Farm safety had always been a consideration for Jock Hughes and Claire Burbury, who manage Longford mixed-farming enterprise Jessiefield, but when the couple sat down to consider the potential risks they knew they needed some expert help.
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Jessiefield has been the Hughes’ family home for almost 100 years and Jock Hughes is the fourth generation to manage it, with he and Ms Burbury taking over the reins from his parents when they retired last year.
The 800-hectare property – comprising an angus seedstock operation, crossbred lamb production and cropping spanning carrot seed, poppies and peas – is the workplace and home for the Hughes family, including Mr Hughes’ parents who still live on the farm.
Three casual farm labourers, including Jock Hughes’ father Peter, work at Jessiefield and the property traverses a public road, adding to the number of safety considerations.
Ms Burbury said one of the most important safety factors at Jessiefield was awareness around farm vehicle use.
“Four wheelers are renowned for causing a lot of deaths on farms, so there is a heightened risk of use which makes us nervous,” Ms Burbury said.
“We also consider safety around livestock handling and movement. The farm stretches across a public road, so we need to be very careful when moving stock and machinery across as cars are driving at 80 kilometres per hour and there are a lot of cyclists,” she said.
The couple had been talking about making Jessiefield a safer place to live and work and contacted Safe Farming Tasmania to find out what they should do.
“For several months Jock and I talked about the farm’s workplace safety with regards to inductions, processes and systems, but were baffled with where to start, and what is required legally and ethically,” Ms Burbury said.
Phillip John from the Safe Farming Tasmania program travelled to Longford and spoke with Mr Hughes and Ms Burbury about the systems and documentation they needed to ensure their farm was safe.
“Phill came out to visit us and simplified the whole process so we knew exactly what to do and how to induct a worker. He provided great advice with a lot of common sense,” Ms Burbury said.
“Farm safety is everyone’s responsibility, but it’s so important for us as the farm managers to go through the risks and procedures with staff and ensure they know how to look after themselves as they often work alone.
“Any injury on the farm would be devastating. We want our staff to enjoy working here but safety is a priority,” she said.
Johanna Baker-Dowdell
Johanna has more than 22 years experience as a journalist for newspapers, magazines and online publications.
Johanna has more than 22 years experience as a journalist for newspapers, magazines and online publications.
