29th January 2016
The Minister for Business and Employment Ged Nash TD has today (Friday 29th January) launched an addition to the Health and Safety Authority’s BeSMART.ie tool specifically for Agribusinesses. BeSMART.ie is a free online safety tool that allows small businesses to carry out risk assessments and create their own safety statements. This new version now meets the needs of a range of Agribusinesses including farm advisors, equestrian centres, horticulturalists and slurry contractors.
All employers, including small businesses and the self-employed, are legally obliged to have a written health and safety document known as a safety statement. BeSMART.ie was developed by the Health and Safety Authority to help small businesses develop their own safety statement and to contribute to a culture of safety and health in their workplaces. With over 30,000 registered users, BeSMART.ie is growing constantly and is now available for the Agribusiness sector for the first time.
Speaking about the new BeSMART.ie Agribusiness tool, Minister Nash said, “I’m delighted to see the further development of this free online tool. Agribusinesses will benefit greatly from having access to a free and easy-to-use resource that will help keep them and their employees safer and healthier. It’s a great example of an innovative offering from the public sector that saves enterprises time and money. The Agribusiness sector now has access to the benefits already enjoyed by thousands of other small businesses in the retail, hospitality, service, manufacturing and construction sectors."
According to Martin O’Dea, Senior Inspector with the Health and Safety Authority, “Through our BeSMART.ie tool we are providing ways for Agribusinesses to reduce costs while encouraging them to take ownership and control of safety and health management in their business. Evidence suggests that the average cost of using a third party to develop a safety statement can be up to €1,500. BeSMART.ie can save an employer at least this amount directly and contribute to an improved culture of safety and health in their businesses."
The free BeSMART.ie Agribusiness online tool is available now at www.besmart.ie.
ENDS
For further information contact Gavin Lonergan, Head of Communications, Health and Safety Authority, (087) 0523006 or pressoffice@hsa.ie
Photo of Minister Nash launching the BeSMART Agribusiness tool with Martin O'Dea, HSA Senior Inspector, attached.
EDITORS NOTES
The BeSMART.ie Agribusiness online tool is designed for a wide range of Agribusinesses including agricultural contractors, equestrian centres, farm advisors, farm machinery repair services, horticultural consultants, market stalls, poultry farmers and silage, slurry, spraying and tillage contractors. Farmers themselves have access to www.farmsafely.com, a specialist free online tool to help farmers.
Employers can protect themselves, their employees and their business by ensuring that appropriate safety and health measures are in place. If small businesses have concerns at the cost or the time it takes to carry out risk assessments and prepare a safety statement, those concerns should no longer exist because BeSMART.ie is free, easy to use and significant time is saved by using it. The Health and Safety Authority also have a support service available (via 1890 289 389) should users have problems navigating the system.
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