IN THE hustle and bustle of running a farm business it can be easy to overlook potential safety concerns that need to be addressed amidst the ever present backlog of day to day tasks.
However, a member of Grain Growers’ National Policy Group, WA farmer Paul Kelly said putting a strong focus on safety paid dividends right across his business.
Mr Kelly, from Mingenew, in WA’s mid-north, grows a range of crops such as wheat, lupins, canola, coriander, field peas, and a variety of pasture seed and experimental crops together with wife Sue on their 3106 ha farm.
During harvesting and seeding the farm employs a variety of casual workers as machinery operators.
In addition, the farm employs one full time employee from the local area, and family members come home to work when they can.
Mr Kelly said having a good safety record is critical in creating the good reputation that means seasonal workers return the following year.
In this question and answer session Mr Kelly discusses what farm safety means to him.
Why are you passionate about farm safety on your farm?
PK: “People are vitally important to our business and so we want to ensure the safety of our workplace.”
“It is also a fact of business that we must protect ourselves from litigation. If, as farmers, we don`t get on the front foot and put safety as our highest priority we can be assured that government and/or regulatory bodies will intervene.”
How do you ensure farm safety on your farm?
PK: “Workplace health and safety is always the first line item in our discussions with employees.
“We try to assess the safety risk for everything we do.”
What are your processes?
“We are a Quality Assured farm and have had a Work Safe Audit completed.
“We conduct formal Safety Induction with new and returning employees.
“In addition, we provide training on every machine before operating and everyone must wear high visibility clothing and good work boots.
“Personal Protection Equipment (PPE), including ear plugs, safety glasses, face masks, gloves and fire-retardant overalls, is provided.”
How do you manage casual labour who are not likely to remain long on your farm but must still be inducted as if they were?
PK: “With patience!”
“All new employees require a lengthy induction process, as for many, English is their second language and they may never have worked on farms before.
“We ensure they are competent before allowing them to operate our machinery.”
Do you have written policies in place on the farm about safety? How do you make sure they are read, rather than left on the shelf?
PK: “Yes, we do - the induction sheets are worked through by the new employee in our presence and both parties sign.
“We also have a training register for each machine which again has to be signed when we assess each employee as competent on a particular machine.
"We endeavour to assess the risk on each job and discuss it with the employee.”
How do you ensure good record-keeping on your farm?
“There are diaries in each machine where all daily activities must be entered. This is given the same priority as using ProductionWise from GrainGrowers to record all paddock activities for our crops.”
What do you think is the greatest safety risk on a grains farm? How do you deal with it?
“Without a doubt, four-wheeled motor bikes are the biggest risk.
On our farm, the four-wheeled motor bike is equipped with a roll-bar, and operators must be trained, wear a helmet, carry water and a phone and have a two-way radio,” said Paul.
“Fatigue can also be a high risk.
We are strict with limiting shift times and make sure people have time off, even during the busy harvest season.
We endeavour to give everyone a proper meal break. We try to be flexible and encourage them to tell us if they need a break.”
How else do you keep employees/family members safe on farm?
“We have a zero drug/alcohol policy and this is stated clearly in our induction process. We reserve the right to cancel employment if this policy is not adhered to,” said Paul.
“We try to give everyone regular breaks off machines throughout the day. We pay a good hourly rate and we highly value our employees.
“I believe most farmers in our area are doing the same – they are highly conscious of safety and value and treat their employees well.”