Working in Hot Conditions - Outdoors SWMS

Product Overview

This SWMS covers planning, preparing for and carrying out outdoor work in hot conditions. It supports managing heat, humidity, solar radiation, hydration, recovery, worker monitoring and emergency response risks.

Activities & Specific Tasks Covered

This document includes task-specific risk controls for:

• Review weather conditions, programme and workload
• Confirm worker fitness and readiness
• Establish cool recovery areas and hydration facilities
• Set up the outdoor work area
• Conduct heat-safety pre-start discussions
• Carry out physical outdoor work and use protective clothing
• Monitor conditions, work pace and worker wellbeing
• Respond to heat illness
• Suspend work during extreme conditions
• Clean up and demobilise

Who is this for?

Suitable for contractors, workers, supervisors and businesses carrying out outdoor work in hot conditions.

Specific Job Steps & Hazards Covered

Legislation & References

The template includes references relevant to the documented work, including:

• Applicable Commonwealth, state or territory WHS/OHS legislation and regulations: apply the primary duty of care, worker consultation, risk management, workplace facilities, training, supervision and emergency-management duties relevant to the jurisdiction and workplace.
• Model Code of Practice: Managing the Work Environment and Facilities — guidance on assessing personal and environmental heat factors, providing cool drinking water, cooler work schedules and recovery areas.
• Model Code of Practice: Construction Work, November 2024 — guidance on outdoor heat stress, shade, task rotation, rest breaks, cool clean water and UV protection.
• Model Code of Practice: How to Manage Work Health and Safety Risks — guidance on applying the hierarchy of controls, consultation and review of controls.
• Model WHS laws and model Codes of Practice are guidance for nationally consistent arrangements and do not automatically have legal effect in every jurisdiction; confirm locally adopted requirements with the relevant WHS/OHS regulator.
• AS/NZS 2604 Sunscreen products — guidance for workplace sunscreen selection.
• AS/NZS 4399 Sun protective clothing — guidance for selecting ultraviolet protective clothing.
• AS/NZS 1067.1 Sunglasses and fashion spectacles — guidance for eye protection against solar ultraviolet radiation.
• AS/NZS 1801 Occupational protective helmets and AS/NZS 1800 Occupational protective helmets — guidance where hard hats are required by the work activity.

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Standard SWMS Features (Click to Expand)

• Task-specific job steps, hazards and control measures
• Initial and residual risk ratings
• Assigned responsible persons for each job step
• Plant, equipment and PPE requirements where applicable
• Permits, qualifications and high-risk construction work details where applicable
• Worker consultation, sign-off and review sections