Hazard assessment

A written look at the tasks in your workplace to find what could hurt someone, how likely and serious it is, and how you will control it.

Also called: risk assessment, job hazard analysis, hazard identification

What hazard assessment means

A hazard assessment is a structured look at the work done in your business to find anything that could cause injury or illness, judge how likely and how serious the harm could be, and decide how to control it. A hazard is anything with the potential to cause harm: a hot fryer, a ladder, a chemical, lifting heavy boxes, working alone at night, or an aggressive customer.

It is the foundation of most safety programs. Training, procedures, protective equipment and policies only make sense once you know what the hazards are. It is also one of the first records an inspector may ask for, and a key part of showing due diligence.

Hazard assessments are often required by law, either in general or for specific hazards. New Brunswick, for example, requires every employer to do a risk assessment for workplace violence, and Alberta's violence and harassment prevention plans must include measures to eliminate or control those hazards.

How it works

Break the work into jobs and tasks. For a café, that might be opening, food prep, using the espresso machine, cleaning the grill, taking out garbage, handling cash and closing. Walk through each task with the people who do it. Ask what could go wrong and what nearly has gone wrong before.

Rate each hazard. A simple way is to score how likely the harm is and how serious it would be, then focus first on the hazards that are both likely and serious. Write down who could be affected and how often the task happens.

Choose controls in order of effectiveness. Best is to eliminate the hazard (stop doing the task, buy pre-cut produce). Next, substitute something less dangerous (a safer cleaner). Then engineering controls (guards, ventilation, a lift table), then administrative controls (procedures, training, rotation, two-person rules), and finally personal protective equipment such as gloves or safety glasses. Most hazards need a mix.

Keep it alive. Share the results with the workers who do the tasks, and review the assessment when you add equipment, change a process, after an incident or near miss, and on a regular schedule. Common mistakes are copying a generic template that does not match your work, never asking workers, and doing it once and filing it away.

Hazard assessment by province

Most provinces require some form of hazard or risk assessment, but the triggers, format and review schedule differ.

We are still confirming each province's general hazard assessment rule for this page; check with your provincial safety regulator.

Find your provincial or territorial office under official sources.

Example: A hazard assessment for a small café

Nadia owns a café in Halifax with 6 staff. She and her two longest-serving baristas list every task in a day and the hazards in each: burns at the espresso machine and oven, cuts while slicing, a slippery floor behind the counter, lifting milk crates, and closing alone after dark.

They rate the hot surfaces and the wet floor as most likely and the solo close as most serious. Nadia adds anti-slip mats and a mop routine, heat-resistant gloves at the oven, a two-crate limit per lift, and a rule that two people close. She writes it all on a two-page assessment, goes through it with each new hire, and puts a reminder in her calendar to review it every six months.

Onboarding checklists in Staffkin

Add a walk-through of your hazard assessment to a Staffkin onboarding checklist so each new hire learns the hazards in their own job.

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Free tools and guides for this

Questions about hazard assessment

Is a hazard assessment the same as a risk assessment?

They are closely related. A hazard assessment finds what could cause harm; a risk assessment rates how likely and serious that harm is. Most small-business forms do both at once.

Do I need to write my hazard assessment down?

Write it down. Some provinces require a written assessment, and a written record is the easiest way to show due diligence. Keep it with your safety records.

How often should I update it?

When work changes, after any incident or near miss, and on a regular schedule. Check whether your province sets a specific review period.

Official sources

General information for Canadian employers, not legal advice. Rules differ by province and territory and change over time, so check with your provincial employment standards office (or the federal Labour Program if you are federally regulated) before you rely on it. See employment standards by province.

Checked against official sources on 4 November 2026.