Warehouse safety: free online awareness course for New Zealand workers
For people on foot around forklifts: walkways and crossings, racking damage, loading docks and speaking up. Free to study. Not forklift operator training.
About 44 min
5 short modules
15 questions
85% to pass
About this course
Warehouses and distribution centres put people on foot in the same aisles as forklifts, stackers, pallet jacks and trucks. This course is for pickers, packers, storepeople, dispatch and receiving staff, temps and team leaders who work around that equipment. It covers staying clear of moving plant, reporting racking and load problems, and keeping safe at the loading dock.
It is not forklift operator training. It does not teach you to drive or operate any machine, and passing it gives you no right to use one. Operator training is a separate course with practical tests, and your employer must train you and authorise you before you use its machines. Your site induction and your site's traffic rules always come first.
You can study and sit the assessment free, with no account. WorkSafe publishes free guidance on work site traffic and pallet racking, linked on this page. Pay only if you pass and want our certificate.
What you will learn
Keep yourself clear of forklifts and other mobile plant, including at crossings, in blind spots and under raised loads, following your site's traffic rules
Recognise racking damage, unstable loads and falling object risks, and report them straight away
Describe the controls that stop trucks and trailers moving during loading, and how to stay safe near dock edges and reversing trucks
Explain why you should not use a pallet jack, walkie stacker or forklift until your employer has trained you and allowed you to
Report near misses and use your right to stop work that puts someone at serious risk
Who this course is for
New pickers, packers and storepeople in warehouses and distribution centres
Dispatch and receiving staff who work at loading docks
Temps and labour hire workers starting at a new site
Team leaders who supervise people working around forklifts and other mobile plant
How the course works
1. Forklifts and people on footKeeping people and moving plant apart, crossing safely, blind spots, raised loads, speed and the site traffic plan.About 8 min, ending with a quick check
2. Racking, loads and falling objectsHow racking and loads hurt people, reading the load sign, what damage to report, staying out from under work at height, and safe pallets.About 6 min, ending with a quick check
3. Loading docks and trucksWho controls the loading zone, stopping trucks and trailers moving, dock edges, reversing trucks, visiting drivers and containers.About 6 min, ending with a quick check
4. Pallet jacks, walkie stackers and other plantWhy smaller machines are still mobile plant, who must train you, the hazards to watch for on foot, and reporting faults. Awareness only.About 5 min, ending with a quick check
5. Reporting, stopping work and who paysReporting near misses, your duties in plain terms, stopping work that is seriously unsafe, protection for speaking up, and who pays for training.About 5 min, ending with a quick check
Sit the assessment15 questions drawn at random. You need 85% to pass, and there is no time limit. If you do not pass, you will see which topics to review, then try again with a new set of questions.Free, and so are retries
If you pass, the certificate is your choiceYou pay once, then get the PDF straight away and a copy by email. Your place is saved on this device the whole way, with no sign-up.NZ$24.90, optional
Sample. Yours shows your name, the course, the date and an ID anyone can check.
What this certificate does and does not show
It is not forklift operator training, an operator certificate or an F endorsement on a driver licence. The 1995 code of practice that WorkSafe publishes says an operator certificate is issued only after an instructor is satisfied the person has passed theory and practical tests.
It gives you no right to drive or operate any plant, including forklifts, reach trucks, walkie stackers and powered or manual pallet jacks. Your employer must make sure you are trained on its equipment, and it decides whether you may use it.
It does not replace your site induction or your employer's traffic management plan. Where your site's rules differ from this course, follow your site's rules and ask your supervisor.
It is not a qualification, and a pass does not show that a business has met its health and safety duties.
A business must not charge workers for anything done or provided for health and safety. If your employer requires workplace health and safety training, ask whether they provide or fund it before purchasing this optional certificate. This awareness course does not replace workplace-specific training or induction.
Is this a forklift licence or operator certificate?
No. It is awareness training for people on foot. It has no practical part, does not teach you to drive or operate anything, and is not an F endorsement. The 1995 code of practice on forklift training says an operator certificate is issued only after theory and practical tests, and that nobody should operate a forklift without their employer's authorisation.
Does a car driver licence mean I can drive a forklift at work?
No. The 1995 code says holding a driver licence is not enough evidence that a person is qualified to operate a forklift. Your employer has to make sure you are trained in the plant you use, and for forklifts the code says operators need their employer's authorisation.
My employer or agency wants me to do warehouse safety training. Should I pay for it?
Ask first. A business must not charge workers for anything done or provided for health and safety. If your employer requires workplace health and safety training, ask whether they provide or fund it before purchasing this optional certificate. You can study and sit our assessment free, and the certificate is optional at NZ$24.90.
Does this replace my site induction?
No. Every site has its own routes, speed limits, crossings, dock procedures and emergency plans. WorkSafe says site inductions should cover these, and that workers should be shown how to apply the traffic management plan. Use this course to understand why the rules exist, and follow your site's version.
Can I learn about this free from WorkSafe instead?
Yes, in part. WorkSafe publishes free guidance on managing work site traffic, safe reversing and spotting, and pallet racking, and two of these are linked on this page. They are guides written mainly for businesses rather than courses, but team leaders may find them especially useful.
Official sources behind this course
The lessons are original summaries of these sources. For your own situation, the source is what counts.
Version 1.2.1, last checked 2026-11-03. Approved for publication by our editor on 2026-11-09. Not reviewed by an external professional. How we check our content.
Spot what makes a manual task risky, report it early and know what better controls look like. Drawn from WorkSafe guidance. Not lifting technique or moving people.
Your rights and duties under New Zealand's Health and Safety at Work Act: reporting hazards, stopping unsafe work, HSRs, PPE, and the changes from 1 April 2027.
38 min
5 modules
Free to study
Certificate NZ$24.90if you pass
View course
Passed 2 or more courses? Buy their certificates together and pay 20% less.
