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Skid Steer Loader VOC Assessment Template

Check that each skid steer loader operator can do the job safely on your site, with your plant and attachments: knowledge questions, a practical observation and a clear, recorded outcome.

  • EquipmentSkid steer loader
  • TaskOperating a skid steer loader
  • DocumentsVOC assessment
  • FormatsWord (.docx), Excel (.xlsx), editable
  • CodeDOC-SKS-VOC
  • Version1.0 · 553 KB ZIP

About this document

A verification of competency (VOC) assessment checks that an operator can operate your skid steer loader safely in your workplace: your machine, your attachments, your site conditions and your rules. This template gives the assessor a structured way to do it, and a record that shows how the decision was made.

It combines knowledge questions with a marking guide, a practical observation checklist, the evidence the assessor should collect and safety-critical fail criteria, so one serious error means not yet competent, whatever the rest of the score. The assessor and the operator sign off the outcome, and the Excel VOC register tracks who has been assessed and when reassessment is due.

A VOC supports workplace competency verification. It does not replace a high risk work licence where one is required. Operators must hold any licence, training or site authorisation required for the plant and the site.

Who it is for

  • Supervisors and leading hands who sign off skid steer loader operators
  • Civil, construction, landscaping and earthmoving businesses verifying their own operators
  • Labour hire and principal contractors checking operators before they start on site
  • Workplace assessors and trainers verifying operators for an employer

What it helps you do

  • Assess every operator against the same standard, on your own plant and site
  • Record the evidence behind each competent or not yet competent decision
  • Stop the assessment on a safety-critical error, whatever the rest of the score
  • Track who has been assessed, by whom, and when reassessment is due
  • Keep a clear record to show a principal contractor, client or auditor how operators were verified

What is included

Delivered as one ZIP download. The files below are editable, and every Word document also comes as a PDF. Each download also includes Read Me First, a Product Overview, the Permitted Use Terms and Version Information (PDF).

FileFormatWhat it is for
Skid Steer Loader VOC Assessment ToolWord (.docx)The assessor's tool: the practical observation checklist, evidence requirements, safety-critical fail criteria, the outcome and sign-off.
Skid Steer Loader VOC Knowledge Questions (Candidate)Word (.docx)The knowledge questions, for the person being assessed to answer.
Skid Steer Loader VOC Marking Guide (Assessor)Word (.docx)The expected answers and marking guidance, for the assessor only.
Skid Steer Loader VOC RegisterExcel (.xlsx)A register of everyone assessed: date, assessor, licence or authorisation sighted, outcome and when reassessment is due.

How the documents work together

The VOC checks an operator against your instruction for the task. The Skid Steer Loader Safety & Competency Pack includes this VOC with the safe work instruction it assesses against, a pre-start checklist and a supervisor field verification checklist for keeping ground workers clear.

Safe work instruction

Tells the operator what to do

The steps, hazards and controls for the task, written for the person doing it.

In the pack

VOC assessment

Checks they can do it

Verifies each operator against that same instruction, on your equipment, with evidence and a clear outcome.

Included

Pre-start checklist

Checks the equipment is fit to use

Every shift, before use, with clear do-not-operate criteria.

In the pack

Field verification

Checks the controls are working on site

A supervisor checks on the floor that the controls the instruction relies on are in place and effective.

In the pack

What supervisors find in the field feeds back into the instruction and the VOC.

Set it up for your site

Before first use, adapt the documents to:

  • Your equipment: make, model, capacity, attachments and any site-specific modifications
  • The manufacturer's operating instructions and data plate, which take priority over anything generic
  • Your site layout: traffic routes, pedestrian walkways, exclusion zones, loading areas and speed limits
  • Your local controls, procedures, emergency arrangements and reporting lines
  • Consult the workers who do the task, and your Health and Safety Representative if you have one
  • Review the documents after an incident, a near miss, new equipment or a change to the site

What you need

  • An assessor who is competent to operate the skid steer loader and to assess other operators
  • Any licence, training record or site authorisation the operator needs, sighted before the assessment
  • The plant, its attachments and the manufacturer's operating instructions
  • A safe part of your site where normal work can be observed

Before you use them

  • A VOC supports workplace competency verification. It does not replace a high risk work licence where one is required.
  • Operators must hold any licence, training or site authorisation required for the plant and the site.
  • The documents must be adapted to your equipment, the manufacturer's instructions, your site and your local controls before they are used.
  • Using them does not by itself make a workplace compliant with WHS or OHS laws. They support the work of managing the risk; they are not legal advice.

Questions about this document

Does an operator need a licence to operate a skid steer loader?

There is no national high risk work licence class for skid steer loaders, but operators must hold any licence, training or site authorisation required for the plant and the site. Some principal contractors and sites require a particular ticket or training record. A VOC supports workplace competency verification. It does not replace a high risk work licence where one is required.

Who should conduct the assessment?

Someone competent to operate the skid steer loader and to assess others: often an experienced supervisor, a WHS adviser or a workplace trainer and assessor. The template guides the assessment; it does not make the assessor competent.

How often should operators be reassessed?

Set the interval from your own risk assessment. Common triggers are new or different plant or attachments, a change to the site, an incident or near miss, unsafe practice seen in the field, and an operator returning after a long absence. The Excel VOC register tracks when each reassessment is due.

Is a skid steer a high risk licence?

No. There is no high risk work licence class for skid steer loaders under the model WHS Regulations, and Victoria's OHS Regulations do not license them either. The operator still needs the training, competency and any site authorisation the work requires. A VOC records that the operator can operate your skid steer safely.

Do you need a licence to use a skid steer with forks, an auger or other attachments?

Fitting a bucket, forks, an auger or another attachment does not by itself make it licensed work, but each attachment changes how the machine handles, so operators should be trained on the attachments they use. If it will lift suspended loads, check with your regulator what that lift needs. The VOC assesses the operator on your machine and the attachments you nominate.

Can we edit the documents?

Yes. Every document is supplied in Word (.docx) or Excel (.xlsx), so you can add your logo, change the wording and adapt it to your workplace. The copyright notice must stay.

Do we need to adapt them before use?

Yes. The documents must be adapted to your equipment, the manufacturer's instructions, your site and your local controls before they are used. The setup guide in the pack lists what to change.

Will these documents make us compliant?

No document can. Your duties are met by managing the risks in your actual workplace. Using them does not by itself make a workplace compliant with WHS or OHS laws. They support the work of managing the risk; they are not legal advice.

Is GST included in the price?

Yes. Every price in the store includes GST, so $69.00 is the total, including $6.27 GST. Your receipt is a tax invoice showing the GST.

How are the files delivered?

As a ZIP download. Card purchases can be downloaded straight away from the confirmation page and by a link we email you. Download links expire after 14 days for security; you can request a new one at any time.

Can we order by invoice, or for several sites?

Yes. Use Request an Invoice to order through your normal procurement process, with a purchase order number and quantities if you need them. The files are released once payment is confirmed.

Can we use them at more than one site?

Yes, across your own organisation. The documents are licensed for internal use by the purchasing organisation. A consultant, labour hire business or training provider supplying them to clients needs separate written permission.

Can we use them outside Australia?

They are written for Australian workplaces and refer to Australian WHS and OHS laws and licences. A business elsewhere should replace those references with its own country's requirements. Everything is editable for that.

What is your refund policy?

Your rights under the Australian Consumer Law are not affected. See the Refund Policy for how we handle a document that is faulty, not as described, or not what you ordered.

Licence and legal information here is general. It may not be correct in your jurisdiction: please check with your local WHS or OHS regulator.

Ordering for a business or several sites? Request an invoice. Other questions: contact us.

Goes well with

Start with a toolbox talk to brief the crew on the hazard, then use the safe work instruction, the VOC and the field verification checklist to set and check the controls.

Mobile Equipment and Vehicle Interaction Awareness

For: Workers on sites with forklifts, trucks, loaders or light vehiclesDuration: 20–30 minutes

For anyone who works around forklifts, trucks, loaders or utes: how people are hit by mobile equipment, and the habits that keep pedestrians and machines apart.

What's included
  • Editable slides with speaker notes, plus PDF
  • Facilitator guide and participant handout
  • Multiple-choice assessment with answer key
  • Attendance record form and certificate template

Workplace Traffic Management Awareness

For: All workersDuration: 20–30 minutes

For everyone on a site with vehicle movements, including delivery drivers and visitors: the traffic management plan, site layout and rules that keep people and vehicles apart.

What's included
  • Editable slides with speaker notes, plus PDF
  • Facilitator guide and participant handout
  • Multiple-choice assessment with answer key
  • Attendance record form and certificate template

Separating people from mobile plant is a common critical control. To manage it as one, with performance standards and field verification across the business, see the Critical Control Management series.

Related documents

Skid Steer Loader Safety & Competency Pack

For: Businesses that run skid steer loaders

Safe work instruction, VOC assessment, pre-start checklist and a supervisor field verification checklist for skid steer and ground worker separation, written to work together.

What's included
  • Skid Steer Loader safe work instruction
  • Skid Steer Loader VOC assessment, with an Excel VOC register
  • Pre-start checklist and supervisor field verification checklist
  • Setup guide: what to adapt for your site

Skid Steer Loader Safe Work Instruction Template

For: Owners, supervisors and WHS advisers

The safe work instruction from the pack, on its own: the steps, hazards and controls, stop points, emergencies and sign-off, in editable Word.

What's included
  • Step-by-step instruction with clear stop points
  • Hazards and controls, most effective first
  • Emergencies, consultation, approval and review
  • Operator acknowledgement, plus a setup note

Skid Steer Loader Field Verification Checklist

For: Supervisors, managers and WHS advisers

The supervisor's field verification checklist from the pack, on its own: checks on site that the controls for the work are in place and working.

What's included
  • Checks marked Pass, Not met or N/A, with the evidence seen
  • Critical controls marked, with same-shift escalation
  • Questions for the people doing the work
  • Actions, owners, due dates and sign-off, plus a setup note