1 October 2025
The Workplace Health and Safety Queensland (WHSQ) Construction Report Q1 2024 – 2025 highlights the key findings from the WHSQ Inspectors compliance Blitz of construction July – September 2024.
Significantly working at heights was a major non-compliance issue including:
- No fall controls
- Unacceptable gaps in fall controls
- Inadequate exclusion zones, and
- No height controls on roofing.
Case Study
A residential construction company was recently fined $110,000 and their director fined $20,000 for not managing the risk of falls from height where a work fell 2.7m resulting in paralysis.
Controls
A persons conducting business or undertaking (PCBU) must use control measures to prevent a person falling any distance.
Examples of control measures to prevent a person falling:
- edge protection
- a fall protection cover placed over an opening
- a travel restraint system
If prevention is not practicable:
Examples of control measures to arrest a person’s fall:
- a fall arresting platform
- a fall-arrest harness system
- an industrial safety net
The storm session is approaching; it’s time to consider how to manage the risks of high winds that may cause damage to your buildings and other structured like scaffolding and temporary fencing.
A recent incident, approximately seventy metres of freestanding independent modular scaffolding (one level high) collapsed due to strong winds at a construction project.
Safety issues
The erection, alteration, use and dismantling of a scaffold exposes workers to the risk of falls and falling objects or risk of scaffold collapse.
Hazards include but not limited to:
- Poor environmental conditions
- Void areas not identified or protected (e.g. ladder access voids)
- Incomplete scaffolds or loose scaffold components where work is being done, or is likely to be done
- Inadequate training, instruction and supervision of scaffold workers.
Controls
- Use licenced, competent scaffolders
- Scaffolder to provide a scaffold plan to the PCBU
- Consult with PCBU’s
- Scaffolder to provide handover certificate
- Inspect scaffold every 30 days.
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