Truck Loading & Unloading SWMS
Loading and unloading of articulated trailer or rigid truck. Includes load restraint per NTC code, working from trailer top (height risk), pedestrian / forklift interaction, securing dunnage.
SWMS variants reference your state’s WHS legislation. Instant download after payment.
Truck loading and unloading covers the loading and unloading of goods onto and from trucks and heavy vehicles — placing, securing and removing the load at the depot, dock or site. It is a key part of the Chain of Responsibility, because the loader shares the duty for the safe loading and restraint of the load, and the defining hazards are loads and people falling from the vehicle or dock, the load restraint, the plant used to load such as forklifts, and the manual handling. This document is written on the basis that truck loading and unloading is carried out with the load-restraint, fall, plant and manual-handling controls in place.
Truck loading and unloading is carried out in connection with the Chain of Responsibility loading and load restraint duties and the National Transport Commission Load Restraint Guide 2018, with the load restrained so it cannot move or fall, falls from the vehicle and dock prevented, the loading plant operated safely, and the manual handling managed. The load restraint, the falls, the plant, and the manual handling are the considerations. This document coordinates the load-restraint, fall, plant and manual-handling controls so the truck loading and unloading is carried out safely.
Hazards identified
9 hazards covered, sorted by priority.
Crush injury from a load falling from the vehicle or dock
Falls from the vehicle, trailer or loading dock
Load movement or loss in transport from inadequate restraint
Crush and collision from the forklifts and loading plant
Musculoskeletal injury manually handling the load
Injury from an unstable or shifting load during loading
Crush from pedestrian and plant interaction at the dock
Crush from the vehicle moving during loading or unloading
Falls and trips from the dock plate, edge and gaps
Control measures
Hierarchy-of-controls order: elimination → substitution → isolation → engineering → administrative → PPE.
- 1Engineering: restrain the load to meet the performance standards of the National Transport Commission Load Restraint Guide 2018, so the load cannot move or fall during transport, with appropriate restraint equipment inspected before use.
- 2Engineering: prevent loads and people falling from the vehicle and dock with edge protection, fall prevention, safe access and exclusion from beneath the load.
- 3Administrative: have forklifts and powered mobile plant operated only by the holder of the appropriate High Risk Work Licence — an LF licence for a forklift truck or an LO licence for an order-picking forklift — to AS 2359, with the operator competent for the specific plant.
- 4Engineering: separate pedestrians and powered mobile plant with designated traffic routes, exclusion zones, physical separation and a traffic management plan, because pedestrian and forklift or plant interaction is a leading cause of serious injury.
- 5Engineering: prevent the vehicle moving during loading with the brake applied, wheel chocks and a vehicle-movement procedure, so the vehicle cannot move while being loaded.
- 6Engineering: use mechanical aids — trolleys, dollies, stair-climbers, pallet jacks and lifting equipment — and team lifting for the heavy and awkward loads, and manage the manual-handling and awkward-posture hazard with correct technique and the hierarchy of controls for hazardous manual tasks.
- 7Engineering: manage the load stability during loading so it does not shift, and manage the dock plate, edge and gap hazards.
- 8Administrative: meet the Chain of Responsibility loading and load restraint duties as the loader, and confirm the load and restraint before transport.
- 9Administrative: all workers must hold the competencies and licences required for the work, including a High Risk Work Licence for forklift operation, a heavy vehicle driver licence for heavy vehicles, and any dangerous goods or other training required.
- 10Administrative: conduct a pre-start toolbox talk covering the day's work, identified hazards, traffic and plant movements, required PPE and emergency procedures, and record attendance in the consultation section.
- 11Administrative: consult workers and any health and safety representatives on the work and its risks, record the consultation, and keep this document available at the workplace.
- 12PPE: high-visibility clothing, eye protection where required, gloves appropriate to the task, hearing protection where required, and Class I or Class II safety footwear with protective toecap to AS/NZS 2210.3.
- 13Administrative: review and update this SWMS whenever the work scope changes, after any incident or near miss, when a worker or health and safety representative raises a concern, when new hazards are identified, or at minimum every 12 months.
Applicable Codes of Practice
The performance standards for restraining loads on vehicles so they cannot move or fall during transport.
Controls for the forklifts, conveyors, compactors, lifting and mobile plant used in the work, including guarding and safe operation.
The control of the manual handling and awkward postures of the work, including heavy and awkward loads, bins and items.
The separation of pedestrians and powered mobile plant and vehicles, traffic routes and reversing controls.
The heavy vehicle law, the Chain of Responsibility primary duty, fatigue, mass and load restraint requirements for heavy vehicles.
Who this is for
- →Workers loading and unloading trucks.
- →Transport, logistics and warehouse operators.
- →Loaders and businesses with Chain of Responsibility loading duties.
- →Depots, docks and PCBUs.
- →PCBU safety managers and supervisors coordinating the load-restraint, fall and plant controls.
What you receive
- ✓Editable Microsoft Word document (.docx) fully compatible with Microsoft Word 2016 and newer, Google Docs, and LibreOffice Writer.
- ✓Title page with editable fields for PCBU name, ABN, site or depot address, task or route description, and document revision date.
- ✓Hazard register with the truck loading and unloading hazards — each with a documented consequence, inherent risk rating on a 5x5 likelihood-consequence matrix, hierarchy-of-control measures, and residual risk rating.
- ✓Truck loading prompts referencing the Load Restraint Guide and plant Code of Practice, a load-restraint section, a fall-from-vehicle and dock section, and a loading-plant and vehicle-movement record.
- ✓Licensing and competency prompts for the forklift, heavy vehicle, dangerous goods and other work, and a plant pre-operational and inspection checklist where relevant.
- ✓Worker consultation record per the model WHS Act consultation duty and a worker sign-on register (blank, expandable).
- ✓Applicable legislation and Codes of Practice schedule pre-populated for the model WHS jurisdiction with a state-variance reference table covering the harmonised states, plus Victoria, and the Heavy Vehicle National Law where relevant.
- ✓Emergency procedure template and a revision log.
Worked example
Workers are engaged to load and unload a truck at a loading dock. The load is restrained to the performance standards of the National Transport Commission Load Restraint Guide 2018, so it cannot move or fall in transport. Loads and people falling from the vehicle and dock are prevented with edge protection, fall prevention, safe access and exclusion from beneath the load. The forklifts used to load are operated only by the holder of the appropriate High Risk Work Licence to AS 2359, and pedestrians and the plant separated with traffic routes and exclusion zones. The vehicle is prevented from moving during loading with the brake applied, wheel chocks and a vehicle-movement procedure. The load is manually handled with mechanical aids where required, and the load stability managed so it does not shift. The dock plate, edge and gap hazards are managed. The Chain of Responsibility loading and load restraint duties are met as the loader. The load and restraint are confirmed before transport, and the records retained.
Related legislation
- Model Work Health and Safety Act — primary duty of care; the duty to consult workers; the reckless-conduct offence; and notifiable-incident provisions, as enacted in each jurisdiction.
- Model Work Health and Safety Regulations — the plant, hazardous manual tasks, hazardous chemicals and High Risk Work Licence provisions, and the Section 291 high risk construction work and SWMS duties where applicable, as enacted in each jurisdiction.
- The Heavy Vehicle National Law and the Chain of Responsibility, the National Transport Commission Load Restraint Guide 2018, and the Australian Dangerous Goods Code, apply to heavy vehicles and the transport of dangerous goods, alongside the model WHS framework, and are administered by the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator and the state and territory dangerous goods regulators.
- Forklift operation requires a High Risk Work Licence (LF or LO class) under each state and territory's licensing scheme, and heavy vehicle driving requires the appropriate heavy vehicle driver licence; dangerous goods drivers require dangerous goods licensing and training.
- Victoria operates under the Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004 and the Occupational Health and Safety Regulations 2017, with the plant, manual handling, hazardous chemicals and high risk construction work provisions applying in place of the model instruments, alongside the Dangerous Goods Act 1985.
Frequently asked questions
Why is the loader part of the Chain of Responsibility?
The loader shares the Chain of Responsibility duty for the safe loading and restraint of the load, because how the load is loaded and restrained affects the safety of the heavy vehicle, so the loader meets the loading and load restraint duties and restrains the load to the Load Restraint Guide 2018. The loader's role in loading and restraint is a Chain of Responsibility duty.
What is the main fall hazard in truck loading?
Both loads and people can fall from the vehicle, trailer or loading dock, causing crush and fall injury, so falls are prevented with edge protection, fall prevention, safe access and exclusion from beneath the load. Preventing loads and people falling from the vehicle and dock is a key control in truck loading and unloading.
How is the vehicle prevented from moving?
The vehicle is prevented from moving during loading with the brake applied, wheel chocks and a vehicle-movement procedure, so the vehicle cannot move while being loaded or unloaded. Preventing the vehicle moving during loading prevents a crush hazard from the vehicle moving unexpectedly.
What plant is used and how is it managed?
Forklifts and loading plant are used to load, operated only by the holder of the appropriate High Risk Work Licence to AS 2359, with pedestrians and the plant separated by traffic routes and exclusion zones. The loading plant and the pedestrian-plant interaction are managed alongside the load restraint and fall controls.
Who loads and unloads trucks?
Truck loading and unloading is carried out by competent workers in connection with the Chain of Responsibility loading duties and the Load Restraint Guide 2018, with the load-restraint, fall, plant and manual-handling controls. The load is restrained and the falls and plant managed.