Workplace Inspections
Purpose and types
- Inspections detect unsafe conditions and practices before harm occurs. They may be planned committee inspections, supervisor walkthroughs or statutory inspections by a DOSHS inspector.
- A good inspection is systematic: use a checklist, cover all areas and shifts, involve workers, and record what is seen.
- Findings need a risk rating, an owner, a deadline and follow-up. Immediate dangers are controlled at once; other actions are tracked to closure.
- Statutory inspectors have legal powers, including entering premises, questioning people and issuing notices. Committee inspections do not carry those powers.
Worked example
During a quarterly inspection, boxes block a fire extinguisher and a damaged cable lies near a walkway. The extinguisher obstruction is removed immediately and the cable is isolated. The team records both findings, assigns racking and cable replacement to named supervisors, and sets a one-week follow-up. The inspection report is tabled at the committee meeting.
Traps that cost marks
Only checking physical conditions and ignoring procedures; walking past blocked exits; recording findings without owners or dates; failing to verify closure; confusing a committee inspection with a DOSHS enforcement inspection.
Exam focus
Show a cycle: plan, inspect, record, prioritise, act, follow up. In scenario questions, separate immediate controls from longer-term corrective action.