Hazard register template for New Zealand workplaces

A useful hazard register shows what can harm people, where and when they may be exposed, which controls are actually in place, and who will check them. It is a working index to risk decisions and actions, not evidence of safety simply because cells have been filled in. Use the template below for a New Zealand workplace, then adapt it with workers who understand the job.

WorkSafe's guide to managing work risks recommends identifying work risks, eliminating them so far as reasonably practicable and minimising those that cannot be eliminated. It tells businesses to prioritise critical risks, involve workers and review work as it changes. It also warns that paperwork is no substitute for effective processes and controls. A register helps coordinate those processes, but a separate task assessment, technical study, site-specific plan or hazardous-substance inventory may still be necessary.

Blank hazard register

Copy one row for each distinct exposure or control problem. Grouping can help navigation, but do not combine unrelated tasks into a vague entry such as “plant risks.”

Version control: Workplace [ ]; register owner [ ]; approved by [ ]; date [ ]; version [ ]; location of current copy [ ]; linked assessments [ ]; next planned review [ ]. For each change, record the date, reason, person approving it and people notified. If the workplace has several sites, identify the site or task in every row; a common corporate register may not describe local hazards sufficiently.

Worked example row

This is illustrative. The actual control choice depends on layout, vehicle movements, sight lines, staffing, neighbouring activities and what can practicably be changed. A high priority should lead to an interim protection and prompt decision, not just a red colour in a spreadsheet. A supervisor should check whether the barrier and hold point are used; a paper instruction alone may not prevent an interface collision.

How to fill each column well

Describe the work and exposure, not merely the object

“Forklift” is an item of equipment. “A worker crosses the forklift route while picking stock during peak dispatch” describes the harmful interaction the register must control. Record routine and non-routine work, including maintenance, cleaning, deliveries, breakdowns and contractor visits. Include health risks that can develop over time—such as dust, noise, manual handling or psychosocial hazards—alongside acute injuries. WorkSafe's risk-management guidance stresses that work-related health and safety risks vary by business.

Identify people and sites correctly

List workers doing the task and others who may be exposed. A contractor's workers, customers and the public may be relevant. For shared work, discuss how each business controls its part; the register is not a way to transfer all responsibility to another PCBU. Link any agreed interface to the task plan and the other business's contact. WorkSafe's working-with-other-businesses guidance covers coordination where duties overlap.

Record controls that exist, then choose stronger options

Separate current controls from planned controls. If a guard is missing or a ventilation unit has not been commissioned, do not list it as a working safeguard. Consider whether the hazard can be removed or the task redesigned before relying on training, warning signs or personal protective equipment. Link to technical verification where needed—measurements, maintenance, inspections, safe systems, permits or specialist assessments. A register row cannot prove engineering effectiveness simply by naming a control.

If using a likelihood/severity matrix, keep the rationale in words and prioritise credible high-consequence events even when they are uncommon. A low numerical score should never justify ignoring a serious exposure. WorkSafe asks businesses to focus on critical risks and continuously identify new ones. The register should help decide which controls and actions receive attention first.

Make actions closeable

Each improvement needs a named owner, due date, interim protection and evidence that the action worked. “Train staff” is incomplete if nobody decides who needs what instruction or how competence and changed behaviour will be checked. “Repair guard” is incomplete until the affected machine has been kept out of unsafe use and the repair verified. Track overdue actions and escalate those that leave people exposed.

Involve workers and review when work changes

Workers often know about awkward access, shortcuts caused by workload and controls that fail on night shift. Capture their input and explain the chosen solution. Revisit rows after incidents and near misses, process/equipment/layout changes, new substances or contractors, exposure results or evidence that a control is ineffective. Planned reviews are useful, but they do not replace a review when something material changes. Record the revised control, who was told and how it will be checked.

Keep separate records where the task requires them

A hazard register is an overview. It should link to the detailed record that supports a control decision: a task risk assessment, machine safety assessment, exposure assessment, emergency plan, contractor interface, health monitoring arrangement or site-specific method. For hazardous substances, WorkSafe describes a specific inventory of what is held and where; a generic register row is not a substitute for that inventory. Likewise, a register should not be treated as a completed incident investigation or as proof that workers were instructed.

Next step: Walk the work with the people who do it, open entries for material risks, implement the controls and verify them. If the current Complys NZ product supports live risk/action records, add a link to its verified page with only the functions that exist today. The proposed /nz/risk-assessment-software route has not been independently confirmed in this writer pass, so no product capability is promised here.

Source and claim register