Forestry industry must improve safety commitment

Media release

19 July 2013

Forestry industry must improve safety commitment

The whole forestry industry has to step up its commitment to worker safety according to the Health and Safety Group of the Ministry.

“The death this morning is the sixth this year – that is an awful toll and its effects spread through communities, companies, and loved ones,” General Manager Health and Safety Operations Ona de Rooy said.

“We are about to begin a proactive assessment of every logging contracting operation in the sector targeted at what we know are the two causes of the most harm in the industry – the actual felling of the trees and the movement of them to loading sites.

“We will be taking a strong enforcement line during these visits and companies, contractors and crews can expect enforcement action if they’re not meeting their obligations under the Health and Safety in Employment Act.

“If we see evidence of fatigue or production pressure causing unsafe behaviour, inspectors will take action. Workers also need to take responsibility for their safety and follow the rules – the rules are there to prevent them from harm
“The Ministry has produced unambiguous guidelines on health and safety for this industry and everyone has to commit to them and implement them,” Ms de Rooy said.

ENDS

© Scoop Media