19 min read
Road transport worker safety
Last updated November 2024
This chapter explains your health and safety obligations in the road transport industry, and the chain of responsibility for parties in the heavy vehicle industry.
What are your health and safety obligations to road transport workers?
Under health and safety legislation, you have a duty to ensure the safety of your workers. If your business operates in the road transport industry, you will employ road transport workers to whom you owe this duty of care.
Definition: Road Transport Industry
The road transport industry consists of businesses that regularly use roads as part of their operations, including:
- consignors/consignees;
- packers;
- loaders; and
- road transport workers, e.g. drivers, receivers and users of commercial vehicles.
The road transport industry consists of businesses that regularly use roads as part of their operations, including:
- consignors/consignees;
- packers;
- loaders; and
- road transport workers, e.g. drivers, receivers and users of commercial vehicles.
Definition: Road Transport Worker
A road transport worker is a person whose work regularly involves using roads to transport goods, e.g. a driver.
A road transport worker is a person whose work regularly involves using roads to transport goods, e.g. a driver.
Important: To meet your health and safety obligations to road transport workers, you will need to consider the specific high risks to their health and safety.
In addition to your health and safety requirements, operators in the road transport industry must comply with:
- state and territory road transport legislation; and
- in most jurisdictions, the Heavy Vehicle National Law (HVNL) if you operate in the heavy vehicle industry.