What Should a Field-Level Hazard Assessment Form Include in Alberta?

You need a field-level hazard assessment form your crews will actually fill out, and the templates you find online all look different. Some run one page, some run five, and none of them explain which fields are there for a reason and which are filler. Here is what belongs on the form, and why.

Start with what Alberta's OHS Code asks for

Section 7 of Alberta's OHS Code requires employers to assess a work site and identify existing or potential hazards before work begins, then prepare a written report showing the results and the methods used to eliminate or control those hazards. Section 8 requires involving workers in that process where it is reasonably practicable. Section 9 sets the order of controls: eliminate the hazard if you can, then engineering controls, then administrative controls, then personal protective equipment as the last option.

The Code does not prescribe a form layout. What it requires is a written record of what was found and what was done about it, which is exactly what an FLHA produces. The form also sits inside your larger hazard assessment and control process, and inside your overall safety program.

The fields that belong on every form

Ten fields cover it for most construction and trades work:

1. Header. Company, project, date, time, supervisor, and who completed the assessment.
2. Task description. The work being done on this shift, in plain language. Not the whole project scope.
3. Hazards, seen and prompted. Two parts: open space for what the worker actually sees, and a checkbox list grouped by category so the obvious ones don't get missed — physical (slips and trips, ground conditions, overhead powerlines, working at heights, traffic, defective tools), ergonomic, chemical, biological, and psychosocial (fatigue, working alone).
4. Risk rating. Severity times likelihood, three levels each. Minor first aid, medical treatment, or lost time and worse on one axis; unlikely, may happen, or highly likely on the other.
5. Controls. One line per hazard, written as a specific action. Tie it to the hierarchy of controls — what was removed, what guard or barrier was added, what procedure changed, what PPE is left over.
6. PPE and inspection. What is required for this task, and whether it was checked.
7. Emergency details. Location of first aid supplies, the muster point, and a check-in procedure for anyone working alone.
8. Sign-off. Printed name, signature, time and initials for every affected worker, plus supervisor or worksite representative sign-off. State on the form that all affected parties sign off before work begins.
9. Re-entry line. Space to record the time and initial when a crew returns to a task after leaving, confirming no new hazards are present.
10. Close-out. Was the area cleaned up, were materials stored, did anything happen, and if so, what?

Worth adding where it applies to your work: lockout confirmation for defective tools or equipment, and a record that nearby workers were notified of hazards that could affect them.

Keep the form usable

Design decisions matter more than field count. Keep it to one page, front and back. Put checkboxes before open text so a crew can move quickly in the cold and you get something you can audit. Use plain language, because "what could go wrong?" is a better prompt than "hazard identification."

Prompt for hazards specific to your operations. Alberta's guidance expects employers to assess hazards relevant to their work even where the Code does not name them, and it uses extreme temperatures and work-related fatigue as examples. Make sure the form matches your other documentation too, so an FLHA, a hazard assessment and a worksite inspection don't each use a different risk scale.

Where forms go wrong

Three common failures. A generic hazard list with nowhere to write what the worker actually sees. A risk rating that never changes a decision (if no control follows from the score, drop the column). No re-entry line, so a form filled out at 7 a.m. is being used to cover a lift at 3 p.m.

The form is also half the job. Crews need to be shown how to fill it out and what to do when conditions change mid-task, which is where safety training and a short field reference help more than a longer form does.

If you would rather not build this from scratch, Salient Health & Safety builds field-level hazard assessment forms and the safety programs they belong to for construction and trades employers across Alberta, and trains crews to use them consistently. If your form exists but nobody fills it out properly, that is worth a conversation too. Book a free discovery call and we will look at what you have.

Frequently asked questions

Does Alberta's OHS Code require a specific FLHA form?

No. The Code requires employers to assess a work site, identify existing or potential hazards before work begins, and prepare a written report of the results and the methods used to control or eliminate those hazards. It does not prescribe a form or a field list, so you can design yours around the work you do.

Who should sign a field-level hazard assessment?

Every affected worker, plus the supervisor or worksite representative. Good practice is to capture printed name, signature, time and initials, and to state on the form that all affected parties sign off before work begins.

What hazards should the checkbox list cover?

Group them by category: physical hazards such as slips and trips, ground conditions, overhead powerlines, working at heights and traffic; ergonomic; chemical; biological; and psychosocial ones like fatigue and working alone. The checkbox list supports the open space where a worker writes what they actually see, it does not replace it.

How do you get crews to actually fill the form out?

Keep it to one page front and back, put checkboxes before open text, and use plain language prompts. Then train crews on how to complete it and what to do when conditions change mid-task, rather than relying on a longer, more detailed form.