Education Industry

This page provides guidance for persons conducting a business or undertaking (PCBUs) and workers on the risks that may occur in the education industry.

The education industry provides education and training to the community, and includes public and private schools, colleges, technical colleges, training centres and universities.

What are the risks?

Due to the nature of the work, the education industry can pose work health and safety (WHS) risks to workers and others (including students) at the workplace. Some of the risks and hazards commonly found in the education industry include:

manual handling and repetitive movement e.g., typing, lifting or moving objects
slips, trips and falls
hazardous chemicals, and
psychosocial hazards, including:
- stress from work demands
- work-related violence, including injuries caused by aggressive or unpredictable people
- harassment, and
- bullying.

Duties to manage risks in the workplace

Under the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (the WHS Act), PCBUs have a duty to eliminate risks in the workplace, or if that is not possible, minimise the risks so far as is reasonably practicable.

Other duty holders who also have a role in managing risks under the WHS Act include:

Designers, manufacturers, importers and suppliers of plant
Officers
Workers, and
Other persons at the workplace.

A worker in the education industry includes any ongoing or non-ongoing employee, contractor or subcontractor, volunteer, or work experience student. Workers must:

take reasonable care for their own health and safety.
take reasonable care for the health and safety of others.
comply with any reasonable instruction from the workplace.
cooperate with any reasonable policies and procedures of the workplace.

For further information on WHS duties, see our workplace rights and responsibilities webpage.

Risk management

A PCBU must manage the risks to workers and other people’s health and safety, which can be done by following the risk management process:

Identify hazards—find out what could cause harm.
Assess risks—understand the nature of the harm that could be caused by the hazard.
Control risks—implement the most effective control measure that is reasonably practicable in the circumstances, following the hierarchy of controls.
Review control measures—to ensure they are working as planned.

Further information on managing some of the common risks in the education industry is outlined below. The risks and hazards will vary across each workplace and the PCBU must take the specific circumstances of the work and workplace into account when managing risks. For further guidance on the risk management process and the hierarchy of controls see the Code of Practice: How to manage WHS risks.

Psychosocial hazards

Psychosocial hazards are factors in the design or management of work, or harmful workplace behaviours. Psychosocial hazards can cause physical and psychological harm. The hazards may be reoccurring and ongoing or a one-off incident.

Some of the more common hazards that can lead to psychosocial injury in the education industry include:

Role overload, leading to work-related stress.
Poor workplace relationships, which can increase incidents of bullying and harassment.
Exposure to traumatic events, such as work-related violence.

Psychosocial hazards must be managed, just like any physical hazard. Where the risk of work-related violence and aggression is inherent in the nature of the work, a separate risk assessment specific to work-related violence and aggression should be conducted. For more information on psychosocial hazards and how to manage them in the workplace, head to our psychosocial hazards webpage.

Musculoskeletal Disorders

Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) include a wide range of inflammatory and degenerative conditions that affect the muscles, tendons, ligaments, joints, peripheral nerves and supporting blood vessels. An MSD can occur in two ways:

gradual wear and tear from repeated or continuous use of the same body parts, including static body positions, or
sudden damage caused by strenuous activity, or unexpected movements.

PCBUs should be aware of the physical capabilities of their workers and recognise that some tasks may pose higher risks of MSDs; for example, physical education or some trade classes may have more strenuous physical requirements.

Some examples of control measures for MSDs in the education industry include:

Ensuring educators have adequate breaks and rest time in between physical tasks.
Providing equipment, such as trolleys, to reduce the risks of carrying equipment, furniture or other objects.
Ensure workers are adequately trained to carry out manual handling tasks safely.

For more information on MSDs, and how to manage these in the workplace, see the our MSD webpage, or the Hazardous Manual Tasks Code of Practice

Strategy

https://www.worksafe.act.gov.au/health-and-safety-portal/safety-topics/safety-advice/strategy-to-prevent-musculoskeletal-disorders

Slips, trips and falls

The most common causes of slips, trips, and falls are generally caused by environmental factors. In an education setting this could include:

Objects on the floor, such as books or pens
Untucked/inappropriately stored chairs or furniture
A sudden change in floor surface, for example joins between carpet and polished timber.
Uneven or unstable ground, such as playgrounds and sandpits
The incline of a ramp
Cables, such as extension cords.
Uneven, unstable, or loose flooring, and
Wet or slippery surfaces.

To reduce the risk of slips, trips and falls, PCBUs need to ensure adequate management of environmental factors. In the education industry, this could include:

Regular cleaning of floors to remove spills
Adequate storage of trip hazards, such as stationery and toys
Adequate arrangement of classrooms to allow safe walkways
Ensuring all workers have appropriate footwear for required activities, such as physical education and playground duty.

For more information on slips, trips and falls and how to manage these in the workplace, head to our Slips, trips and falls webpage.

Hazardous chemicals

PCBUs in the education industry need to ensure any chemicals in their workplace are used and stored safety. Examples of where chemicals may be used in the education industry include:

Staff areas and kitchens, such as cleaning supplies and dishwasher chemicals.
Laboratories where chemicals are used for educational purposes.
Technical classrooms using solvents, stains and glues for arts and technology classes.
Cleaner's storerooms with cleaning detergents, bleaches and drain cleaners.

PCBUs must have a chemical register for the workplace that contains an inventory of all the chemicals and their most recent safety data sheet (SDS). The PCBU must consider the information in the safety data sheet for each hazardous chemical used, handled, or stored at the workplace when preparing the emergency plan.

For further guidance on how to manage hazardous chemicals in the workplace, head to our Hazardous chemicals webpage.

First aid

Providing immediate and effective first aid to workers or others who have been injured or become ill at the workplace may reduce the severity of the injury or illness. PCBUs have duties to provide adequate first aid in the workplace. This includes:

providing first aid equipment
ensuring each worker at the workplace has access to the equipment
ensuring there is an adequate number of workers that are trained to administer first aid
consulting with workers on the number, location, and contents of first aid kits and other equipment, and
consulting with workers on the type of first aid facilities that may be needed.

First aid requirements vary depending on the nature of the workplace. A risk assessment should be conducted to identify the hazards that could result in work-related injury or illness and assess the severity and likelihood of those injuries and illnesses occurring. The first aid requirements should be reviewed on a regular basis or as circumstances change.

PCBUs should consider the following when determining first aid facilities:

the distance between different work areas and the design of the workspaces
the response times for emergency services
the type of work being carried out, including exposure to different hazards
the particular needs of workers, including those who have a disability or a known health concern, such as asthma or allergies, and
the needs of others at the workplace, including students.

The First Aid in the Workplace Code of Practice provides further guidance on first aid requirements for the workplace.