SWMS questions answered

Yes, a SWMS is a legal requirement before any high risk construction work (HRCW) starts. Under the model WHS Regulations (r.299), which apply in every state and territory except Victoria, the business doing the work must prepare a SWMS, or make sure one has already been prepared, before the HRCW begins. In Victoria the same duty sits in the Occupational Health and Safety Regulations 2017. A SWMS is not required for construction work that is not HRCW, but the risks still have to be managed.

Source: Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld), r.299 (model WHS Regulations as adopted)

The business (PCBU) that is carrying out the high risk construction work is responsible for making sure a SWMS is prepared. In practice this usually means the employer prepares it for their workers, or the subcontractor prepares it for their workers and themselves. The regulator guidance says it should be prepared in consultation with the workers who will do the job, and with the health and safety representative if there is one.

Source: WorkSafe WA: Safe work method statement for high risk construction work (information sheet)

The SWMS rules in the WHS Regulations (r.299 to 303) do not say a SWMS must be signed. However, the official SWMS template includes spaces for worker names and signatures, the date workers received the SWMS, and a reviewer signature. Signing is the usual way to show each worker was briefed on the SWMS and understands it.

Source: WorkSafe WA: Safe work method statement for high risk construction work (information sheet and template)

You must keep a SWMS until the high risk construction work it covers is finished. If a notifiable incident happens in connection with that work, you must keep it for at least 2 years after the incident. While it is kept, a copy must be readily accessible to the workers doing the job and available for inspection. In Victoria the employer must keep a copy for the duration of the HRCW.

Source: Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld), r.303 (model WHS Regulations as adopted)

A SWMS is a legally required document for high risk construction work, while a JSA (job safety analysis) is a general tool that breaks a specific task down into steps. Regulator guidance says a SWMS is generally different from documents that focus on specific tasks or processes, such as a JSA or a safe operating procedure. A SWMS is not meant to be a procedure: it is a tool to confirm and monitor the control measures needed for the HRCW at that workplace.

Source: WorkSafe WA: Safe work method statement for high risk construction work (information sheet)

Not for the fall risk alone, because the falls trigger for high risk construction work is a risk of a person falling more than 2 metres. You still need a SWMS if the job involves any other type of HRCW, such as work near energised electrical services, a trench deeper than 1.5 m, or moving powered mobile plant. You must also still manage any fall that is reasonably likely to cause injury, at any height, under the falls rules (r.78).

Source: Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld), r.78 and r.291 (model WHS Regulations as adopted)

You can start from a generic SWMS, but it must be reviewed and changed to suit the specific site before work starts. Regulator guidance says a generic SWMS used at different workplaces may not meet the WHS Regulations unless it has been reviewed for the hazards and risks at that workplace and amended as needed. WorkSafe Victoria also says anything not relevant to the site should be removed.

Source: WorkSafe WA: Safe work method statement for high risk construction work (information sheet)

A SWMS must identify the high risk construction work, state the hazards and risks, describe the control measures, and describe how those controls will be implemented, monitored and reviewed. It must also take into account the conditions at the workplace and, on a construction project, the principal contractor's WHS management plan. It must be set out so the people using it can easily find and understand it.

Source: Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld), r.299 (model WHS Regulations as adopted)

A SWMS must be reviewed, and revised if needed, whenever the control measures for the work are revised. Regulator guidance also recommends a review before the work, system of work or location changes, when a new hazard is found, after a notifiable incident, and when controls are not working or the SWMS is not being followed. In Victoria it must be reviewed with affected employees and their HSRs whenever the HRCW changes or there is a sign the risks are not adequately controlled.

Source: Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld), r.302 (model WHS Regulations as adopted)

Yes, on a construction project you must give the principal contractor a copy of the SWMS before the high risk construction work starts. The principal contractor's WHS management plan must set out how SWMS are collected, assessed, monitored and reviewed on the site.

Source: Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld), r.301 and r.309 (model WHS Regulations as adopted)

The work must stop immediately, or as soon as it is safe to stop, and only start again in line with the SWMS. The business must also have arrangements in place to make sure the work follows the SWMS, such as site visits and supervision. Regulator guidance says the SWMS should then be reviewed and revised if needed before work resumes.

Source: Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld), r.300 (model WHS Regulations as adopted)

The model WHS Regulations list 18 types of high risk construction work, and WorkSafe Victoria lists 19 because it counts tunnels separately. They are: falls of more than 2 m, telecommunication towers, demolition of load-bearing structure, disturbing asbestos, structural alterations needing temporary support, confined spaces, shafts or trenches deeper than 1.5 m or tunnels, explosives, pressurised gas mains, chemical, fuel or refrigerant lines, energised electrical services, contaminated or flammable atmospheres, tilt-up or precast concrete, roads, railways or other traffic corridors, moving powered mobile plant, artificial extremes of temperature, water with a drowning risk, and diving work.

Source: Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld), r.291 (model WHS Regulations as adopted)

Yes, in Victoria the Occupational Health and Safety Regulations 2017 require employers and self-employed persons to prepare a SWMS before starting high risk construction work. For labour hire, both the employer and the host employer have the duty. Affected employees and their health and safety representatives must be consulted when it is prepared.

Source: WorkSafe Victoria: Information about Safe Work Method Statements

Yes, from 1 July 2026 South Australia uses a falls threshold of more than 2 metres for high risk construction work. Before that date, SA used more than 3 metres. The change brings SA into line with the national model laws used in the other jurisdictions.

Source: SafeWork SA: Work Health and Safety (High Risk Construction Work) Amendment Regulations 2025

Yes, a sole trader who does high risk construction work needs a SWMS. Under the WHS Act a person conducting a business or undertaking includes someone who runs it alone, and a self-employed person is also a PCBU. In Victoria the OHS Regulations put the SWMS duty on self-employed persons as well as employers.

Source: Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld), s.5 and s.19 (model WHS Act as adopted)

Yes, regulator guidance says a SWMS can be kept electronically. It should be kept at the workplace where the high risk construction work is done, or somewhere it can be delivered to the site quickly. WorkSafe Victoria also says copies can be kept in electronic format.

Source: WorkSafe WA: Safe work method statement for high risk construction work (information sheet)

Failing to have a SWMS before high risk construction work starts can bring a fine of up to 60 penalty units under r.299 in Queensland. The dollar value of a penalty unit is set separately in each state and territory. If the failure exposes someone to a risk of death or serious injury, the business can also be charged with a much more serious offence under the WHS Act.

Source: Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld), r.299

A risk assessment is the process of working out the hazards and risks, while a SWMS is the short document that records the high risk construction work, its hazards and the controls workers must follow. Regulator guidance says that if a SWMS is based on a site-specific risk assessment, the regulator may ask for evidence of that assessment, but the detail does not need to go in the SWMS.

Source: WorkSafe WA: Safe work method statement for high risk construction work (information sheet)

A WHS management plan covers the whole construction project and is prepared by the principal contractor, while a SWMS covers specific high risk construction work and is prepared by the business doing that work. The plan sets out who is responsible for what, site rules, incident arrangements, and how SWMS are collected and reviewed. Each SWMS must take the WHS management plan into account.

Source: Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld), r.299 and r.309 (model WHS Regulations as adopted)

Anyone who carries out construction work needs a White Card, which is the general construction induction training card. A business must not let a worker do construction work unless they have completed the training and hold the card, or hold a training certificate issued in the last 60 days while the card is on its way. SafeWork NSW says this includes site managers, supervisors, surveyors, labourers and tradespeople.

Source: Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld), r.316 and r.317 (model WHS Regulations as adopted)

A White Card has no expiry date, but it stops counting if you have not done construction work for 2 years in a row. In that case you must redo the general construction induction training. White Cards issued in other states and territories are recognised, so one card works across Australia.

Source: SafeWork NSW: White cards

Yes, the person managing or controlling the workplace must take all reasonable steps to get current information about underground essential services before excavation starts. That information must be passed on to whoever does the digging and kept available for inspection until the excavation is finished. Most crews do this by lodging a Before You Dig Australia (BYDA) enquiry for the site.

Source: Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld), r.304 (model WHS Regulations as adopted)

No, a SWMS only needs to cover the hazards and risks of the high risk construction work. Other hazards such as noise, UV or manual handling still have to be managed, but they do not need to be in the SWMS. Regulator guidance says a SWMS should be short, because a long, overly detailed one is hard to understand, apply and monitor.

Source: WorkSafe Victoria: Information about Safe Work Method Statements

No, a SWMS is not required for work of a minor nature. The WHS Regulations also say construction work does not include testing, maintenance or repair work of a minor nature carried out in connection with a structure. If the job is more than minor and involves high risk construction work, a SWMS is required.

Source: WorkSafe WA: Safe work method statement for high risk construction work (information sheet)

You must notify the regulator immediately, by phone or in writing, by the fastest possible means. The site must be left undisturbed until an inspector arrives or says otherwise, except to help an injured person, remove a deceased person, make the site safe or assist police. You must keep a record of the incident for at least 5 years, and keep any SWMS for the high risk construction work involved for at least 2 years.

Source: Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld), s.38 and s.39 (model WHS Act as adopted)