Farming firms encouraged to boost worker safety

Farmers in Devon have been encouraged by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to boost safety measures at their premises in a bid to cut down on the number of serious accidents at work.

Recent figures from the HSE show that 40 to 50 people are killed on British farms every year, despite the fact that just 1.5 per cent of the population are working in the industry.

According to the organisation, a member of a farming family or a close friend is killed on a farm in the Devon and Cornwall area, with many more suffering severe injuries, risking personal injury claims and compensation.

Rob Pearce, health and safety principal inspector for the south-west said: "Many farmers are self-employed or run small family businesses so we want to make sure they're not putting themselves and their livelihoods at risk with poor health and safety."

He described the statistics, which show farmers are ten times more likely than other workers to be killed at work, as "alarming".

Across Great Britain, the most common cause of serious and fatal injuries in agriculture involve moving and overturning vehicles.

Posted by Alison Spriggs

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