Farm safety audits deliver tough new penalties for farmers not prioritising the safety of themselves and their workers
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Western Australian farmers are being told to lift their game when it comes to farm safety as Worksafe cracks down on broadacre properties.
With more backpacker labour and young people returning to the land following the mining downturn, farmers are being warned to make safety a priority.
With a staggering 24 people killed on farming properties Australia-wide in the past six months, Farmsafe WA is taking a leaf out of the mining industry's book.
"Worksafe is now treating farm enterprises just like a mine site," said Farmsafe WA Chairman, Mike Norton.
"The plant is very large, it's very mobile.
"Telehandlers and quad bikes for example are great pieces of machinery, but it certainly lifts up the opportunity for fatalities to happen with these pieces of equipment.
"And I don't think famers have really kept up with what's happened technology-wise, as far as farm safety is concerned and we have to do something about that, otherwise the courts will deal with you."
Mr Norton said preparation now is a small price to pay to not only protect workers, but businesses too.
"The big change will be the fines; the fines have increase quite dramatically," he said.
"Just for a normal enterprise a maximum fine is $150,000.
"If you're a propriety limited company, which a lot of farms are, the fines double up to $300,000.
"So the penalties are quite severe if you're unfortunate enough to have a fatality.
"Worksafe has just completed auditing every dairy farmer in WA and they're now turning their attention to broadacre farms in the wheatbelt; so everybody in the wheatbelt can expect a visit from Worksafe in the new 12 to 18 months."
Mr Norton said keeping a simple paper trail and having a clear induction process for all workers could save a lot of heartache and potential financial ruin.
And it is not just modern machinery that poses a threat.
One WA veterinarian said it is all too common for him and his colleagues to face some pretty dodgy infrastructure on farms.
Will Powell works with cattle, sheep, horses, and goats on farms around the Manjimup and Bridgetown area.
He said country vets are often faced with things like yards that are below standard, or that should have been upgraded years ago.
"It can be really quite dangerous, not only for the farmer, or the vet, or whichever kind of stock person is on the property, but also for the animals," said Mr Powell.
"Old, out-dated yards, or yards with rotten timbers, or old bits of weld mesh are a very good way of injuring people or stock."
This week is National Farm Safety week.
Topics: occupational-health-and-safety, sheep-production, grain, veterinary-medicine, workplace, albany-6330
