Australian farmers have been handed a new tool to help streamline safety induction procedures for new employees.
A free phone app for iphone and Android has been launched to coincide with the national Farm Safety Week, enabling farmers to undertake a safety induction with one or more workers.
When completed, a record of the induction and the details discussed is emailed to both the employer and employee, simplifying the record keeping process.
The farm safety app has attracted widespread industry support through initiatives such as the Primary Industries Health and Safety Partnership http://www.rirdc.gov.au/research-programs/rural-people-issues/primary-industries-health-and-safety-partnership and its members including the Grains Research and Development Corporation.
Farmsafe Australia chairman Charles Armstrong said farm safety had improved significantly over the past 20 years with a reduction of 65% in the number of farm injury deaths but he stressed that more needed to be done.
“Having safety as a major aspect of our business will not only reduce risks to those that work and live on our farms, it will also improve our bottom line.
“Even non-fatal injuries can have major cost implications on things such as delays in harvest, damage to equipment and downtime needed to recover from injuries.
“The new free farm safety induction app is one important step to improving safety. It’s about making sure that everyone involved in the farm gets home safe and sound at the end of each working day. That’s a good thing not just for our families but also our business and communities.”
The app for iphone can be downloaded at https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/farmsafe-safety-induction/id895754573?ls=1&mt=8 while the Android app is available at https://play.google.com/store/search?q=farmsafe%20induction&c=apps&hl=en