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March 2021 - Issue 33.

Dear FICA Members, Sponsors & Industry
Just when we thought normality was going to be the theme of 2021, COVID lockdowns in Auckland have reminded the nation that its not that easy.

The issue for our industry is the struggle to be recognised as a sector that can manage with our industry protocols in Level 3. There is a consensus from all key forestry organisations to work on this with government and a meeting this week with MPI will hopefully give us some answers for the continuity for our industry going forward.

The work that has been going on through FISC with review of the Safetree Contractor Certification programme has been extremely productive and has included a broad representation of the industry. At the January workshop it was highlighted that there was a willingness to get this right and a desire to get a win:win for everyone.

Interesting stats came out of that meeting as we understood that for the past 3 years the same top 5 corrective actions on Certification have been:
• Hazardous substances not being stored, used or managed appropriately.
• Contractors not having a system to manage competency status of workers.
• Welfare facilities, including toilets, water, handwashing, shelter.
• No system to record machinery maintenance and certification.
• Crew members not having general requirements.

You may have seen that FICA are now recognising those in the industry that achieved their certification as well as those have been re-certified, we need to applaud them all as they lift the standard of our industry up to another level. The workshop initiated to establishment of a TAG group which meets this week and a workscope will be set up to ensure that by the end of the year this review has been completed with some great outcomes to drive further development of the scheme.

We have taken a positive stand on events this year and booked our AGM Conference in Queenstown 29 & 30 October at the Millennium Hotel and Copthorne close by if anyone is wanting to book accommodation now. As we have done in the past, the Safetree Conference will be held the day prior with the trade show and a dinner the night of the 28 October.

Markets are strong as we know so production and harvest are bouyant but if you are deciding to invest in further equipment, make sure all finance packages are well undertood expecially if you opt for early settlement or closure. The last thing we would want to see is the markets come back and our contractors left with high penalties. This is the drive behind another project that FICA will lead this next 6 months is the development of a Model Contract between contractors and principals. Supply chain factors have consistently been recognised as a critical but hard to influence factor in forestry workplace wellbeing, health & safety and sustainability. FICA see there are areas that can be improved, agreed with all stakeholders and provide a meaningful platform leading to better and more long term business performance, work conditions and health and safety outcomes. We will provide you with more detail in the coming months.
 
I would like to put out a thank you to all forest owners and management companies that have invited FICA into their safe start and H & S meetings, its been great being across the good work being promoted and also to meet & catch up with many of you around the country. FICA is definitely committed to keeping you up to speed with industry matters but we are also keen to hear from you at anytime.

Kia Kaha - Stay Strong

Prue & FICA Board
 
Prue Younger

CEO, FICA 
Top 5 Concerns from CNI WorkSafe Inspectors 
  1. Daily tree felling plan are not identifying hazards that maybe encountered for that day and are missing controls to manage the risk for those hazards? Relying on the tree faller to identify hazards, they having been using the block hazard ID rather than the daily hazard ID. This is primarily Gisborne area and contractors not under corporate.
  2. Still seeing lots of haulers with no guarding from moving parts, are Principals checking haulers for these issues? Still have foreman, hauler operator and breaker out not fully understand their B/Out plan or responsibilities/duties for their role and when there is a change to the plan the Foreman not being told. Hauler extraction team, hauler operator clearing the chute. One case guy ropes over the road and no flags.
  3. Roger and Phil (WS) finding a lot of roading issues, pot holes and poor road maintenance, with some trucks needing to be assisted. RCA/ Principles need to ensure road conditions are maintained and have adequate signage. Phil raised this with local Gisborne council and had a good outcome. ACOP 8.1.3
  4. Monitoring and management of overlapping duties within the sites needs to be better addressed.
  5. Still seeing islands of trees standing near skid sites and roads, with high winds, extra vigilance and planning required. ACOP 13.1.2
  6. Worksafe are currently monitoring and data gathering, use of a tree faller over a mechanised machine. Where practicable a mechanized machine should be used.
APP - WINDY.COM

Check out this great weather APP particularly good as a visual overview of wind, temperature and cloud. Check it out here
Learnings from Forestry Incidents
WorkSafe give further details on fatalities once investigations have been completed and this information is added to the incident information on the Safetree website, a document which always makes very sobering reading. https://safetree.nz/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Fatalities-22Jan2020.pdf
As always thoughts are with all of those involved in these tragic incidents, however we need to make sure that the information available is used for the purposes of taking the learnings and applying them to your own workplace. No one wants to be in this situation so give yourselves the opportunity to share with your crews.
Thank you Safetree for this important information.

Update: WorkSAFE’s Focus on the Harms related to working in & around Vehicles


WorkSafe is increasing its focus on the use of vehicles and mobile plant while on the job in response to the large number of related fatal incidents and serious injuries occurring each year - 69% of all workplace deaths (20 deaths per year) and 3% of all serious non-fatal injuries involved vehicles or mobile plant between 2015 and 2019. Incident data has also shown that:
  • 15% of all deaths (averaging 10 deaths per year) are related to workers not wearing seatbelts. The majority (71%) of these occurring in agriculture and its service industries.
  • Over 44% of all fatalities involved vehicles working on off-road work-sites – including agricultural, transport & warehousing, manufacturing, and construction settings.
  • Poor site design and management of pedestrian and vehicle interactions were also major contributors to these serious injuries and death.
Key updates
  • The Use of Seatbelts at Work – Worksafe has released guidance for workers and PCBUs on the need for PCBUs and works to ensure seatbelts are worn when using vehicles and mobile plant. It also advises that most vehicles and mobile plant should already be fitted with seatbelts and where it is not, PCBUs should investigate whether it is reasonably practicable for them to retrofit seatbelts given the risks involved in their use. The seatbelt guidance is also supported by the launch of a national marketing campaign (television, social media, billboards & postal) that will run from early February until the end of April 2021.
  • Site Traffic Management – WorkSafe has released guidance on best practice Site Traffic Management, including Reversing and Spotting, and Work Site Traffic. A national roadshow has also been launched to raise awareness of the risks associated with the use of mobile plant on work sites (focusing on forklifts), and the technological solutions available to assist PCBUs in keeping their workers safe.
 
The above guidance and further information can be found on the 'Vehicles and Mobile Plant' page of the WorkSafe website: https://www.worksafe.govt.nz/topic-and-industry/vehicles-and-mobile-plant/
Where to find out more
You can find further information on the harms associated with vehicles and mobile plant on the 'Vehicles and Mobile Plant' page of the WorkSafe website: https://www.worksafe.govt.nz/topic-and-industry/vehicles-and-mobile-plant/
You can also ring the WorkSafe Contact Centre on 0800 030 040 or submit a query to through the Contact Us page of our website https://www.worksafe.govt.nz/contact-us/

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