Construction & Trades Manual Handling Guides
The same course for construction and trades workers wherever you work — eight modules, a 20-question assessment and a Certificate of Completion for A$49. These pages cover what changes with the state you work in and answer the questions people ask before they start.
Take the AssessmentCommon questions
Straight answers, with the regulator guidance they rest on linked at the end of each.
- White Card vs manual handlingNo. The White Card is the mandatory general construction induction; manual handling training covers one hazard in depth. Neither replaces the other.
- 20 kg bags and lifting limitsNo. Australian WHS law sets no maximum lifting weight. The move to 20 kg bags was an industry substitution control; weight is one risk factor among several.
- Carrying plasterboard and sheetsCarry sheets on edge with a handle, two people over 2.4 m or 25 kg, a cart for distance and a panel lifter for ceilings. Better still, deliver to point of use.
- Hand-arm vibration from toolsYes. Regular use of breakers, grinders and rotary hammers can cause hand-arm vibration syndrome. Tool choice and trigger time cut the risk; gloves do not.
- SWMS and manual handlingNot on its own: SWMS are for high risk construction work, which excludes manual tasks. But the handling within that work must be controlled, in the SWMS.
- Manual handling for apprenticesApprentices get the heaviest, most repetitive handling on site. What to ask, when to call a team lift, why toughness is not a control and what to report.
By state and territory
Work health and safety law is not identical across Australia. Victoria never adopted the model WHS laws and Western Australia only moved across in 2022, so the regulator and the framework that apply to you depend on where you work.
- New South WalesManual handling training for NSW construction and trades workers: SafeWork NSW duties, the White Card, SWMS and the site tasks that injure building workers.
- VictoriaManual handling training for Victorian construction and trades workers: WorkSafe Victoria, the OHS Act 2004, hazardous manual handling and the induction card.
- QueenslandManual handling training for Queensland construction and trades workers: Workplace Health and Safety Queensland, heat, mine-site work and the White Card.
- Western AustraliaManual handling training for WA construction and trades workers: WorkSafe WA and the WHS Act 2020, resources construction, remote sites and the White Card.
- South AustraliaManual handling training for South Australian construction and trades workers: SafeWork SA, housing, defence and regional work, heat and the White Card.
- TasmaniaManual handling training for Tasmanian construction and trades workers: WorkSafe Tasmania, small crews, steep sites, weather and the White Card.
- ACTManual handling training for construction and trades workers in Canberra: WorkSafe ACT, apartment and civil work, cross-border crews and the White Card.
- Northern TerritoryManual handling training for NT construction and trades workers: NT WorkSafe, remote community and defence work, heat, the wet season and the White Card.
Working in more than one industry? Manual handling training by state covers every industry.