Because what happens on paper is not always what happens on the worksite.
Every day, Work Health and Safety (WHS) professionals work to protect people.
They conduct risk assessments, deliver toolbox talks, develop safe work procedures, display safety posters, provide training and continually remind workers of the importance of working safely.
Yet despite these efforts, workplace incidents and injuries still occur.
And when something goes wrong, one of the first questions asked is:
“Where was WHS?”
But perhaps we should be asking a different question.
“Were we seeing how the work was actually being performed?”
The Gap Between Safety Procedures and Everyday Practice
Every workplace develops its own habits.
A worker might lift equipment the same way for ten years. Another might repeatedly bend, twist or reach awkwardly to complete a task. Someone else may manoeuvre equipment across uneven ground or take a shortcut because it is quicker and has become routine.
These practices are not necessarily deliberate disregard for safety.
Sometimes workers simply become accustomed to the way things have always been done.
A task becomes familiar. A movement becomes automatic. An unsafe practice becomes normal.
And because nothing has gone wrong yet, the risk may remain unrecognised.
But familiarity does not make a task safe.
A procedure may clearly describe the correct way to perform a task, while the reality on the worksite tells a very different story.
And that difference matters.
It matters to the WHS professional trying to prevent an injury.
It matters to the employer trying to understand workplace risks.
And it matters to the Injury Management Advisor or Return-to-Work Coordinator trying to identify what duties an injured worker can safely perform.
Because the gap between how work is documented and how it is actually performed can influence injury prevention, injury management and recovery at work.
WHS Cannot Be Everywhere at Once
Safety is a shared responsibility across an organisation.
WHS professionals provide guidance, develop risk-management frameworks, support training and work with employers and employees to improve workplace safety.
But even the most experienced WHS professional cannot observe every worker, every movement, every interaction with equipment or every changing condition across a worksite.
And while organisations may have comprehensive safety procedures, the challenge is often understanding whether those procedures reflect everyday work practices.
Workers may develop shortcuts. Equipment may be used differently from its intended purpose. Tasks may involve more bending, reaching, repetitive movement or physical exertion than originally anticipated.
Over time, these practices can become part of the workplace routine.
Traditional risk assessments, inspections, toolbox talks and worker consultation remain essential.
But what if we could provide WHS professionals with something more?
Not another checklist.
Not another poster.
Not another report based solely on how a task is supposed to be performed.
What if technology could help us see how work is actually being carried out?
Introducing a Different Perspective: AI-Powered Workplace Risk Intelligence
This is where MAKAL Independent Workplace Analysis & Workers Compensation Advisory is taking a different approach.
By combining extensive industry experience with advanced technology, MAKAL aims to provide employers and WHS professionals with an additional layer of workplace risk intelligence.
Through technology-assisted visual analysis, workplace activities can be examined to identify potential risks that may not always be apparent through traditional assessments or written task descriptions.
Depending on the available technology and the scope of an assessment, observations may include:
- Posture and body positioning: Awkward, sustained or repetitive postures that may contribute to musculoskeletal risk.
- Manual handling: How workers lift, lower, push, pull, reach and carry objects during normal operations.
- Equipment interaction: How tools, machinery and other equipment are handled and used in practice.
- Worksite conditions: Uneven surfaces, restricted working areas, obstacles and other visible environmental hazards.
- Repetitive work activities: Movement patterns and physical task demands that may warrant closer examination.
- Established workplace habits: Work practices that have become routine despite potentially introducing unnecessary risk.
The objective is not to criticise workers or replace WHS professionals.
It is to provide another perspective on the risks that may exist within everyday workplace activities.
Because understanding how work is actually performed is just as important as understanding how it should be performed.
From Workplace Observation to Actionable Risk Intelligence
Imagine being able to review worksite activities and receive a structured report identifying potential areas of concern.
Rather than relying solely on written procedures, scheduled inspections or information gathered after an incident, employers could gain additional evidence of how workplace tasks are being performed.
MAKAL’s approach brings technology-assisted observations together with professional analysis to support a more informed understanding of workplace risk.
Such reporting may assist organisations to:
- Identify potential hazards and unsafe work practices.
- Review existing risk assessments and control measures.
- Recognise patterns of repetitive or physically demanding activity.
- Identify opportunities to improve work design, equipment use and task allocation.
- Support targeted safety discussions with workers and supervisors.
- Strengthen early intervention and injury prevention strategies.
Technology can assist in identifying potential concerns, but those observations must still be interpreted in context.
Workplace conditions, operational demands, worker consultation and professional judgement remain essential.
The intention is not to create another layer of paperwork.
It is to provide meaningful workplace intelligence that helps employers and WHS professionals make better-informed decisions.
And importantly, the value of this information does not necessarily end with injury prevention.
Beyond Injury Prevention: Supporting Injury Management and Return to Work
What happens when a worker has already sustained an injury?
For Injury Management Advisors, Return-to-Work Coordinators, rehabilitation providers and employers, one of the ongoing challenges is understanding the actual physical demands of a worker’s role.
A position description might refer to manual handling, equipment operation, repetitive tasks or general operational duties.
But what does that actually look like during an ordinary working day?
How frequently is the worker lifting?
At what height are they reaching?
How often are they bending, twisting, pushing or pulling?
Are they working on uneven ground, operating equipment in confined areas or performing repetitive movements over extended periods?
And perhaps most importantly:
Are there other duties within the same workplace that could reasonably accommodate an injured worker’s current functional capacity?
These are the practical questions that matter when developing or refining an effective return-to-work plan.
And they are not always answered by a generic position description.
One Workplace Analysis, Multiple Benefits
The same workplace analysis undertaken to identify potential safety risks may also provide valuable information about the physical demands of existing tasks and other available duties.
Rather than viewing WHS, injury management and return to work as entirely separate processes, employers can use workplace observations to support a more connected approach.
For example, technology-assisted workplace analysis may help identify:
- Early intervention opportunities: Physical demands and work practices that may be contributing to discomfort or increasing the risk of injury, allowing employers to consider appropriate adjustments.
- Actual task demands: A clearer understanding of movements, postures, equipment use and workplace conditions relevant to an employee’s duties.
- Suitable duties options: Alternative or modified tasks within the workplace that may be appropriate for an injured worker.
- Return-to-work planning: Workplace information that can assist with developing duties aligned to the worker’s medically supported functional capacity and restrictions.
- Progressive recovery at work: Opportunities to review and adjust duties as the worker’s capacity changes, supporting a safe and sustainable return to productive employment.
This information may also assist communication between employers, treating practitioners, rehabilitation providers and return-to-work coordinators by providing a clearer description of what particular duties involve.
Importantly, technology does not determine medical fitness or replace professional assessment.
It provides additional workplace evidence to help inform decisions alongside medical advice, consultation and established injury management processes.
Suitable Duties Do Not Always Mean Office Duties
One area where detailed workplace analysis can make a meaningful difference is the identification of suitable duties.
When an employee is unable to immediately return to their pre-injury role, employers may consider administrative or office-based duties.
But what happens when those duties are unavailable, impractical or do not reflect the worker’s skills and operational environment?
Suitable duties do not always have to mean removing a worker from the environment they know.
Consider a worker whose normal role involves repetitive lifting, equipment operation or physically demanding tasks.
A workplace analysis may identify opportunities for selected inspections, quality checks, stock monitoring, modified operational activities or other productive duties within their existing worksite.
Likewise, a worker in aged care, disability services, emergency services, mining or another operational environment may have opportunities to undertake selected duties that accommodate their current restrictions without necessarily moving into a traditional office role.
Of course, not every task will be appropriate for every worker.
Any proposed duties must be assessed against medical restrictions, functional capacity, workplace conditions and the individual circumstances of the injury.
The objective is not simply to find a task to keep someone occupied.
It is to identify reasonable, safe and meaningful work that supports recovery while maintaining the worker’s connection to their workplace.
This is where understanding the real demands of a worksite can make a difference.
Better Workplace Information Can Support Better RTW Planning
A return-to-work plan should reflect more than a position title or a broad description of restrictions.
It should consider the actual demands of proposed duties, the worker’s current capacity, the working environment and the adjustments that may be reasonably available.
For example, a restriction relating to lifting may require a better understanding of load weights, frequency, lifting heights and associated movements.
A restriction relating to prolonged standing may require consideration of task duration, walking distances, available seating and opportunities to alternate activities.
Without this detail, employers may struggle to determine whether proposed duties are appropriate.
By providing additional information about actual workplace tasks, technology-assisted analysis can help employers and injury management professionals ask more informed questions, identify potential modifications and review the suitability of duties as recovery progresses.
It can also help identify circumstances where proposed work may involve demands that were not obvious from the written duties description.
The aim is not simply an earlier return to work. It is a safe, appropriate and sustainable return to work.
And that requires understanding both the worker’s capacity and the work they are being asked to perform.
Supporting WHS and Injury Management Professionals, Not Replacing Them
WHS professionals already undertake significant work to protect employees and strengthen workplace safety.
Likewise, Injury Management Advisors and Return-to-Work Coordinators regularly navigate complex decisions involving medical restrictions, operational requirements, suitable duties and recovery expectations.
The answer is not necessarily more forms, more generic assessments or more administrative processes.
It is access to relevant, reliable workplace information that can complement existing professional expertise.
AI-powered workplace risk intelligence has the potential to provide another perspective, helping professionals recognise hazards, understand task demands and identify opportunities that may otherwise be overlooked.
It does not replace worker consultation, medical guidance, established WHS processes or professional judgement.
Nor should observations from technology be treated as definitive without appropriate review and validation. Workplace imagery and recordings must also be handled in accordance with applicable privacy, consultation and confidentiality requirements.
Technology should support the people responsible for making informed decisions, not replace them.
For WHS professionals, that may mean better visibility of everyday workplace risks.
For Injury Management Advisors, it may mean a clearer understanding of actual job demands.
For Return-to-Work Coordinators, it may mean identifying suitable duties that were not immediately apparent.
And for workers, it may contribute to safer work practices and more practical recovery-at-work arrangements.
The MAKAL Approach: Technology Meets Human Experience
MAKAL is built on the understanding that workplace safety, injury management and workers’ compensation are closely connected.
While the business is new, the experience behind it is not.
With almost 20 years of industry experience spanning Commonwealth, State and Local Government, private industry, self-insured organisations and diverse operational environments, MAKAL brings practical knowledge of workplace risk, complex workers’ compensation matters, injury management and return-to-work challenges.
Through the combination of advanced technology and human experience, MAKAL aims to assist employers in gaining a more informed understanding of workplace activities, identifying potential risks and making practical decisions that support both their operations and their people.
Because the best time to understand a workplace risk is before someone gets hurt.
And when an injury has already occurred, that same understanding can help employers make better-informed decisions about recovery, suitable duties and a safe return to work.
Perhaps it is time to move beyond asking whether a safety procedure exists and start asking whether we truly understand how the work is being performed.
One workplace analysis. Greater visibility of risk. Better-informed injury management. More practical return-to-work opportunities.
MAKAL Independent Workplace Analysis & Workers Compensation Advisory
Bringing technology, workplace intelligence and human experience together to support safer workplaces and sustainable recovery at work.