Construction and farming initiatives to represent Ireland in EU competition
Thursday 29th November
The Health and Safety Authority has today (Thursday 29th November) announced the West Offaly Dairy Group and the Construction Safety Partnership (CSP) as national winners of the European Good Practice Awards. Both entries will now go forward to compete with a range of national winners from across Europe.
The Good Practice Awards is a European-wide competition aimed at encouraging best practice in relation to workplace safety and health. The theme for this year’s awards was “working together for risk prevention” with the focus on employers and employees working in close cooperation to improve workplace safety and health standards. The campaign is coordinated by the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work in association with the member states.
Martin O’Halloran, Chief Executive of the Health and Safety Authority said, “I’m delighted to see these two very worthy initiatives going forward to the European leg of the competition. The West Offaly Dairy Group is a great example of local community involvement with farmers working closely together. The Construction Safety Partnership is an excellent initiative which has had far reaching benefits for thousands of construction workers.”
Mr. O’Halloran added, “The farming sector is currently one of the most dangerous sectors in which to be employed. With 19 deaths on farms so far this year it is important that initiatives such as the West Offaly Dairy Group are emulated across the country. With the nature of the job often meaning long periods of time working alone, it’s important that farmers can learn from and help each other.”
“The construction industry is still a major employer with approximately 100,000 workers in the sector. Since the establishment of the Construction Safety Partnership in 1999 the fatal accident rate for the industry has been halved. It’s essential that the substantial improvements made in the sector are maintained and further built upon. I wish the West Offaly Dairy Group and the Construction Safety Partnership all the best on the European stage.”
