Safe Work Method Statements for High-Risk Construction Work in Victoria

What it is

Victoria requires a Safe Work Method Statement (SWMS) to be prepared before any high-risk construction work commences under the Occupational Health and Safety Regulations 2017 (Vic). Victoria's framework operates independently of the model WHS Regulation, though the substantive requirements are broadly similar.

WorkSafe Victoria enforces the SWMS framework. Victoria's SWMS content and category list differ from NSW, QLD, WA, SA, TAS, ACT and NT.

Victoria's high-risk construction work categories

Regulation 5.1.9 of the OHS Regulations 2017 (Vic) defines high-risk construction work. Victoria's list closely mirrors the model WHS Regulation but has some category-specific variations:

• work with a risk of a person falling more than 2 metres
• work on a telecommunication tower
• demolition of load-bearing elements
• disturbance of asbestos
• structural alterations or repairs requiring temporary support
• work in or near a confined space
• work in or near a shaft or trench deeper than 1.5 metres, or a tunnel
• use of explosives
• work on or near pressurised gas mains or piping
• work on or near energised electrical installations or services
• work in a contaminated or flammable atmosphere
• tilt-up or precast concrete work
• work adjacent to a road, railway or traffic corridor in use
• work in an area of powered mobile plant movement
• work in artificial extremes of temperature
• work in or near water involving drowning risk
• diving work

The Victorian list has additional refinements not found in the model WHS regulation for certain construction contexts.

When a SWMS is required

Regulation 5.1.9 requires the SWMS to be prepared BEFORE the high-risk construction work commences. As with model WHS jurisdictions, preparation after work has started does not satisfy the regulation.

What the SWMS must contain

Regulation 5.1.11 requires the SWMS to identify the work being done, the hazards and risks, the risk control measures plus how the control measures will be implemented.

The SWMS must be provided to the principal contractor before the high-risk construction work starts.

SWMS review

Regulation 5.1.11 requires the SWMS to be reviewed and if necessary revised when the work method changes or the SWMS is inadequate.

Principal contractor duties

The Victorian principal contractor framework under regulation 5.1.13 imposes SWMS oversight duties on the principal contractor for construction projects. That aggregation duty parallels model WHS regulation 309 but is drafted differently.

Penalties

OHS Regulation penalties are set in penalty units. For a body corporate, current penalty units apply as prescribed. WorkSafe Victoria enforces SWMS obligations actively for construction industry breaches.

The 39G workplace manslaughter connection

Section 39G workplace manslaughter (from 1 July 2020) can apply to construction industry deaths flowing from SWMS failures. Where a fatality occurs because a high-risk construction work SWMS was inadequate or not prepared, both the SWMS regulation offence and the workplace manslaughter offence can be prosecuted.

How Victoria compares

Victoria's SWMS framework differs from the model WHS regulation in three ways:

• separate regulation numbering (reg 5.1.9, 5.1.11, 5.1.13) rather than the model WHS reg 291, 299, 300
• Victoria-specific category refinements in the high-risk construction work list
• workplace manslaughter interaction under section 39G OHS Act

A residential builder operating across Victoria and other states needs Victoria-specific SWMS templates rather than relying on model WHS templates.