While employing foreign workers is a great solution, we must not forget about the importance of safety with this group of employees.

Canada is known for its intense winters, but we also have several weeks each year of intense, very humid summer heat. It is important that during these times you protect yourself from the penetrating sun and watch out for symptoms of heat-related illnesses before it becomes a serious health concern.  

There is often a lot of conversation regarding loading cattle from the cattle perspective, and this is certainly important information to consider, but it is also important to keep the safety of the animal handlers top of mind as well.

Every workplace in Ontario is required to develop and implement a workplace violence and harassment prevention program that contains the various elements set out in Part III.0.1 of Ontario’s Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) “Violence and Harassment”.

Now that you have discussed your dairy’s commitment to health and safety with your farm team and set up your health and safety board, the next step in the process toward developing a solid health and safety program on your dairy is to identify the tasks that pose the highest risk hazards to your team and then develop a safe operating procedure that you can use to train your team on how to conduct the task safely.

Having a well-thought-out dairy farm safety program is an undervalued asset to any operation. Not having one in place can result in injuries or illness. It can also have a negative impact on mental wellness and the financial bottom line when something goes terribly wrong on the dairy.