Dec 12, 2016

Let good health and safety practices save you from final jeopardy!

“Safety should not be viewed as an extra step in what we do; it should be just how we do our jobs,” simply said by Erin Byram, GROWMARK Ontario’s health and safety specialist at her annual FS Health and Safety training day.

This year’s program began with a lesson about site inspections given by Lester Zmolek, GROWMARK senior safety specialist with an interactive session called “what’s wrong with this picture?” The group covered a number of scenarios such as:  where and how to store flammables, how often to check the integrity of an eye-wash station and learning that the number one cause of incidents is from slips, trips and falls.

Lester finished by saying we can’t stop our employees from coming across hazards in their everyday jobs, “but we can make darn sure every employee is given the proper tools and training to handle things the right way.”

Don McLean, GROWMARK Ontario agronomy business director led the group through the many hazards to watch for while crop scouting and attending to growers fields. Such concepts as heat exhaustion and physical exertion from just walking through a large soybean field, checking blind spots when driving heavy spray equipment and something as simple as watching out for any aggressive dogs that might be roaming farmers’ fields.

Erin added to this the reality of mental fatigue and stress during the demanding spring growing season. “With today’s demands and expectations of getting more done in less time, it is important to not cut corners and to listen to your body,” she warned.

Fleet safety was covered by Dana Wells, UPI Energy manager, ERT, Compliance and Fleet Services in regards to changes to annual and daily safety inspections and the importance of recording your findings truthfully. Dana finished up by delivering a strong message on the importance of performing proper wheel inspections, stating that “Wheel-off incidents are preventable!”

The highlight of the day took place just before lunch with a rousing rendition of the well-known game-show Jeopardy. The creative interactive team-activity had participants jumping up and shouting out health and safety answers to win top points for their team. Congratulations to team Safety Dogs for the win!

See photos below of many of the great moments captured throughout the day:


Erin Byram welcomes the group.

Let's play Health & Safety Jeopardy!







Lester Zmolek calls out first person to answer for a
chance to win Jeopardy points for their team!






Dana Wells talks fleet safety.




                 
Don McLean talks about
staying safe in the field.



Health and Safety is top of mind for GROWMARK System staff. Join us next year for our 10th annual Health and Safety Day!