The global logging community is watching with interest as the New Zealand forestry industry pulls together to improve their safety record.The New Zealand forestry industry had a difficult 2013, suffering 10 fatalities, most of them in logging operations. This would disappoint industry leaders who have already been proactive in identifying and managing one of their highest risk forestry operations, being logging operations on steep slopes. New Zealand’s ACC has announced that a new injury prevention programme is being developed to improve worker safety. The programme boasts the buy-in of the most important role-players, being WorkSafe NZ, the NZ Forest Owners Association (FOA), the Forestry Industry Contractors Association (FICA) and the Council of Trade Unions (CTU). Programme development and implementation will involve all of these organisations.
According to the ACC, the programme will “involve eight separate streams of work, aimed at developing clearer, effective guides for workers on the ground, to influence them to make safer choices in their day-to-actions.” Some of the outcomes of the project include workshops, educational resources, assessment tools, videos and case studies. They will be designed to cover the wide range of tasks and situations that forestry workers face. The ACC programme will “complement the independent review of forestry safety, launched in January by FICA and FOA, which will address a broader palette of issues affecting safety in the sector”. Source: http://www.acc.co.nz/news/WPC133430