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Landscaping · Canada

FLHA for paving

By Safety PaperworkBuilt from provincial OHS law and CCOHS guidance · How we write and check theseUpdated

Provincial OHS law requires hazards to be assessed and controlled before work starts. A field level hazard assessment (FLHA) for paving is done on site at the start of the shift and again whenever conditions change.

It lists the tasks, hazards and controls, and every worker signs on before starting and signs off at the end of the shift. The main hazards are silica dust from concrete, brick, stone and tiles, hitting underground services, being hit by heavy equipment and loud noise.

Make this FLHA nowWord templatePDF

FLHA example: paving

This is a complete FLHA for paving, with 5 job steps. Open it in the builder to add your site, crew and signatures, change anything, and download a PDF. Or download the free Word template below and fill it in by hand.

Field Level Hazard Assessment (FLHA)
Paving installation · Landscaping · Example
Document FLHA-001 · Rev 1

Job steps, hazards and controls

#Job stepHazardsRisk beforeControlsRisk after
1Get utility locates and excavate the base
  • Hitting underground services
  • Being hit by heavy equipment
Critical
  • Keep machine buckets well clear of marked services and use a spotter. Engineering (guarding)
  • Scan the area with a cable locator before digging and mark services on the ground. Engineering
  • Hand expose or hydrovac services before machine digging inside the locate tolerance zone. Engineering
  • Click Before You Dig: lodge a locate request with your provincial one-call service and wait for the locates. Administrative
  • Follow your province's ground disturbance rules and keep locate sheets on site. Administrative
  • Keep plans or locate tickets on site and check them again if the work area grows. Administrative
  • If you hit a service, stop, get everyone clear, and call the owner and emergency services. Administrative
  • Wear safety boots, gloves and hi-vis when digging. PPE
  • Separate people and equipment with barriers, exclusion zones and marked walkways. Engineering (guarding)
  • Use equipment with working backup alarms, cameras and lights. Engineering
  • Have a site traffic plan showing equipment routes, loading areas and pedestrian paths. Administrative
  • Use a spotter when backing up or working near people. Administrative
  • Make eye contact with the operator before going near. Stay out of the swing radius. Administrative
  • Operators are trained and competent for each machine. Administrative
  • Do a pre-start check on each machine every day and record it. Administrative
  • Wear hi-vis clothing and a hard hat. PPE
Medium
2Compact road base, rotating operators
  • Hand-arm and whole-body vibration
  • Loud noise
High
  • Use low-vibration tools and methods, such as a breaker on an excavator instead of a hand jackhammer. Substitution
  • Keep tools sharp and well maintained, and use anti-vibration handles and seats. Engineering
  • Limit trigger time on high-vibration tools and rotate workers. Administrative
  • Keep hands warm and dry, and take regular breaks. Administrative
  • Report tingling, numbness or white fingers early. Administrative
  • Wear gloves to keep hands warm and dry. PPE
  • Use quieter tools and methods, such as cut-to-size materials, low-noise machines and battery tools. Substitution
  • Keep noisy equipment away from work areas, and use screens or distance between the noise and people. Engineering (guarding)
  • Keep tools maintained and use mufflers on compressors and generators. Engineering
  • Limit time on noisy tools and rotate workers. Administrative
  • If you have to shout to be heard 1 metre away, wear hearing protection. Administrative
  • Wear earplugs or earmuffs rated for the noise. PPE
Medium
3Lay pavers, using a lifter or two people for big ones
  • Lifting and carrying heavy loads
  • Repetitive work and awkward postures
High
  • Plan to avoid carrying: have materials delivered, and old items picked up, as close as possible to where they are used. Elimination
  • Use lighter or smaller loads: order smaller bags and shorter lengths, and drain or break down old items before moving them. Substitution
  • Use trolleys, pallet jacks, hoists, vacuum lifters or equipment instead of carrying by hand. Engineering
  • Use a two-person lift for anything heavy, long or awkward. Plan the route first and clear it. Administrative
  • Keep the load close, back straight and no twisting. Turn with your feet. Administrative
  • Rotate tasks and take breaks on long lifting jobs. Administrative
  • Wear gloves for grip and safety boots to protect your feet. PPE
  • Use tools that cut the effort: powered screwdrivers, long-handled tools and extension poles for overhead work. Substitution
  • Set work up at waist height on benches or trestles where you can. Engineering
  • Use light tools with good grips, and keep blades and bits sharp. Engineering
  • Rotate tasks and take short breaks every hour on repetitive work. Administrative
  • Warm up before heavy physical work and report aches and pains early. Administrative
  • Wear knee pads for kneeling work and gloves for grip. PPE
Medium
4Cut pavers wet, never dry
  • Silica dust from concrete, brick, stone and tiles
  • Saw cuts and kickback
  • Loud noise
Critical
  • Order materials cut to size, or use low-dust methods such as score and snap or a block splitter. Substitution
  • Cut outdoors or in a separate area, with other people well away and upwind. Engineering (guarding)
  • Use water on the blade or on-tool dust extraction connected to a HEPA vacuum. Engineering
  • Clean up with a vacuum or wet methods. Never dry sweep or use compressed air. Administrative
  • Have a silica exposure control plan where your province requires one. Administrative
  • Wear a fit-tested N95 (or better) respirator. PPE
  • Keep blade guards fitted and working, and use the riving knife on table saws. Engineering
  • Use push sticks and clamps, and support long pieces so they do not pinch the blade. Engineering
  • Use a sharp, undamaged blade made for the material. Administrative
  • Stand to one side of the blade line, out of the kickback path. Administrative
  • Let the blade stop fully before reaching in or putting the saw down. Administrative
  • Loud noise: see step 2 for the full controls Administrative
Medium
5Sand, compact and clean up
  • Sun exposure (UV)
  • Heat stress
  • Poor housekeeping and waste
High
  • Plan outdoor work for early morning or late afternoon when UV is lower. Elimination
  • Put shade covers over fixed work areas. Engineering
  • Check the UV index each day. Use sun protection when it is 3 or higher. Administrative
  • Check your skin regularly and see a doctor about any new or changing spots. Administrative
  • Wear a broad-brim hat or hard hat brim, long sleeves, sunglasses and SPF 30 or higher sunscreen, reapplied every 2 hours. PPE
  • Schedule heavy work for the cooler part of the day. Elimination
  • Provide shade over work and rest areas, and fans or cooling in attics. Engineering
  • Supply cool drinking water close by and drink a cup every 15 to 20 minutes. Administrative
  • Take regular rest breaks in the shade, more often as it gets hotter. Administrative
  • Let new and returning workers build up to full work in the heat over about a week. Administrative
  • Order materials to size and send packaging back where you can. Elimination
  • Put waste bins and chutes close to the work. Engineering
  • Clean as you go, and do a full clean up at the end of each day. Administrative
  • Keep exits, stairs and walkways clear at all times. Administrative
  • Stack materials neatly on level ground, away from edges. Administrative
Medium

PPE

CSA green triangle safety boots (CSA Z195)Knee padsSafety glasses (CSA Z94.3)N95 respiratorHearing protectionSun protection (sunscreen, hat, long sleeves)High-visibility vest (CSA Z96)Hard hat (CSA Z94.1)Work glovesRespirator fit tested to CSA Z94.4 (P100 for dust, or the type the air test calls for)

Plant and equipment

Skid steer: Provincial operator trainingPlate tamperConcrete saw (cut-off saw)Wet tile sawHand tools

Emergency

Call 911. Add the nearest hospital, the muster point and the first aid attendant for your site.

Sign-off

Supervisor and every worker sign to confirm they have read and understood this FLHA, then sign off at the end of the shift.

Free FLHA template for paving

Word (.docx) and PDF, Letter landscape, no email needed. Fill in your site details, then print or send it.

Word template (.docx)PDF template

Make yours in 2 minutes

Same document, filled in for your job. Answer a few yes or no questions, the crew signs on the phone, and you send the PDF.

Start this FLHA

Pre-start checklist for paving

Tick these off before work starts. They come from the hazards, permits and equipment in this job.

The safe sequence of work

  1. Get utility locates and excavate the base
  2. Compact road base, rotating operators
  3. Lay pavers, using a lifter or two people for big ones
  4. Cut pavers wet, never dry
  5. Sand, compact and clean up

Hazards to watch on paving

The hazards most specific to this job, and the step where each one comes up.

Step 5Sun exposure (UV)Long hours in the sun cause sunburn, eye damage and skin cancer.
Step 5Heat stressHard work in hot weather or hot attics causes heat exhaustion or heat stroke, which can kill.
Step 2Hand-arm and whole-body vibrationLong periods on jackhammers, grinders, compactors or riding plant cause white finger, numbness and back damage.
Step 1Hitting underground servicesDigging, drilling or driving pegs hits a buried power cable, gas pipe or water main, causing electrocution, explosion or flooding.
Step 1Being hit by heavy equipmentExcavators, loaders, telehandlers and trucks run over or crush workers, especially when reversing or slewing.
Step 4Saw cuts and kickbackCircular saws, mitre saws and table saws cut fingers and hands or throw material back at the user.
Almost certainLikelyPossibleUnlikelyRareHow bad it could be: First aid only to FatalityBA
Highest risk on paving: Critical before controls (B), down to Medium after controls (A), on the Canada 5 by 5 risk matrix (likely and fatality becomes unlikely and serious injury).

What changes on your site

This example covers the job itself. Your site may add more. Add controls for any of these that apply (the builder asks you these as yes or no questions):

  • Could anyone fall 3 metres or more, or fall any distance into machinery, water, a hazardous substance or through an opening?
  • Will anyone use a ladder or stepladder?
  • Will anyone work on a roof?
  • Is there a fragile roof, skylight or clear roof sheet?
  • Will you use a scaffold or mobile tower?

Licences and legal requirements in Canada

Equipment on this job that needs a licence, ticket or training:

  • Skid steer: Provincial operator training

Employers must identify hazards before work starts and control them, and workers must be told about them. A field level hazard assessment is done on site, at the start of each shift or task, and reviewed again when conditions change.

Rules that apply: Provincial OHS regulation, silica exposure limits.

Why FLHAs get rejected

Prime contractors and COR auditors send documents back for these reasons. This example avoids them, but check yours too.

  • End of shift boxes already say "None" when the form was signed at the start of the shift.
  • One FLHA reused for days or weeks, or a "review by" date a month away, when the work and conditions change daily.
  • No time of assessment and no record of any revision, which Alberta s.7(3) requires.
  • Workers signed that they "read" it, but nothing shows they took part, which Alberta s.8(1) requires.
  • Work at height with no fall protection plan where the province requires one, or no written rescue procedure for workers using fall arrest.
  • Permits or locates required on site but no permit or ticket numbers recorded.
  • No re-assessment entry after an obvious change such as weather, a new task or a new crew member.

Rules by province for paving

Province or territoryKey local ruleRegulator
OntarioFall protection (O. Reg. 213/91 s.26) applies at a fall of more than 3 m, more than 1.2 m where the work area is used as a path for a wheelbarrow or similar equipment, and at any height into operating machinery, water or other liquid, a hazardous substance, or through an opening.Ontario Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development
British ColumbiaFall protection is required where a fall of 3 m or more may occur (s.11.2). A written fall protection plan is required at 7.5 m or more where there are no permanent guardrails (s.11.3).WorkSafeBC
AlbertaA hazard assessment must be done before work begins, and before a new work site is built (OHS Code s.7(1)). The results must be written down with the controls (s.7(2)).Alberta Occupational Health and Safety
QuebecGuardrails (Safety Code s.2.9.1, as amended by Decret 63-2025) are needed where a worker could fall into liquid or a hazardous substance, onto moving parts or dangerous equipment, 1.2 m or more when using a vehicle, 1.5 m or more when handling a load, and more than 3 m in all other cases.CNESST (Commission des normes, de l'equite, de la sante et de la securite du travail)
ManitobaA prime contractor is required whenever more than one employer or self employed person works on the site at the same time (Act s.7).Manitoba Workplace Safety and Health Branch
SaskatchewanAn occupational health committee is required at 10 or more workers of one employer (Act s.3-22).Saskatchewan Ministry of Labour Relations and Workplace Safety, OHS Division
Nova ScotiaWorkers must be trained in fall protection before using it or working in, supervising or planning work in a fall protection area, with a refresher at least every 3 years (WHSR s.21.19).Nova Scotia Department of Labour, Skills and Immigration, Safety Branch (OHS)
New BrunswickFall protection is needed from 3 m above water or the nearest permanent safe level (Reg 91-191 s.49(1)(a)(i)).WorkSafeNB
Newfoundland and LabradorGive written notice to the minister before starting a construction project that will last 30 days or more, with the site, location, type of work and number of workers (Regs s.8).Government Services, Occupational Health and Safety Division
Prince Edward IslandFall protection is needed from 3 m above the nearest safe surface or water (Fall Protection Regulations s.2(1)(a)).Workers Compensation Board of PEI, OHS Division
YukonEvery employer must do hazard assessments with the committee, representative or workers, and redo them after significant changes or incidents (Regs s.1.03.01).Yukon Workers' Safety and Compensation Board
Northwest TerritoriesFall protection is needed from 3 m, or lower if there is a risk of injury (s.119(1)). Guardrails are needed for falls of 1.2 m to 3 m at permanent work sites (s.119(2)).Workers' Safety and Compensation Commission (WSCC)
NunavutNo 911. To reach the RCMP in an emergency, dial your community's first three digits then 1111 (Iqaluit: 979-1111). Put the local fire, ambulance and RCMP numbers on every FLHA.Workers' Safety and Compensation Commission (WSCC)

Questions

Do I need an FLHA for paving?

Provincial OHS law requires hazards to be assessed and controlled before work starts. A field level hazard assessment (FLHA) for paving is done on site at the start of the shift and again whenever conditions change.

Who signs the FLHA?

The supervisor and every worker take part in the assessment and sign on before work starts, then sign off at the end of the shift. Review it and re-sign whenever the task or conditions change.

How long do I keep it?

Keep completed hazard assessments for at least 3 years (COR auditors sample the last 12 months). Review this FLHA and re-sign whenever the task, crew or conditions change.

What PPE is needed for paving?

Usually CSA green triangle safety boots (CSA Z195), Knee pads, Safety glasses (CSA Z94.3), N95 respirator, Hearing protection, Sun protection (sunscreen, hat, long sleeves), High-visibility vest (CSA Z96), Hard hat (CSA Z94.1), Work gloves, Respirator fit tested to CSA Z94.4 (P100 for dust, or the type the air test calls for). The site rules may add more, so check with the general contractor.

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Related jobs in other trades

Excavation and earthworksTrenchingAlso involves hitting underground services

Toolbox talks for this job

Toolbox talkSilica DustToolbox talkHearing Protection and NoiseToolbox talkHand-Arm VibrationToolbox talkHeat Stress

Blank FLHA template: free FLHA templates. Also for other countries: Australia (SWMS) · United Kingdom (RAMS) · United States (JHA)

Sources