Safety training to restart next month
Fifteen people have died in farm accidents this year bringing to more than 150 the numbers killed on Irish farms since the year 2000.
Labour Affairs Minister Billy Kelleher visited the Health and Safety Authority exhibition on opening day to launch two initiatives.
One will be a training programme for farmers in the Farm Safety Code of Practice. It will be provided by Teagasc and supported by the Health and Safety Authority.
The other will be a competition for primary school students to provide the wording for a farm safety poster campaign. This is a local initiative involving primary schoolchildren from over 142 schools in the Kilkenny, Carlow and Tipperary area.
The fatal accident rate in agriculture is the highest across all economic sectors, with the elderly and children on the farm most at risk.
Mr Kelleher said safety training can have a significant impact in reducing accidents. “I would encourage all farmers who have not yet availed of the Teagasc safety training course to do so over the coming months. By studying accident trends in other sectors, we have seen that even basic safety training can significantly reduce the chances of having an accident at work.”
Mr Kelleher said he is fully behind any initiative that will improve the safety and health of farmers.
Health and Safety Authority chief executive Martin O’Halloran said there is a legal requirement to comply with safety and health legislation and getting safety training will assist farmers in doing so. “By attending these practical training sessions on how to use the farm safety code, farmers will be more aware of the dangers they face on the farm every day and how to fulfil their responsibilities under health and safety law.
“Following the code could prevent a serious injury or even save a life or the life of a loved one and it is vital that all farmers treat this with the priority it deserves,” he said.
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