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Working children learn by imitation.
A child is more likely to be safety conscious if you are. Make sure your child sees you (and your employees) performing tasks safely. Explain the potential for danger and how injury can be avoided.
Lead by example:
• Don’t let your child, or any other person, ride on farm machinery that isn’t designed for passengers.
• Ensure that you, and your employees, always use safety equipment such as helmets, goggles and gloves, where necessary. You must set a good example for your working children.
• Walk around operating machinery instead of stepping over it.
• Switch off equipment before altering the settings.
• Educate your working children to recognise warning labels and to follow directions.
• Make sure your working children let others know where they are going, what they’ll be doing and when they expect to return.
• Talk frequently to your working children about the safety rules of the farm.
• Involve working children in the toolbox meetings that you have with your employees.
• Remove the keys from all farm vehicles when not in use.
• Keep chemical stores locked when not in use.
• Make sure silo ladders have guards in place or are secured.
• Draw up a farm emergency plan.
Planning for emergencies
An emergency plan for the whole family is vital.
Some suggestions include:
• Ensure easy access to a suitable and well stocked first aid kit.
• Make sure at least one person on the farm is trained in first aid.
• Keep emergency numbers and correct addresses next to the telephone.
• Plan routes to the nearest hospital with an emergency department.
• Regularly talk through your emergency plan with your family and other workers.
• Make sure your children understand what to do in an emergency.
Farm first aid
Make sure your first aid kit is well stocked and easy to access. Emergency medical treatment for young children isn’t always the same as for adults.
Ideally, all parents should take a first aid course. Never hesitate to call an ambulance if your child is injured. Throughout Australia, the standard emergency number to dial is triple zero (000).
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