Blockwork & Masonry Install SWMS

Blockwork and masonry installation is the trade that lays concrete block and masonry for internal walls and infill: setting out, mixing and spreading mortar, cutting units to fit, and laying off a scaffold as the wall rises. The dominant hazards are falls while laying from a scaffold, respirable crystalline silica from cutting, grinding or drilling masonry, musculoskeletal injury from the repetitive lifting of heavy units, scaffold failure, and skin damage from wet cement. This SWMS covers the masonry laying, mortar work and unit cutting; it does not cover the scaffold design and erection, which is documented and handed over separately, or any structural or reinforced masonry engineering.

Under the model Work Health and Safety Act 2011 and the harmonised Work Health and Safety Regulations adopted in each state and territory, this is high risk construction work because laying is carried out from a scaffold above two metres and because cutting masonry creates an area requiring respiratory protection; Victoria operates the equivalent provisions under the Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004 and Occupational Health and Safety Regulations 2017. The workplace exposure standard for respirable crystalline silica is 0.05 mg/m3 over an eight-hour time-weighted average, and the processing of crystalline silica substances is regulated under the harmonised framework, with high-risk processing - dry cutting, grinding or drilling without water suppression or on-tool extraction - attracting additional control, training, air-monitoring and, where adopted, recording duties. Masonry follows AS 3700, respirable-dust monitoring follows AS 2985, and scaffolding follows AS/NZS 1576.

Failure to meet the primary duty of care is prosecuted under the Category 1 to 3 offences in the Work Health and Safety Act (and the equivalent provisions in Victoria's Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004), with maximum penalties indexed in most jurisdictions, imprisonment available for individuals, and a separate industrial manslaughter offence; current figures follow the prevailing penalty schedule of the responsible state regulator. This document is structured to satisfy the safe work method statement content requirements of the harmonised regulations and documents controlled masonry laying.

Hazards identified

11 hazards covered, sorted by priority.

Control measures

Hierarchy-of-controls order: elimination → substitution → isolation → engineering → administrative → PPE.

1. 1Engineering: Build from a fully decked scaffold with the working lift kept close to course height, with guardrails and toe-boards to AS/NZS 1576, and keep no materials stacked at the edge.
2. 2Elimination: Order cut-to-size units or use a block splitter rather than a saw; substitute wet-cutting for dry; use water suppression or on-tool H-class extraction; air-monitor to AS 2985 against the 0.05 mg/m3 standard; wear P2 or P3 respiratory protection.
3. 3Substitution: Use lighter or part-height units where the design allows, a brick elevator or forklift to deliver units to the working lift, a 25 kg single-person limit and task rotation.
4. 4Substitution: Use low-chromate cement where available, mechanical mixing to limit skin contact, no kneeling in wet mortar, prompt washing, and the safety data sheet on hand; wear gloves.
5. 5Engineering: Fit toe-boards and brick guards to the scaffold, set an exclusion zone below, and keep materials clear of the edge.
6. 6Engineering: Use a designed scaffold erected by a competent person to AS/NZS 1576, with a scaffold tag and handover before use, daily inspection and no unauthorised modification.
7. 7Engineering: Use water-fed low-noise cutting, limit continuous cutting against the 85 dB(A) eight-hour exposure standard to AS/NZS 1269, and provide hearing protection.
8. 8Engineering: Use guarded wet-cutting, take care when striking joints, and wear sealed eye protection to AS/NZS 1337.1.
9. 9Substitution: Use smaller bags or a bulk silo where volume allows, mechanical mixing, a 25 kg limit and two-person handling for awkward loads; wear gloves.
10. 10Engineering: Use a forklift or pallet handling with banded packs, no manual de-stacking of unstable packs, and an exclusion during mechanical handling; wear safety footwear.
11. 11Substitution: Substitute splitting for cutting, use low-vibration tools, limit trigger time, rotate operators, and wear anti-vibration gloves where suitable.

Applicable Codes of Practice

High-Risk Construction Work triggered

Worked example

A masonry subcontractor is laying a concrete-block infill wall inside a new building, working off a scaffold as the wall rises and cutting units to fit at openings and corners. The work is high risk construction work both because laying is carried out from a scaffold above two metres and because cutting masonry generates respirable crystalline silica, so the leading hand builds the safe work method statement around the fall risk and the silica exposure before work starts. The scaffold is designed and erected by a competent person to AS/NZS 1576, tagged and handed over before use, inspected daily, with guardrails, toe-boards and brick guards and the working lift kept close to course height so laying is not done at a stretch. Units are ordered cut-to-size where possible and cut with a block splitter rather than a saw; where a saw is unavoidable it is wet-fed or fitted with on-tool H-class extraction, air is monitored to AS 2985 against the 0.05 mg/m3 exposure standard, and a P2 or P3 respirator is worn, so silica dust is controlled at the source and confirmed by monitoring. A brick elevator and forklift deliver banded packs and units to the working lift, with a 25 kg single-person limit, mechanical mixing, and task rotation to manage the repetitive lifting and hand-arm vibration. Low-chromate cement is used where available, no one kneels in wet mortar, and workers wash promptly and wear gloves to control cement dermatitis and burns. Sealed eye protection and hearing protection control fragments, mortar splash and saw noise, and an exclusion zone protects anyone below the scaffold. Workers sign on to the statement before starting, the scaffold handover and air-monitoring records are kept, and the signed statement is held on site for the responsible state regulator, and a review is triggered if the cutting method or the scaffold changes.

Related legislation

• Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (harmonised; enacted in all states and territories except Victoria, which applies the Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004), s.19 — Primary duty of care to workers and to other persons at or near the workplace
• Harmonised Work Health and Safety Regulations, section 291 — Defines high risk construction work (Victoria: Occupational Health and Safety Regulations 2017, Part 5.1)
• Harmonised Work Health and Safety Regulations, section 299 — Content and review requirements for a safe work method statement for high risk construction work (Victoria: regulation 327; Tasmania: regulation 312)
• Harmonised Work Health and Safety Regulations — Respirable crystalline silica: the workplace exposure standard is 0.05 mg/m3 over an eight-hour time-weighted average, with control, training and air-monitoring duties for crystalline silica processes as adopted in each jurisdiction
• Harmonised Work Health and Safety Regulations, Part 4.4 — Managing the risk of falls, including the duties for scaffolds and working platforms (Victoria applies the equivalent provisions of the Occupational Health and Safety Regulations 2017)

Frequently asked questions