Hospitality & Retail Manual Handling Guides
The same course for hospitality and retail workers wherever you work — eight modules, a 20-question assessment and a Certificate of Completion for A$49. These pages answer the questions people ask before they start, with the regulator guidance each answer rests on.
Take the AssessmentCommon questions
Straight answers, with the regulator guidance they rest on linked at the end of each.
- Moving kegsA full keg weighs 50–60 kg or more and is never lifted by hand. Use a keg trolley or lifter, two people on ramps and steps, and follow the cellar procedure.
- Shelf filling and night fillStock shelves from the roll cage at waist height, keep heavy lines between knee and shoulder, use a step stool above shoulder height and pace the fill.
- Checkout repetitive strainYes. Hours of scanning and bagging are repetitive movement and force. Register set-up, hand scanners for heavy items, rotation and breaks reduce the risk.
- Commercial kitchensStock pots, fryer oil, deliveries, cool rooms, dish racks and wet floors are the main risks. Fill pots where they sit, never carry hot oil and use trolleys.
- Casual and student workersYes. WHS duties do not depend on your contract or age. A casual or student in a shop, café or bar is owed the same induction, training and equipment as anyone.
- Trays and table serviceCarry only the plates you can hold securely, keep trays level and close, use tray stands and bus carts, and never take loads on stairs when a lift exists.