Housekeeping, Slips, Trips & Falls SWMS

Slips, trips and same-level falls are the most common cause of injury across Australian workplaces, and almost every one traces back to a housekeeping decision rather than a freak event: a spill left for someone else, a box in a walkway, a lead run across a floor, a light left unrepaired. Because the hazard is ordinary, it gets normalised — right up until a fall causes a fracture or a head injury. This document treats housekeeping as a managed control rather than a chore: immediate spill response, keeping walkways and egress clear, floor surface and contamination management, lead and cable control, lighting, and the inspection and reporting cycle that catches problems before someone finds them the hard way.

Hazards identified

9 hazards covered, sorted by priority.

Control measures

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

1. 1Identify the substance before cleaning and consult the SDS if it is a chemical
2. 2wear gloves and eye protection appropriate to it
3. 3Guard the spill immediately with signage or a barrier and do not leave it unattended
4. 4whoever finds it owns it until cleaned or handed over
5. 5clean promptly and confirm the floor is dry before removing signage
6. 6Contain chemical spills with the spill kit
7. 7never hose to stormwater
8. 8dispose of contaminated absorbent as controlled waste
9. 9Store frequently used items at waist height to limit bending and reaching
10. 10provide trolleys so materials are moved once
11. 11Keep walkways and emergency egress clear at all times — mark them where practicable
12. 12never store against an exit door, in front of a switchboard or under a stairway
13. 13stack to a safe height with heavier items low
14. 14Remove waste and packaging to the correct stream at the end of each task rather than accumulating it
15. 15Maintain lighting levels appropriate to the task and replace failed lamps promptly
16. 16Inspect floors, mats, leads and lighting on a documented schedule
17. 17repair damaged surfaces and secure or replace curling mats
18. 18route leads overhead or through covers, never loose across a walkway
19. 19select slip-resistant surfaces and footwear where floors get wet
20. 20Fix the source of recurring water ingress rather than repeatedly mopping the symptom

Applicable Codes of Practice

Worked example

A warehouse recorded eleven minor slips in a year at the same doorway. Each was investigated as an individual event — inattention, wrong footwear. Mapping the incidents showed they all occurred within two metres of an external door during wet weather. Entrance matting, a wet-weather inspection trigger and a repaired downpipe eliminated a cluster that eleven separate "be careful" conversations had not.

Related legislation

• Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (NSW) — primary duty of care, s.19
• Work Health and Safety Regulation 2025 (NSW) — Chapter 3 Risk Management
• Work Health and Safety Regulation 2025 (NSW) — Part 4.2 Hazardous Manual Tasks
• Work Health and Safety Regulation 2025 (NSW) — Chapter 7 Hazardous Chemicals (register, SDS, labelling, placarding, manifest)
• Work Health and Safety Regulation 2025 (NSW) — emergency plan duty (s. 43)
• Work Health and Safety Regulation 2025 (NSW) — Chapter 3 Part 3.2 general working environment, first aid and facilities

Frequently asked questions