Manufacturing, Warehousing, Freight/Transport and Retail

Under the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 you must ensure employees are trained and competent in the job they are doing. The higher the risk of serious/fatal injury, the higher the penalty. The forklift licence shows you have been trained by a moderated and registered instructor against a training program that adheres to important regulations, such as the Approved Code of Practice for Forklift Trainers and Operators, Health and Safety at Work Act 2015, etc. If the person conducting a business or undertaking (PCBU) does not provide this proof they are liable. The quickest, easiest and best way to ensure competency is to have a third party provide training. Every ASWEFA instructor is independantly registered and moderated by governing authorities, unlike some competitors who sign off other trainers.

No, not if you are operating on a contained worksite. For a contained worksite you only need the Worksite Forklift Licence. It is only if you are operating where the public have access to be that you require the additional licence of an F Endorsement.

If you don’t have authority a company can say you where using it without their permission. On the flip side, just because someone has a licence doesn’t mean the company wants them to use their equipment (ie a contractor). There may be rules regarding their site and product that the contractor is not aware of. Ultimately it is the PCBU of that site that will be scrutinized in the event of an accident in regards to ensuring a safe environment is maintained. This is a step in ensuring safety.

It is valid for 3 years.

Yes, an F Endorsement on your drivers licence is NOT proof of competency and you need to have a current Worksite Forklift Licence to prove competency and meet Health and Safety Act at Work obligations. Worksafe have contracted the moderation and registration of Forklift Operators to Te Pukenga (Competenz). All of ASWEFA’s instructors are individually moderated and registered and NOT signed off by one instructor only. This way you can be confident you are receiving the highest standard of training.

Yes, the licence is your proof of competency and training. If you drive a counterbalance then your forklift licence should display this. If you drive a Reach, a Telehandler, etc then you should have this displayed on your forklift licence. It is also important to ensure that you can proof you have been assessed as competent on large tonnage machinery if that is what you are using.

At least 15 years old for a worksite forklift licence - the Health and Safety Act 1995 section 56 states that no employee under the age of 15 can work with any machinery in a place of work.

Yes, a forklift is defined as a powered industrial lift truck which is a vehicle drawn, propelled and operated by mechanical, electrical or manual power, design incorporating a powered lift principally to lift, carry or stack goods by means of: • a fork consisting of one or more arms which support the load; or • A platform; or Any attachment or other mechanism

The employer has sole discretion to accept evidence of an Australian qualification. Individual employers may require additional training or a New Zealand forklift operators certification in accordance with organisation policies and procedures. The position of WorkSafe NZ (formerly Department of Labour) is that where a forklift operator provides a certificate or document that shows that they have received formal training/tuition/instruction/assessment under any of the 7 states and territories of Australia, then NZ employers should recognise this and therefore not preclude the Operator from gaining employment. In most cases, WorkSafe NZ agrees that “refresher” training at the earliest opportunity would be sufficient to address any of the differences between NZ and Australia