Railway industry worker competence

Railway industry worker competence

RIW

As the accredited rail transport operator for the CRN, UGLRL must take all necessary measures to ensure that any individual who is carrying out rail safety work has the required competencies and qualifications. 


To meet these obligations UGLRL must have in place a system of identification and competency management, which includes a profile of rail safety work and a system for recording the qualifications workers hold. 

UGLRL has implemented a Rail Safety Worker competence management system known as Rail Industry Worker (RIW) and all rail safety worker training records, skill sets, and competencies are managed by MTA. 

All contractors who want to work on the CRN must hold a Rail Industry Worker Card issued by MTA.



Association with UGLRL:

Please send an email requesting association to learning@uglregionallinx.com.au with your name, RIW number and date of birth. An association invite will then be sent to you via RIW, please log in to your RIW profile to accept the association request.

There are mandatory roles for all workers on the CRN network. These are:

  • Around the Track Personnel - RSW National
  • UGLRL-Operator on Track
  • 'Specific Role' i.e. Track Maintainer, Track Certifier, Electrician etc. 

In addition to the mandatory roles listed above UGLRL will require specific competencies to be current and valid. These are: 

  • Safely Access the Rail Corridor (or equivalent)
  • WHS Construction Induction Card (White card) 
  • Category 3 rail medical (cat 1 and cat 2 rail medical also accepted) 
  • UGLRL induction (delivered by E-Learning in RIW Code: EL117)
  • UGLRL work on track electronic application PO 1 (delivered by E-Learning in RIW Code: EL121)
  • UGLRL work on track electronic application PO 2 to PO 4 (delivered by E-Learning in RIW Code: EL120)
  • UGLRL critical risks (delivered by E-Learning in RIW Code: EL118)

Evidence of these requirements will be required to be valid and current for all workers accessing the CRN network. 

All contractors undertaking rail safety work as identified in our Rail Safety Worker Competence Profiles (as per below) will be required to ensure they meet our competency requirements for undertaking the following tasks: 

Note: All contractors MUST select the profile “UGL Regional Linx - Operator on Track” in addition to tasks they are required to complete.

Protection Officers 

Protection Officer roles and competency requirements on the CRN can be found here - UGLRL Safeworking Matrix. 

To view all information and necessary competencies for Protection Officers, please head to our Protection Officer resources page.  

A recertification of UGLRL Protection Officer roles is required every two years and evidence of this must be verified in RIW. Recertification must be completed by a registered RTO.  

Information required

What information does a company need to register in the RIW System? 


  • Australian Business Number (ABN)
  • estimate of the number of RIW cardholders to be registered to the company 
  • registered address 
  • details of a primary contact for the company 
  • authority to accept the Company Registration - Terms and Conditions on behalf of the company. 

You must carry your Rail Industry Worker Card, as issued by MTA, with you at all times. You cannot carry out rail safety work on the CRN without it.  

Contact us

Please contact UGLRL via email if you have any queries about the above information or if you have any questions about our Protection Officer requirements in relation to accessing the CRN.  
Email: learning@uglregionallinx.com.au

The RIW Program is owned by the Australasian Railway Association and is endorsed by all of its member organisations. The RIW program is administered by Metro Trains Australia (MTA). 

Please contact MTA if you need assistance with the online card application process:
Phone: 1300 101 682