Understanding the current Health & Safety legislation is a real challenge, especially when it comes to following the law.
A recent question about Worksafe notification and scissor lifts had us scratching our heads: if you are using a scissor lifter and working above 5 meters, do you need to notify Worksafe NZ?
Worksafe NZ are responsible for 3 Acts and 20+ regulations covering Health & Safety. Understanding the various regulations is a nightmare: even those skilled in the art of Health & Safety struggle to get their heads around the volume of rules and regulations.
Most of the legal horsepower is delivered by the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015.
But a much older piece of legislation defines what is hazardous and notifiable. The 1995 Health and Safety in Employment Regulations set out what is ‘notifiable work’. It deems ‘notifiable’ as anything to do with the usual risky activities such as logging, asbestos, explosives, using respirators or lifting anything over 500kg more than 5 meters high. Fair enough.
But it also includes any work “in which a risk arises that any person may fall 5 metres or more”.
Fair enough too. The NZ accident risk register is full of instances of scaffolding towers accidents or workers falling off ladders, with disastrous consequences.
Unfortunately this piece of law also captures safety devices such as scissor lifters or cherry pickers. These machines, referred to as Mobile Elevated Work Platforms or MEWPs by Worksafe NZ, are designed to operate safely at heights above 5 meters. They are the safest tools when working at height, something not envisaged by the original legislation written 30 years ago.
So does the hire of a scissor lifter or cherry picker for a job above 5 meters height require 24 hours notification to Worksafe?
Yes: in many cases it does. Despite the fact that a worker operating from a MEWP is exponentially safer than hanging off an extension ladder, working above 5 meters on a MEWP will require 24-hour notification to Worksafe. Unless there is an exemption.
As we read it, if you are operating a scissor lifter or cherry picker above 5 meters height, you do not need to notify Worksafe NZ if you are:
- Working on a residential building up to and including 2 full storeys; or
- Working on overhead telecommunications lines and overhead electric power lines; or
- Carrying out maintenance and repair work of a minor or routine nature eg: changing a light bulb in a hall
- Using a ladder (which seems slightly ironical given the inherent risks).
If you don’t meet these exemptions, you must notify Worksafe NZ of your intentions 24 hours prior to the start of work. Go to https://bit.ly/WSNZ_Notification or search for ‘Particular hazardous work (Notifiable works)’ on the Worksafe NZ website and file a notification.
And remember it is the responsibility of the principal worksite PCBU to notify Worksafe for non-exempt work.
If there is confusion, one PCBU should be nominated to notify Worksafe, and the others verify that notification was made. All PCBUs on the site are responsible for ensuring that the notification is made. If there is any doubt, notify.
The recent IPAF Global Safety Report 2024 confirms the relative safety of Mobile Elevated Work Platforms. They are exponentially safer than ladders. It’s about time a 30-year old piece of legislation acknowledged this.