“Speak Up For Safer Equipment” Tool Now Available

Winnipeg, August 25, 2014 – The Canadian Agricultural Safety Association (CASA) has developed a new online tool that gives farmers an opportunity to express their concerns about possible hazards with farm equipment. The “Speak Up For Safer Equipment” tool is intended to provide a way for farmers, manufacturers and standards organizations to talk about safety concerns with agricultural equipment manufactured within the past five years.

“We decided to develop this online tool after routinely receiving calls from producers who were frustrated that their concerns weren’t being heard,” says Glen Blahey, Agricultural Health and Safety Specialist for CASA.

The online form handles safety concerns where farm equipment is being used for primary agricultural production. It is not intended to handle cases where legal proceedings are taking place, where there are labour relations concerns or issues related to financial transactions.

Once a farmer has filled out the online form, CASA will review the safety concern and either will forward the issue directly to the appropriate manufacturer or, if the concern is a universal issue, forward it to the Canadian Standards Association (CSA). As well as providing information to manufacturers and the CSA, the “Speak Up for Safer Equipment” tool will give CASA data on potential safety-related trends affecting farmers.

“The tool isn’t designed to hurt the reputation of any manufacturer or individual,” Blahey says. “Speak Up for Safer Equipment” will foster better communication and education between farmers, manufacturers and standards organization and will ultimately reduce the potential for injuries.”

The “Speak Up for Safer Equipment” online tool will be available in August on CASA’s website at https://casa-acsa.ca/speak-up-for-safer-equipment. Concerns can also be reported by phone at (877) 452-2272.

The Canadian Agricultural Safety Association is a national, non-profit organization dedicated to improving the health and safety of farmers, their families and agricultural workers. CASA is funded in part by Growing Forward 2, a federal, provincial and territorial initiative and receives additional support from the agricultural and corporate sectors including: Farm Credit Canada, the Progressive Agriculture Foundation, CHS and TransCanada Corporation. For more information, visit www.casa-acsa.ca, find us on Facebook or LinkedIn or follow us on Twitter @planfarmsafety.

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