The first step in managing risks from manual tasks is to identify those tasks that have the potential to cause MSDs. Hazards that arise from manual tasks generally involve interaction between a worker and:

• Work tasks and how they are performed
• Work design and management
• The tools, equipment and objects handled, or
• Physical work environment

Understanding risk factors that could lead to MSDs and identifying them in the workplace will help you choose suitable control measures.

Consult your workers

During this process, you must consult with workers who are affected, or likely to be affected, by the manual task. If your workers have a health and safety representative, you must involve that representative (Sections 47-48 WHS Act 2012).

Collect information from your workers by providing them with a Discomfort Survey and ask them:

• What makes you sore at work?
• When do you feel discomfort?
• What tasks do you avoid doing or are difficult to perform?

Those businesses that actively consult with their workers have much better safety outcomes than those who do not.

Observe manual tasks

Observe workers when they are performing their manual task and note if any of risk factors are present. This may include:

• forceful exertions such as pushing, pulling, lifting and gripping,
• awkward postures such as bending, over-reaching and twisting,
• sustained postures, such as long periods of sitting, standing, stooping or reaching
• vibrations to the hands, arm or whole body
• repetitive movement
• the duration of the task

Review available information

You may be able to identify hazardous manual tasks that cause harm by reviewing:

• discomfort surveys
• records of workplace injuries and incidents
• inspection reports.
• Information from WHS regulators, industry associations, unions and technical specialists such as Ergonomists.
• Information from designers, manufacturers, importers and suppliers about safety precautions of equipment plants or structures provided.

Look for trends

You may be able to identify trends or common problems from the data and information you collect. These trends can be helpful in determining what hazardous manual tasks should be addressed as a priority. For example, trends may reveal that certain manual tasks involve multiple risk factors, which can increase the risk of a worker getting injured. You may also see that some risk factors are more common in certain tasks.

The HMT Identification tool can be used to keep records of how you have identified and prioritised hazardous manual tasks in your workplace.

A risk assessment involves examining the risk factors of the hazardous manual task in more detail.

You should carry out a risk assessment for any manual tasks that you have identified as being hazardous, unless the risk is well known, and you know how to control it.

A risk assessment of a hazardous manual task can help you determine which postures, movements and forces of the task pose a risk in combination with the task duration. Consider:

• at what point during the task they pose a risk
• why they are occurring
• what needs to be changed.

Involve workers, HSRs and other workers, like maintenance workers during the risk assessment process as they will know the unique aspects of the task demands and different situations.

What are the risk factors?

How hazardous a task is depends on the level of strain placed on the body parts used.  The level of strain associated with the manual task depends on the degree to which it involves and the combined effect of the following risk factors:

• repetitive movement
• awkward or sustained posture
• repetitive or sustained force
• high / sudden force, and
• vibration exposure.

The Hazardous Manual Tasks COP provides general guideline definitions for HMT risk factors. These are:

• Repetitive – a movement or force   performed more than twice a minute
• Sustained – a posture or force   held for more than 30 seconds at a time
• Awkward – posture is in an   uncomfortable or unnatural position, such as postures that are unbalanced or   asymmetrical, or when postures require extreme joint angles or bending and   twisting.

What might be a ‘repetitive’ risk factor for fingers and legs, will be different for the trunk and neck. This is because some parts of the body, like our fingers, wrists and legs are designed to move more frequently and through large ranges of movement, while other parts, like our trunk, are designed to hold our posture for longer periods.  As such, the definitions provided in the Code of Practice are only guidelines and should not be used as definitive criterion for risk.

Use the table below to help answer the following questions and identify the severity of each hazard involved in the task. Observe the task and consider the degree to which the hazard is present. Also consider how many hazards are present, how they interact, and which body parts are affected.

Question 1: Does the task involve any of the following:

• repetitive   movement
• sustained or   awkward posture
• repetitive or   sustained forces (small, moderate or high levels of force that is sustained   or involves repetitive movement)

Question 2: Does the task involve high or sudden force?

Force is the amount of muscular effort required to perform a movement. It also involves an attempt to perform, resist or change a movement.

Forceful muscular exertions can overload muscles, tendons, joints, and discs. These exertions lead to MSDs.

High force is exerted when large loads, relative to the body part doing the activity, are placed on muscles and other tissues. Indicators of high force are when a worker:

• describes a   task as physically demanding
• needs help to   do it
• requires a   stronger person or two people to do the task, or
• requires two   hands for a task that is normally one-handed.

Sudden force occurs when there is a rapid increase or decrease in muscular effort. Examples of sudden force include jarring, jerky or unexpected movements.

It is particularly hazardous because the body must suddenly adapt to the changing force. Tasks which include sudden force typically generate high force as well.

Question 3: Does the task involve whole body or hand-arm vibration?

Prolonged exposure to whole body or hand arm vibration increases the risk of MSDs and other health problems.

The degree of risk increases as the duration of exposure increases and when the amplitude of vibration is high.

In general, the higher the hazard rating or the greater the number of hazards present, will result in a greater risk of MSD. Look at how the risk factors of the task have been rated. If one or more risk factors are in the moderate or high ranges, then the task is a risk of MSD and must be controlled.

The Hazardous Manual Tasks Code of Practice 2020 provides further guidance about assessing risks.

Use the Risk assessment and control tool to assess and control risks of hazardous manual tasks in your workplace.

To assess the psychosocial hazards related to the work, consider using one of the tools here.

You may also choose to utilise a more robust risk assessment tool. We have a range of other risk assessment tools available on our Resources page.

The WHS Regulation 2012 states that an employer/PCBU must consider relevant matters and follow the hierarchy of controls when choosing a control measure to implement.

Below are some examples of control measures for hazardous manual tasks based on the hierarchy of control.

Eliminating the risk is the most effective control measure. This involves eliminating the hazardous manual task and its associated risk. If it is not reasonably practicable to eliminate the risk, then you must minimise the risks so far as is reasonably practicable.

Prior to choosing and implementing any control measures, you must:

• Identify the source(s) of risk and consider relevant matters
  • workplace environmental conditions
  • the design of the work area
  • the layout of the workplace
  • the systems of work used
  • the nature, size, weight or number of persons, animals or things involved in carrying out the hazardous manual task.
• start at the top of the hierarchy of control
• talk with workers to identify appropriate controls.
• enable workers to trial controls and give their feedback before decisions are made to make them permanent.
• communicate the reasons for the change to workers and others.
• ensure that any equipment used in the manual task is properly maintained.
• provide training and supervision to ensure workers can competently implement the risk controls.

Training should include information about manual tasks risk management, specific manual tasks risks and how to control them.

Providing ‘how to lift’ training is not an effective way to protect workers from harm. It is not a prescribed requirement of the SA WHS legislation.

Refer to the HMT training page for further guidance on HMT training.

The HMT Risk Assessment and Control tool provides guidance on identifying the sources and controlling hazardous manual tasks risks in your workplace.

Control measures must be reviewed and, if necessary, revised to make sure they work as planned and no new risks have been introduced

Control measures should:

• remain effective
• be fit-for-purpose
• be suitable for the nature and duration of the work
• be implemented by workers correctly

This will help maintaining a work environment that is without risks to health and safety.

You should review control measures:

• when the control measure is no longer effective
• before a change of activity, plan or equipment that is likely to introduce new risk
• if a new hazard is identified
• if consultation indicates a review is necessary
• if a health and safety representative requests a review.

Make sure you engage the workers when you make decisions about procedures for monitoring.