USING A RISK ASSESSMENT TABLE

When assessing the risk of a particular hazard remember:

• The rating you use indicates the importance of the action required to minimise the Risk posed by the Hazard;
• The more Hazards you identify the greater the overall Risk on the site;
• Overall Risk increases as the number of people exposed to a Hazard increases;
• The more serious the potential impact to a person’s health from a Hazard the greater the Risk; and
• The frequency of exposure to a Hazard increases the Risk.

Risk assessments need to be reviewed:

• When a hazard is identified;
• When a risk assessment is no longer valid;
• When injury or illness results from exposure to a hazard; and
• When a significant change is proposed in the workplace, work practices or procedures.

Since risk is a function of both likelihood and consequences, you can control risk either by reducing the likelihood of the event or by minimising its potential consequence. The risk control option selected must be the highest possible option in the Risk Control hierarchy.

The control measures at the top give the best results and should be adopted wherever practical. The measures at the lower levels are less effective and require more frequent reviews of the hazards and systems of work. In some situations a combination of control measures may need to be used.