What The Model Code Recommends

The ratios are a practical starting point after the workplace has identified the maximum workers present at one time. Round up whenever the workforce is not an exact multiple of the ratio.

Low Risk, High Risk And Remote High Risk

A low-risk workplace is one where workers are less likely to encounter hazards that could cause serious injury or illness. Offices, shops and libraries are examples, and injuries requiring first aid are likely to be minor.

A high-risk workplace exposes workers to hazards that could cause serious injury or illness requiring first aid. Examples include hazardous machinery or substances, serious fall risks, confined spaces, welding, demolition, electrical work, abrasive blasting, physical violence, cash handling with aggressive customers and extreme heat or cold.

For the remote high-risk 1:10 recommendation, both tests apply: the work is high risk and workers do not have timely access to medical and ambulance services. Remote or isolated work under the model framework is a related, wider concept and can arise because of location, time or the nature of the work—even in a city late at night. Remote does not simply mean outside a capital city, and a low-risk office does not become remote high risk solely because it is regional.

If the work profile is mixed, assess the higher-risk operations and whether first aid can reach them promptly. The example calculation should not average a factory and an office into a fictional middle category.

Apply The Result In Your Australian Jurisdiction

The calculator uses the national model Code as a consistent planning baseline. That is not the same as saying the model Code is automatically the law in every workplace. The Commonwealth, states and territories make and enforce their own work health and safety laws. The model WHS laws have been implemented in every jurisdiction except Victoria, and adopting jurisdictions can make local variations.

A model Code has legal effect only after it is approved in a jurisdiction. An approved code is not legislation, but can be admissible in court and may be used as evidence of what was known about a hazard, risk or control. Other ways of meeting a duty may be available if they provide an equivalent or higher standard. Victoria operates under its own occupational health and safety framework, so Victorian users should treat this result as a planning comparison and verify local requirements directly.

Use the jurisdiction selector to make that verification step visible in the result. Then open Safe Work Australia’s official regulator directory and confirm the current code, law, guidance, industry rules and any special requirements with the regulator responsible for the workplace. Mining, petroleum, maritime, aviation and Commonwealth employment can involve a different or additional regulator.

Coverage Across Shifts, Leave And Locations

The ratio result estimates how many trained first aiders should be available for the maximum simultaneous workforce. It is not necessarily the number of people to train. Rosters must remain covered when a first aider is on leave, sick, working elsewhere, attending training or unable to reach the incident.

Multiple shifts need coverage whenever those workers are present. Split buildings, locked areas, large sites, secure zones and floors can make a mathematically adequate first aider inaccessible. Mobile workers such as couriers, drivers, inspectors and sales representatives can work alone or in changing locations and need specific communication, kit and emergency arrangements.

Calculate independently active sites and shifts separately

Do not combine separate workplaces into one convenient headcount if a first aider at one location cannot promptly reach the other. A business with 30 workers at a workshop and 30 at a distant depot is not automatically covered by calculating 60 workers once. Start with each independently operating location, work group or shift, then assess travel time, gates, lifts, access controls, communications and the likely injuries. A shared first aider only helps when access is genuinely prompt during the whole period of work.

The model Code does not create a universal rule to train exactly one spare person. Build resilience from the actual roster. If the calculation says two must be accessible on a shift, training only two people creates an obvious gap whenever either is absent. Larger, high-risk, remote, seasonal and seven-day operations commonly need a wider trained pool so the required coverage survives leave, turnover, training days and incident response.

Document which first aider covers each work area and shift, how workers contact them, where kits and facilities are, who maintains equipment and how emergency services will be called and guided to the casualty.

First Aid Kit Requirements

All workers must be able to access a first aid kit, which requires at least one kit at the workplace. The model Code does not prescribe one kit for every fixed number of workers. The risk assessment determines the number, contents and locations needed for prompt access.

A basic kit covers common injuries such as cuts, grazes, splinters, sprains, minor burns, major bleeding, eye injuries and shock. Add equipment for identified hazards. Outdoor work may require a snake-bite bandage and sting supplies; remote work may require heavy crepe bandaging, clean sheeting, a thermal blanket, whistle and torch; burn or hazardous-chemical risks may require dedicated modules, eyewash or emergency shower facilities.

Place kits close to higher-risk areas. The model Code recommends at least one kit on every second floor of a multistorey workplace and a portable kit in a mobile worker’s vehicle when that vehicle is their workplace. These are guidance points, not substitutes for the access test. Kits should be identifiable, protected from dust and damage, restocked after use and checked at least every 12 months when unused. Use the First Aid Kit Checklist Australia for source-labelled item planning, risk modules and a printable restock audit.

When A First Aid Room Is Recommended

A first aid room should be established where the risk assessment indicates it would otherwise be difficult to administer first aid. The model Code recommends a dedicated room for low-risk workplaces with 200 or more workers and high-risk workplaces with 100 or more workers.

The threshold does not remove the broader risk test. A smaller workplace with foreseeable serious injuries may benefit from a room, while a room alone does not solve first aider coverage, kit access or emergency communication.

The room should suit workplace hazards and allow easy movement of an injured person, including stretcher or wheelchair access. The Code describes an appropriate kit, hand hygiene, examination furniture and lighting, storage, seating, communications, emergency contacts, privacy, nearby hot and cold water and toilets, ventilation, signage and a floor area of about 14 square metres as a guide.

Remote, Isolated And Delayed-Assistance Work

Distance from ambulance services, hospitals and medical centres affects the arrangements. If life-threatening injuries or illnesses are foreseeable and timely emergency help cannot be assured, the Code says more advanced training—for example oxygen capability—should be considered.

Remote planning can include reliable communications, location procedures, weather and road constraints, aerial evacuation, extra kit modules and monitoring a casualty for longer. The current HLTAID course selector compares general, remote, advanced, oxygen-equipment and management units, but the employer and RTO must confirm the required code.

Lone and isolated workers need a safe system of work and effective communication. A kit in a distant depot is not accessible to a worker hours away in a vehicle or field location.

Real-World Australian Planning Scenarios

Frequently Asked Questions

How many first aiders does an Australian workplace need?

The Safe Work Australia model Code recommends one first aider for every 50 workers in a low-risk workplace, every 25 workers in a high-risk workplace and every 10 workers in a remote high-risk workplace. These are starting recommendations within a risk assessment, not one universal statutory formula.

Do I round the first aider number up?

Yes for planning against a ratio. A remainder means another first aider is needed to cover those workers. Then check shifts, leave, multiple locations and access, which can make the practical number higher.

Is one first aider enough for a small workplace?

A ratio calculation can return one, but the PCBU must still ensure first aiders are accessible whenever workers work. Leave, travel, split sites, isolated work, night shifts and hazardous tasks can require more coverage.

Does every workplace need a first aid room?

No. A room should be established where the risk assessment indicates first aid would otherwise be difficult. The model Code recommends a room for low-risk workplaces with 200 or more workers and high-risk workplaces with 100 or more workers.

How many first aid kits are required?

All workers must be able to access a first aid kit, requiring at least one kit at the workplace. The number and location must suit floors, buildings, vehicles, remote work, access time and hazards; the Code does not give one kit-per-worker ratio.

What makes a workplace high risk?

High-risk workplaces expose workers to hazards that could cause serious injury or illness requiring first aid, such as hazardous machinery or substances, serious fall risks, confined spaces, welding, electrical work, violence or extreme heat and cold.

What is a remote high-risk workplace?

For the model Code’s 1:10 recommendation, it is a high-risk workplace with no timely access to medical and ambulance services. Remote or isolated work is a related, broader concept that can arise because of location, time or the nature of the work.

Does the Safe Work Australia model Code apply as law everywhere?

Safe Work Australia develops model guidance and is not the regulator. Check whether the model Code has legal effect in the relevant Commonwealth, state or territory jurisdiction and follow any local requirements.

Do contractors and volunteers count as workers?

When considering workforce size, the model Code says to include contractors, subcontractors and volunteers engaged by the business, and to account for workforce numbers varying over time.

Can a health professional replace workplace first aid arrangements?

A health centre staffed by an appropriate practitioner can be part of workplace arrangements, but the PCBU still needs accessible equipment, facilities, procedures and coverage suited to the risk assessment and working hours.