This month we would like to focus on the message to not rush in and take unnecessary risks
With almost 60% of Farming staff, that took part in last years Farmers Weekly H&S Survey, stating that they sometimes knowingly took a safety risk when they shouldn’t have done - we are encouraging you not to rush in to get a job done but to:- Stop and Take 10 (mins).
Take 10 minutes to reflect and carry out a ‘dynamic’ risk assessment.
We’ve all been on Farm where staff have talked about when they took a safety short cut that put them at risk of injury and somehow got away with it and lived to tell the tale.
It's natural human nature to think you are invincible - but may farmers know of friends, colleagues and sometimes family who have suffered an injury or worse still are aware of a fatality that occurred on a farm.
The Farmers Weekly H&S Survey 2021 - also identified that Farming staff thought that the biggest cause of accidents was due to “lack of time or rushing to get the job done”, followed closely by “tiredness and fatigue”.
Hence the message to Stop and Take 10
Don’t rush in – stop and ask questions – the quickest way to do a job is to do it right first time.
Don’t forget to ask questions and plan the work:-
- Do I have the right training, experience, work equipment, safety equipment, do I need some assistance?
- Don’t undertake hazardous jobs when you are too tired and distracted.
- Ask yourself 'Am I in a good place to carry out this job safely?'
- Am I putting myself at risk if I proceed.
Its important to develop a Safety culture way of thinking on farm and move away from any risk taking.
We want staff to:-
- Move away from ‘Because I’ve always done it that way’ thinking. (Just because you got away with it last time - doesn't mean you will again)
- Develop a ‘Stop and Think’ approach – rather than rush in - ‘To get the job done’ (Nobody is more important than you)
For more info on Dynamic risk assessment approach see the Farm Safety Focus page.
