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• What are the OHS risks?
• Employer's duty of care
• Preventing forklift incidents

Quick Downloads

External links:

• Forklift checklist [pdf] by WorkCover NSW
• Loading, Unloading Exclusion Zones (LUEZ) Guidelines [pdf]
  

Employers and trained forklift operators should be aware of prohibited practices. It is the responsibility of everyone in the workplace to ensure these practices do not occur.

• A forklift must not be used for towing or pushing unless appropriate attachments are fitted.
• Tow ropes must never be attached to the mast to pull or drag loads.
• Fork extensions should not be fitted unless they are of an appropriate design.
• A person should not push on the point of one or both forks. No-one should stand or walk under the elevated forks, even when a load is not being carried.
• The back-rest extension and overhead guard of the forklift should not be removed.
• Forklifts should not be left stationary, with the engine running, in confined spaces.
• A forklift must not be parked or stacked on an incline, or operated on gradients with the load held higher than necessary.
• Passengers must not be carried on the forks or load.
• The operator’s arms, hands, legs and head should remain within the cab and should not be placed between the uprights of the mast.
• A forklift should not cross railway lines, unless they are recessed into the surface; or be driven over a bridge plate, unless it is securely fixed and can support the total weight.
• There must be a strictly enforced no smoking policy in a refuelling or battery charging area.
• Do not use naked flames when checking electrolyte levels in battery cells.

• Forklifts and other equipment used for loading and unloading, and drivers and other pedestrians, should be segregated.
• Authority for the area where loading and unloading is occurring should reside with the forklift operator.
• If the driver ceases to be in the direct line of sight of the forklift operator, then activity should immediately stop until line of sight is re-established.