The six levels
| Level | What it means | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Eliminate | Remove the hazard completely | Prefabricate roof trusses on the ground so nobody works at height to assemble them |
| 2. Substitute | Replace the hazard with something less dangerous | Use a product with less crystalline silica, or score and snap tiles instead of cutting them with a power saw |
| 3. Isolate | Separate people from the hazard | Barricade an exclusion zone around a crane lift or a cutting area |
| 4. Engineering | Change plant, equipment or the process to reduce the risk | Edge protection, on-tool water suppression or dust extraction, machine guarding |
| 5. Administrative | Change how people work | Permits, procedures, signs, training, rotating workers to limit exposure time |
| 6. PPE | Equipment worn by the worker | Harness, respirator, hearing protection, gloves, safety glasses |
Levels 1 to 4 change the hazard or put something between it and the worker. Levels 5 and 6 rely on people doing the right thing every time.
What the law requires
Under the WHS Act, you must eliminate risks so far as is reasonably practicable. If you can't, you must minimise them so far as is reasonably practicable. Regulation 36 of the model WHS Regulations ("Hierarchy of control measures") sets the order:
- If eliminating the risk isn't reasonably practicable, minimise it by substitution, isolation or engineering controls, or a combination.
- If risk remains, minimise it with administrative controls.
- If risk still remains, provide suitable PPE and make sure it's used.
Safe Work Australia's code of practice on managing risks says administrative controls and PPE don't control the hazard at the source, rely on human behaviour and supervision, and used on their own tend to be the least effective. They should be a last resort, a stopgap until a better control is in place, or a supplement to higher controls. Cost alone can't justify relying on behaviour when a more effective control is available. Victoria isn't a model WHS state, but WorkSafe Victoria uses the same ranking.
Regulation 38 then requires you to review controls when they don't work, before a change at the workplace, when a new hazard is found, or when an HSR asks.
Worked example: working at height
Job: replacing gutters on a two-storey house, with a fall risk of more than 2 metres. That's high risk construction work, so a SWMS is required.
- Eliminate: Can any work be done from the ground? Pre-assemble gutter lengths and brackets at ground level.
- Isolate and engineer: Scaffold with edge protection, or an elevating work platform used by a licensed operator where a licence is needed.
- Administrative: An exclusion zone below the work area, a set sequence for moving the scaffold, supervision.
- PPE: A harness system only where edge protection or a platform isn't reasonably practicable, with an anchor point and a rescue plan.
WorkSafe WA guidance for housing says that if you rely on administrative controls for falls between 2 and 3 metres, the SWMS must explain why fall prevention wasn't used.
Worked example: cutting silica-containing material
Since 1 July 2024, manufacturing, supplying, processing and installing engineered stone benchtops, panels and slabs has been banned across Australia. Removing, repairing, making minor modifications to or disposing of legacy engineered stone is still allowed in limited cases, and the regulator must be notified before that work starts. Natural stone, concrete, bricks and tiles still contain crystalline silica and need controls.
- Substitute: Order materials cut to size off site, or use a product with lower silica content. Score and snap tiles rather than power-cutting.
- Isolate: Cut in a separate area with barriers and an exclusion zone, with signs warning of the silica hazard.
- Engineer: Use saws and grinders with water suppression or on-tool dust extraction. Clean up with an M- or H-class vacuum, never dry sweeping.
- Administrative: Plan cuts to keep them to a minimum, limit exposure time, train and supervise.
- PPE: A properly fitted respirator for the dust that's left, on top of the controls above.
Australia / JSA & SWMS drafts
Get the controls down on paper, in the right order.
Describe the job out loud and SOPmate drafts an editable SWMS or JSA listing hazards and controls for you and the crew to check.
iPhone and iPad. Not on iPhone? Email support@sopmate.ai to hear about Android.
Worked example: electrical isolation
Job: replacing a light fitting in an occupied office. Safe Work Australia's code of practice on electrical risks says electrical work must not be done on energised equipment except in limited circumstances, and convenience isn't one of them.
- Eliminate: De-energise the circuit. This removes the shock hazard for the work itself.
- Isolate: Lock off the isolation point and attach a danger tag so nobody can re-energise it while work is under way.
- Engineer: Use correctly rated, tested equipment. Test for dead before you touch, and check the tester works before and after use.
- Administrative: An isolation procedure, a competent electrician, a safety observer where energised work genuinely can't be avoided.
- PPE: Insulated gloves and arc-rated clothing as a backup, not a reason to work live.
Common mistakes
- Starting with PPE. "Wear a harness" is often the first control written, when edge protection or a platform was practicable.
- Writing administrative controls that can't be checked. "Be careful" and "use common sense" aren't controls.
- Picking the cheapest control rather than the most effective one that's reasonably practicable.
- Not reviewing controls when the site changes, or after a near miss.
- Not explaining the controls to the crew. A control nobody knows about doesn't work. Brief them at a toolbox talk.
Fines and penalties
| What goes wrong | What you can face |
|---|---|
| Failing to manage risk, without anyone being exposed to death or serious injury (Category 3) | 2026-27 maximums for a company range from $500,000 (Qld, SA, Tas, NT) to $779,145 (NSW) and $827,000 (ACT and Commonwealth). |
| Failing to manage risk and exposing someone to death or serious injury (Category 2) | 2026-27 maximums for a company range from $1.5 million (Qld, SA, Tas, NT) to more than $2.3 million (NSW). |
| Reckless conduct (Category 1) | Company maximums from $3 million to more than $17 million depending on the jurisdiction, plus possible jail for individuals. |
| No SWMS, or not following it, for high risk construction work | A separate offence. Under the model Regulations, up to $6,000 for an individual and $30,000 for a company. |
| An inspector finds poor controls | An improvement or prohibition notice. A prohibition notice stops the work until the risk is fixed. |
| A worker is killed | Industrial manslaughter offences apply in every jurisdiction, with company fines of up to $20 million in NSW. |
In Victoria, the main employer duty under the OHS Act carries up to $1,881,900 for a company in 2026-27. Penalties are indexed in most jurisdictions, so check your regulator for current figures.