A union for workers in the wood industries welcomed a major development in the case for an inquiry into forestry safety. Sources: Scoop NZ, First Union, AAP, ASN
An investigation by TV3’s 3rd Degree program included comment from forest owners, who now back calls for an independent inquiry.
FIRST Union General Secretary Robert Reid said this was a significant breakthrough, and Labour Minister Simon Bridges now must recommend to Cabinet that an inquiry take place.
“An inquiry won’t bring back the lives of forestry workers who have died to their loved ones but it will help us better understand what is going wrong in our forests,” he said.
“Forestry is one of New Zealand’s most dangerous industries, and the four deaths this year alone should serve as ample reason to get to the bottom of the
poor health and safety practises in the sector.”
“As Pike River showed us, a detailed look at safety practises within a particular industry through an independent inquiry can be a useful tool to improve safety. We welcome the support of forest owners for this to happen,” he said.
Labour’s health and safety spokeswoman, Darien Fenton, is accusing the government of willfully ignoring the situation.
“Mr Bridges’ insistence that a weak code of practice – which notes forestry is an industry `with significant risks and has suffered a large number of fatalities and work-related injuries over the years’ – is sufficient to stop those deaths and injury is nonsense,” she said.
“The approved code of practice is deficient. It was developed without worker input and includes only a passing mention of employee participation in health and safety.”
