Identifying common hazards
Recognising the usual suspects
This domain tests whether you can spot common workplace hazards and match them to sensible controls. The syllabus groups them broadly: slips, trips and falls; work at height; manual handling; hazardous substances; electricity; machinery; noise and vibration; fire; confined spaces; vehicles and transport; and violence, stress and ergonomic risks. The exam favours everyday scenes-a trailing cable, a shelf above shoulder height, a noisy pump-and asks what makes the hazard worse and what control is most appropriate.
Control principles for common hazards
For slips and trips, remove contamination and obstructions, improve lighting, and use suitable flooring. For work at height, avoid the need to work at height, prevent falls with guardrails or scaffolds, and mitigate the consequences with nets. For manual handling, use TILE-Task, Individual, Load, Environment-and avoid, assess and reduce the handling. For hazardous substances, use Safety Data Sheets, substitution, enclosure, ventilation and, last, PPE. For electricity, isolate and lock off, use RCDs, and maintain equipment. For noise, reduce at source, enclose, and mark hearing protection zones; PPE is last. For machinery, guarding and interlocks come before training.
Worked example
A worker repeatedly lifts 20 kg boxes from floor level, twists to place them on a pallet, and has to reach across a wet patch. TILE analysis: the task involves frequent lifting and twisting; the individual may be inexperienced; the load is heavy and awkward; the environment is wet and cramped. Best control: eliminate manual lifting with a pallet lifter or height-adjustable conveyor. If that is not possible, reduce the load, provide handles, clear the wet patch, and train in technique. Training alone is weaker than engineering the task.
Traps that cost marks
- Treating 'bend your knees' as a substitute for avoiding or mechanising the lift.
- Choosing PPE for noise before reducing noise at source.
- Missing that a wet floor plus a trailing cable creates a combined slip and trip risk.
- Assuming common hazards exist only in factories, not offices or shops.