Minister welcomes Federated Farmers' safety policy

Minister of Labour Kate Wilkinson says a new safety policy developed and released by Federated Farmers is a welcome addition to ongoing work aimed at reducing accidents in the agriculture sector.

“Federated Farmers deserves to be congratulated for proactively providing its members with advice on meeting their workplace safety responsibilities.

“Farmers are responsible for what happens on their land and it’s important they take charge of protecting their families and workers from hazards,” Ms Wilkinson says.

“Knowing there’s a responsibility is one thing, doing something about it is another.

“Over the past five years 84 people died in farm accidents, with hundreds more seriously injured.

“This policy and other useful information available from the Department of Labour and ACC give farmers practical steps to better identify and manage the hazards they face on their farms and to keep themselves and others safe.

“Agriculture is a priority sector for the Department and it will continue working with Federated Farmers and other stakeholders to produce a targeted safety plan for release later this year.”