifically drafted for that particular work task

• it is actually used to guide the safe conduct of the work.

If a SWMS or any other risk assessment document is just another red tape process and is used as a pre-start ‘tick and flick’ exercise, it is merely a piece of paper and offers little to assist the safe conduct of the work. All duty holders have a legislative obligation to ensure that all risk assessments or SWMS, when they are legislatively required to be used or are adopted as a safety tool, are used appropriately to identify hazards, assess risks and identify control measures to reduce the risk as far as is reasonably practicable.