Manual handling risk assessment

Rate the five risk factors in a manual task to get a musculoskeletal risk band, the factors driving it, and controls in hierarchy order for your state.

Figures checked 5 November 2026. Free to use, no sign-in.

Victoria and Western Australia have their own Acts; the tool switches to them.

Shown on the printed assessment.

Rate each risk factor for this task

Sustained or awkward posture

Bending, twisting, reaching overhead or below the knees, or holding one position for long periods.

Repetitive movement

The same movement of the same body part again and again, with little change or recovery.

High, sudden or sustained force

Heavy, jerky or prolonged effort to lift, push, pull, carry, hold or restrain.

Long duration or high frequency

Doing the task for long stretches, or many times a shift, without enough breaks.

Exposure to vibration

Hand-arm vibration from tools, or whole-body vibration from vehicles or platforms.

Risk assessment

Musculoskeletal risk: Unloading cartons from a delivery truck

High risk

This is a hazardous manual task because at least one risk factor is present. Manage it under r 60 of the Work Health and Safety Regulation 2025 (NSW).

Factors, highest first

  • Sustained or awkward posture: moderate
  • High, sudden or sustained force: moderate
  • Repetitive movement: low
  • Long duration or high frequency: low

Eliminate (r 35)

  • Change the task so nobody has to bend, twist or reach: bring the work to the person at a comfortable height.
  • Remove the lift: deliver goods to the point of use, or change the process so heavy handling is not needed.
  • Automate or mechanise the step that is repeated.

Substitute, isolate or use engineering controls (r 36(3))

  • Fit height-adjustable benches, lift tables or turntables so handling happens between hip and shoulder height.
  • Use lighter or smaller loads and mechanical aids such as hoists, trolleys, conveyors, vacuum lifters or pallet jacks.
  • Use powered tools or jigs that cut the number of movements per cycle, and shorten reach distances.
  • Use aids that make the task quicker, and design the workflow so it is not done continuously.

Administrative controls, then PPE (r 36(4)–(5))

  • Rotate people through different tasks and build in short posture breaks.
  • Plan the task so force is steady rather than sudden; use team handling only where aids are not practicable.
  • Vary the work across the shift and set recovery time between bursts of repetitive work.
  • Cap time on the task, rotate workers, and schedule breaks before fatigue sets in.

Order of controls

Work down the hierarchy in r 35–36 of the Work Health and Safety Regulation 2025 (NSW): only move to a lower step when the higher one is not reasonably practicable. Training on lifting technique alone is rarely enough.

  • There is no legal maximum lifting weight in Australian WHS or OHS law. The duty is to manage the risk from the task as a whole.
  • The ratings and band are an assessment aid to help you prioritise. They are not a statutory score, and the assessment should be done with the workers who do the task.
  • Review the controls when the task, load or workplace changes, or after an injury or report (r 38).

General information, not legal advice.

How this works

Each factor is rated from 0 (not present) to 3 (high). The band comes from the highest rating and how many factors are present, because one strong factor is enough to cause injury and factors add up:

  • Any factor rated high: high risk, or very high with two or more factors present.
  • Highest rating moderate: moderate risk, or high with three or more factors present.
  • Highest rating low: low risk, or moderate with three or more factors present.

The law: under the model WHS Regulations (all states and territories except Victoria, including WA’s 2022 Regulations), r 60 requires a PCBU to manage the risk of musculoskeletal disorders from hazardous manual tasks, using the hierarchy in r 35–36. In Victoria, Part 3.1 of the OHS Regulations 2017 covers hazardous manual handling, with its own order of controls in r 27.

Not included: the work environment, the characteristics of the load and individual worker factors. Consider those alongside the ratings, as r 60(2) and the codes of practice require.

Legal basis

Checked against these sources on 5 November 2026. Spotted a figure that looks wrong? Tell us.

Questions

What is the maximum weight a worker can lift?

Australian WHS and OHS laws do not set one. A light load can still cause injury if it is lifted hundreds of times a shift or from an awkward position, so the law requires you to assess the whole task: posture, movement, force, how long and how often, vibration, the environment and the load itself.

What makes a manual task hazardous?

Under the model WHS Regulations, a task is hazardous if lifting, lowering, pushing, pulling, carrying, holding or restraining involves repetitive or sustained force, high or sudden force, repetitive movement, sustained or awkward posture, or exposure to vibration. Victoria’s definition of hazardous manual handling is similar and also covers handling people or animals and unstable or awkward loads.

Is training in safe lifting enough?

Usually not. Training is an administrative control and sits low in the hierarchy. You must first try to eliminate the task, then redesign it or provide mechanical aids. In Victoria the regulations say information and training can be the main control only when none of the redesign measures is reasonably practicable.

Do I need to write the assessment down?

The regulations do not always require a written assessment, but recording it is the easiest way to show you identified the risk, consulted the workers and chose controls. The print button on this page gives you a printable record.

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