WHS & OH&S Safety Document Templates for Australian Businesses

Safety documents are the individual policies, procedures, forms, registers, and checklists that make up the operational fabric of a compliant workplace. Whether you're building a Safety Management System from the ground up, filling gaps in an existing system, or responding to a client's specific document requirements, these templates give you exactly what you need — without the hours of research and drafting.

Our safety document templates are pre-written, fully editable in Microsoft Word, and compliant with the AS/NZS ISO 45001:2018 standard. They're available individually or as part of a complete WHS Management System or OH&S Management System package.

What Are Safety Documents?

Safety documents are the individual written records that support the day-to-day management of health and safety in your business. They sit within — or alongside — your broader Safety Management System and cover everything from how hazards are reported and risks are assessed, to how incidents are investigated, workers are inducted, and equipment is maintained.

In practice, safety documents fall into a few broad categories:

Policies set out your business's position and commitment on specific safety matters — things like drug and alcohol use, manual handling, PPE, or subcontractor management. They establish the rules.

Procedures explain how those policies are actually carried out. A procedure tells workers (and auditors) the step-by-step process for doing something safely and in compliance with legislative requirements.

Forms and checklists are the working documents used on the ground — hazard report forms, worker induction checklists, toolbox talk records, plant & equipment checklists, and so on. They create the paper trail that demonstrates your system is being actively implemented, not just sitting in a folder.

Registers track ongoing obligations — things like legal compliance, site inductions, subcontractors, training records, incidents, and corrective actions. They're essential for audits and management reviews.

Together, these documents demonstrate that safety is being managed systematically — which is both a legal requirement and increasingly a commercial one, as more clients and compliance platforms require documented evidence before awarding work.

WHS Documents vs OH&S Documents — What's the Difference?

Just like with management systems, the terms WHS (Work Health and Safety) and OH&S (Occupational Health and Safety) refer to the same thing. WHS is the standard terminology used across most Australian states and territories under the Model WHS Act. OH&S is still preferred in some situations and is the terminology used in the AS/NZS ISO 45001 standard itself.

The vast majority of documents in the WHS Documents and OH&S Documents collections are fully compliant with AS/NZS ISO 45001:2018. The practical difference is simply the prefix on the document — so if a client or compliance platform has specified one or the other, choose accordingly. If you're not sure which to use, WHS is the most widely accepted across Australia, or give us a call on 1800 304 336 and we'll point you in the right direction in about two minutes.

View WHS Documents

View OH&S Documents

Note: Some documents we supply aren't relevant to the AS/NZS ISO 45001:2018 standard and are therefore not included in the WHS or OH&S Management Systems. All relevant documents will show the following image at the top of their product page.

Do You Need Individual Documents or a Complete Management System?

That depends on where your business is at.

If you're starting from scratch or need a complete, audit-ready system → a WHS Management System or OH&S Management System is the most efficient and cost-effective option. It includes all the core documents already assembled and structured — no piecing together required.

If you already have a management system but need to add or replace specific documents → buying individual safety documents is a straightforward way to fill those gaps. Most documents we sell are included within our management system packages, so they're designed to work together seamlessly.

If a specific client or tender requires particular documents → we can help you identify exactly what's needed. Call 1800 304 336 and we'll help you work out the fastest path to compliance.

Almost without exception, you'll find these documents included within our larger Safety Management System packages — so if you find yourself buying several individual documents, it's worth checking whether a full system makes better financial sense.

AS/NZS ISO 45001:2018 vs AS/NZS 4801:2001 — Which Standard Applies?

AS/NZS ISO 45001:2018 is the current Australian and international standard for occupational health and safety management systems. It replaced the older AS/NZS 4801:2001 standard, which is now superseded.

If you're setting up a new system or updating existing documentation, AS/NZS ISO 45001:2018 is the right standard to build to. The majority of our current documents and management systems are prepared to this standard.

If you're currently using an AS/NZS 4801-based system and wondering what the transition to ISO 45001 means for you, we've covered this in detail:

System Comparison Chart — a clear side-by-side comparison of the two standards.

Still unsure what standard your existing documentation is built to, or whether you need to update? Call 1800 304 336 — we'll sort it out quickly.

Most Frequently Purchased Safety Documents

These are the individual safety documents our customers reach for most often — whether to add to an existing system or satisfy a specific client or audit requirement.

Complete List of Safety Documents

This is our current and complete collection of AS/NZS ISO 45001 WHS/OH&S safety documents, organised alphabetically:

A - D | Context, Document Control, Drug and Alcohol and More

E - H | Electrical, Emergencies and Fire, Hazard Management and More

I - K | Continuous improvement, Incidents, Injuries, ISO 45001 Audits and More

L - M | Leadership, Legals, Management, Manual Handling and More

N - O | Noise, Non-Conformance, OH&S Meetings, Operations and More

P | Performance, Plant, Policy, PPE and More

R | RCD, Risk, Roles and Responsibilities and More

S | SDS, Site Checks, Stress, Subcontractors, SWMS and More

T | Toolbox Talks, Tool Registers, Training and More

V - W | Vehicles, Waste, WHS Meetings, Workplace Violence and More

Why Choose Occupational Safety Solutions?

15+ years and 15,000+ customers → We've been helping small and medium construction and trade businesses get their WHS documentation right since 2010. Our templates are built from real-world experience with the trades and industries we serve.

Compliant with AS/NZS ISO 45001:2018 → The vast majority of documents are rigorously prepared to meet the current standard. If the standards change, we update our documents and existing customers receive discounts on revised versions.

Pay once, use forever → No subscriptions, no per-project fees, no surprises. Purchase a document, customise it for your business, and use it across unlimited projects, sites, and tenders.

Fully editable in Microsoft Word → Everything is supplied in .docx format. Add your company details, adjust the content to reflect your operations over time, and make it yours. It's much easier to delete what doesn't apply than to be left short and have to write documents from scratch.

Free phone and email support → When you buy from us, you get access to the same people who created the documents — not a call centre or a chatbot. If you're not sure how to implement a document, or a client asks questions you can't answer, call 1800 304 336 and we'll help you work through it.

Honest advice → If you need one document, we'll sell you one document. If a full management system makes more sense for your situation, we'll tell you that too. We're not here to maximise every transaction — we're here to help you find the right solution for where your business actually is.

Need Help Choosing the Right Documents?

If you're not sure which documents you need, the fastest way to find out is to call us. We talk to businesses like yours every day and we know what different clients, compliance platforms, and contract requirements typically ask for.

Call 1800 304 336 — Monday to Friday 8:30am–5:00pm. Or email us and we'll get back to you promptly.