Saint John, NB: The Workplace Health, Safety and Compensation Commission, in partnership with Potatoes New Brunswick, will host for the first time ever east of Ontario a Progressive Agriculture Safety Day™. Part of an international program, these one-day safety events provide fun, age-appropriate, and hands-on training to children to keep them safe not only on the farm, but at school, at home, on the road and near the water.
“From 1998-2005, 11 young New Brunswickers died on the job – that’s simply unacceptable,” said Lise Malenfant, assistant regional director for the WHSCC’s northwest region. “To reduce not only fatalities but all workplace injuries to zero, it’s critical that we instill a strong health and safety ethic early on – one we hope our youth will maintain throughout their working lives,” Malenfant said.
Potato harvesting is a high-risk activity that employs many young workers, who are the sector at highest risk for workplace injuries. Because of this, the WHSCC has worked closely with the industry to develop and deliver customized safety awareness sessions to approximately 1,000 students in the northwest region in the last three years. To enhance this safety education, this year the WHSCC and Potatoes New Brunswick are co-sponsoring three separate Progressive Agriculture Safety Days™.
“We’re very excited to host this event for our youth. It’s the first time ever this highly successful program has been presented east of Ontario, and we’re proud to be involved,” said Angela Acott-Smith, WHSCC education consultant and Safety Day co-ordinator.
Children are divided into small groups supervised by an adult or older teen leader, who help them rotate through various stations where topics such as railroad safety, firearm safety, ATV safety, fire safety, animal safety, and sun and water safety, in addition to tractor and equipment safety, are taught. The full-day events are being planned for area schools and will be delivered on-site at a local farm.
“The presentations and demonstrations are dynamic and encourage participation. And when children have an active role in the learning process, they are more likely to retain the information,” Acott-Smith said.
The first Progressive Agriculture Safety Day will be held June 1, at École Grande Rivière in St-Léonard, with two more safety days planned for the fall, in the Florenceville area.
For more information on the Progressive Agriculture Safety Day™ program, visit www.progressiveag.org.
For information on the local event near you, call Angela Acott-Smith at 506 475-2587.