Ag Drive is calling on the agriculture industry to step up
and do more to keep people safe on farm, with 5 fatalities
in the first 3 months of 2023, with the launch of their
‘Change the Culture’ campaign.
WorkSafe data shows
that from 1 January – 31 March 2023, there were 5 farm
fatalities and 30 WorkSafe notifiable injuries. In the 12
months to January 2023, there were 14 fatalities in total,
and there are more fatalities on farms than in any other
industry in New Zealand.
Ag Drive, the Waikato’s
largest vehicle training provider, says more needs to be
done to keep people safe.
“One death is one too many. To
have five in three months is frankly inexcusable,” says Ag
Drive Director Andre Syben.
He says a culture shift is
what’s needed, and there needs to be more commitment from
the entire agricultural supply chain to improve the
statistics.
“From corporates who farmers supply, to farm
owners and employers of farm staff, and workers themselves,
we all have a responsibility to keep everyone safe,” he
says.
“Passing the buck, softening the message and only
talking about it isn’t going to cut it. We need a serious
commitment from industry and Government and a practical
strategy to change the culture.”
Syben says programmes
like Ag Drive’s award-winning vehicle training exist, and
the health and safety frameworks are already there. He
acknowledges that training is only one part of the solution,
and that Ag Drive training focuses on building a safety
culture.
He says the buy-in and support from corporate
industry is what is lacking.
“Where are the corporates
mandating that their suppliers meet stringent health and
safety standards? Where is the Government? We need to take
collective ownership. These organisations should be
subsidizing the cost of training to farmers to make it more
accessible,” he says.
“It’s time to change the
culture. We can and we should do better.”
Lindy Nelson,
Chair of Safer Farms, supports AgDrive’s campaign stating,
“The industry recognises we need a collective, combined
approach to addressing safety on farms. We cannot leave
farmers to figure it out alone. This is an example of
businesses stepping up to help protect farmers from harm – a
great initiative that we fully support.”
Ag Drive is
putting its money where its mouth is to get things started.
The Ag Drive ‘Change the Culture’ Campaign will give
away 10 x 1 day machinery operation Ag Drive Courses for
free, to the value of $6500. Winners will be drawn at the
2023 National Fieldays. See more at
agdrive.co.nz
References
https://data.worksafe.govt.nz/
ENDS
For more
information contact –
Andre Syben [email protected]
or 027 224 7747 or visit www.agdrive.co.nz
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