Quick Answer
A worker is compliant for site when every requirement for their role at that operation is held, current and verified on the day they attend. Build a requirement matrix per role and site, hold the actual evidence with expiry dates, verify licences at the source, and re-run the check at every deployment.
- Right to work — ID, visa work rights via VEVO where relevant.
- Inductions — general (Standard 11 or equivalent) plus the site-specific induction, both dated.
- Licences and VOCs — matched to the actual plant and task, not just on file.
- Medicals — coal board or periodic medical, health surveillance, D&A clearance.
- Currency — refreshers in date, with alerts 90, 60 and 30 days out.
- On the day — fitness for work declaration and a signed SWMS or JHA for the task.
What "compliant for site" actually covers
Compliance is not one document. It is a set of requirements that changes with the role, the plant, the site and the state. Here is the full picture most Australian mining and heavy industry operations expect.
| Requirement | What you need to hold and verify |
|---|---|
| Right to work | Passport, birth certificate or visa with work rights (VEVO check for visa holders), plus TFN and superannuation details. |
| General site induction | Standard 11 (or state equivalent) for coal, MSIC or metalliferous generic induction, plus the site-specific induction for the mine or workshop. |
| Site-specific induction | Each operation runs its own induction and site access approval — valid for that site only, and usually expiring after 12 months of no attendance. |
| Licences and tickets | High risk work licences (EWP, forklift, rigging, dogging, crane), electrical licence, HR/HC/MC driver licence — checked against the actual task, not just held on file. |
| Verifications of competency (VOC) | Site or plant-specific VOCs for haul trucks, loaders, elevated work, isolation, confined space entry and any plant the worker will operate. |
| Medicals and health surveillance | Coal board medical (QLD), pre-employment or periodic medical, audiometry, respiratory function, drug and alcohol clearance where required. |
| Fitness for work declaration | Current fatigue and fitness declaration covering hours worked, travel, medication and any restriction on duties. |
| Training currency | Refreshers with expiry — working at height, confined space, first aid, isolation, low voltage rescue, fire extinguisher, 4WD. |
| SWMS and JHA sign-on | Evidence the worker has been briefed on and signed the current SWMS or JHA for the task before starting. |
| PPE and equipment issue | Correct PPE issued and fit-tested where relevant (respirators), plus any task-specific gear such as harnesses with in-date inspections. |
| Insurance and contractor status | For subcontractors: ABN, workers comp or personal accident cover, public liability and a current contractor agreement. |
Where the obligations come from
The duty sits with you, not the worker
Under the model WHS Act, the person conducting the business or undertaking must ensure workers have the information, training, instruction and supervision necessary to work safely. Holding a copy of a ticket is not the same as verifying it is genuine, current and matched to the task the worker is being sent to do.
Mine sites add their own gate
Queensland coal and metalliferous operations, WA mines under the WHS (Mines) Regulations and NSW operations under the Resources Regulator each impose site access requirements on top of general WHS — inductions, medicals, competency registers and contractor management systems that must be satisfied before a worker passes the gate.
Verify at the source where you can
High risk work licences can be checked with the state regulator, electrical licences with the licensing body, driver licences with the transport authority, and visa work rights through VEVO. A photo of a card in an email chain proves nothing about its current status.
Compliance is a moving target
A worker compliant last swing may not be this swing — a medical lapses, a first aid certificate expires, a site induction times out after twelve months away, or a licence is suspended. Compliance must be re-checked at the point of dispatch, not once at onboarding.
Confirm the detail with Safe Work Australia and your state regulator — Resources Safety & Health Queensland, DEMIRS (WA) or the NSW Resources Regulator — plus the mine operator's contractor management requirements, which are usually stricter than the legal minimum.
A compliance check that survives a busy shutdown
Define compliance per role, not per person
Write a requirement matrix: for a diesel fitter on a QLD coal site, list every induction, ticket, VOC, medical and refresher required. Do it once per role and site combination and you have an objective test for every worker.
Collect the evidence, not the claim
Store the actual certificate, licence card, medical clearance and VOC record with issue date, expiry date and issuing body. 'Says he has his EWP ticket' is not evidence.
Verify against the issuing authority
Check high risk work licences, electrical licences, driver licences and visa work rights at the source when the worker onboards and again if anything looks altered or inconsistent.
Set expiry tracking with lead time
Every record gets an expiry and an alert 60 to 90 days out. Coal board medicals and site inductions in particular need booking well before they lapse.
Run a pre-mobilisation check for every deployment
Before a worker is scheduled to a site, run the matrix against their record. If anything is missing or expiring during the swing, they don't go — or they go with the gap closed first.
Gate the schedule on compliance
The strongest control is systemic: your scheduling tool refuses to roster a non-compliant worker to a site or task, so the check can't be forgotten under pressure.
Keep an auditable trail
Client audits ask who was on site on a given day and what they held that day. Keep the compliance snapshot with the job record so you can answer for any date, years later.
Best practice for contractors
One source of truth per worker
Consolidate tickets, medicals, inductions and VOCs into a single worker record. Spreadsheets in three departments guarantee contradictions at the gate.
Check at dispatch, not at onboarding
Compliance is a state on a date. Verify at the moment you commit a worker to a job, which is when the risk actually crystallises.
Match the ticket to the task
A worker can be fully compliant for site and still not licensed for the specific plant they're handed. Tie competency to the task on the work order.
Give supervisors a mobile view
Supervisors at the face should be able to pull up a crew's compliance status on a phone in seconds, including the crew that arrived overnight.
Automate the renewal chase
Send reminders to the worker and their supervisor at 90, 60 and 30 days. Most non-compliance is an admin lapse, not a refusal.
Audit your own gate quarterly
Pick ten recent deployments and reconstruct whether every requirement was met on the day. Findings show you where the process, not the person, failed.
Common mistakes
Treating a photo of a card as verification
Cards get expired, suspended or fabricated. Verification means checking the issuing body's record, not receiving an image.
Tracking expiries in a spreadsheet nobody owns
Unowned spreadsheets drift. Within a swing or two, the dates in the file no longer match reality.
Assuming a site induction lasts forever
Most site inductions expire after 12 months, and many lapse if the worker hasn't attended the site inside that window — even if the certificate looks current.
Relying on the client's portal as your record
When the contract ends, your access does too. Keep your own copy of every induction, medical and competency record.
Skipping subcontractor checks
Subcontractors and labour hire on your work face are your risk. Apply the same matrix, and verify their insurances too.
No fitness for work check at start of shift
Tickets and medicals say nothing about hours worked, travel and fatigue on the day. A daily declaration closes that gap.
Related reading: How to manage SWMS for mining contractors · How to manage fatigue records in mining · How long should mining safety records be kept · Health & safety software.
Worker site compliance — FAQs
This article is general information for Australian mining and heavy industry contractors, not legal advice. Confirm site access and competency requirements with your state regulator, the site operator and your own WHS advisers.
