Our Safety Vision
GWT Earthmoving is a family owned company that believes in maintaining a safe, happy and healthy team environment. GWT embraces its responsibilities to not only its employees but also to their families, to provide a safe working environment and to return all staff home safe and well every day.
The core of the GWT Earthmoving business is its employees and clients and we invest a lot of time and effort into maintaining a nurturing and safe environment for all. Our company works on a "continual improvement" ethos and we work hard to maintain the highest standards in all facets of operation.
We see our health and safety systems as the pathway into the future and a key element to the continued growth of the company.
OH&S Guidelines
GWT Earthmoving believes that for a safe working environment to be achieved, all staff must be empowered to input into the safety management process. We believe that through open and honest communication with both staff and clients, we are able to continually improve on safety and maintain a productive and efficient workplace, achieving not only the best possible results for GWT Earthmoving but also for our valued clients.
GWT takes a pro-active approach to Occupational Health and Safety and use's a series of OH&S tools to identify and control hazards before they can result in injury or damage.
As a minimum standard, GWT abides by all relevant Acts and Regulations and strives to achieve much higher standards than legally required. To achieve this, we ensure that:
- All senior personnel are well versed in OH&S and are committed to passing their experience and knowledge to the junior members of the team.
- All staff are aware of their OH&S obligations and are trained and competent before attending any work site.
- All accidents and incidents are reported, investigated and openly discussed to prevent re-occurrence.
- All GWT equipment, whether plant, trucks or support vehicles, is maintained to the highest standards and training and induction is provided to all personnel prior to use.
- In the unlikely event a GWT staff member is suffers injury or illness, a rehabilitation program is implemented to assist and encourage the member to return to full duties.
Induction Procedures
The GWT safety systems begins at first appointment of an employee. All employees are briefed on GWT policies and expectations, provided an overview of relevant Acts and Regulations and are also inducted and then assessed for competency on our equipment; all prior to being sent to site. Even if a new employee already holds the relevant operators tickets, we still assess their skill level so we can ensure any further training requirements are promptly met.
All staff are given a copy of GWT Safe Work Procedures upon commencing employment key areas are discussed at this time.
Safe Work Procedures
GWT Earthmoving has invested a significant amount of time and money into developing a comprehensive set of Safe Work Procedures for all regular activities. All staff are well versed in these procedures and regular review and improvement is conducted.
All staff are also equipped with a blank site risk assessment and a “take 5” booklet, thus allowing and site specific hazards to be identified and controlled.
Personal Protective Equipment
All staff are provided withal of their PPE requirements to safely conduct their jobs. As a minimum, GWT requires the use of gloves, high visability shirts, hard hats, safety glasses, hearing protection, hats and sunscreen. Any other site specific requirements are at all times met by the company. All staff are trained in the correct use and care of PPE and are able to resupply when required.
Incident Policy
The GWT Earthmoving Incident reporting policy requires that all “Near Loss” events must be reported thoroughly investigated and controls put in place. We believe that by addressing any near miss, we can greatly reduce the likelihood of an incident or damage occurring. All incidents and near misses are recorded into a central database, thus allowing for analysis of any behavioural trends or hazards that have not been previously identified. This recording and analysis allows us to identify and areas where retraining or extra control measures may be required, prior to an injury or damage occurring. All staff are strongly encouraged to report any form of hazard and to take a pro-active approach to controlling the hazard.
Safety Meetings
We hold a programmed monthly safety meeting with all staff and hold impromptu meetings in the event of any near miss or incident occurring. All staff are given equal opportunity to input into the safety meetings and we draw from our staff’s great wealth of knowledge and ideas to continually refine the safety process. Any near miss or incidents are openly discussed at these meetings with the emphasis being strongly placed on preventing reoccurrence and NOT on placing blame.
All staff are required to attend/conduct a daily "toolbox" meeting prior to commencing work each day. This may be conducted with the principal contractor; or if the operator is working alone they are still required to conduct a "Take 5" to consider any new risks for the site.
Site Assessments
All staff are randomly selected to be assessed whilst working on site. This not only ensures that the operator is conforming to all of GWT policies and procedures but to also ensure that the operator’s skill sets are continuing to grow and develop.
A thorough de-brief is provided at the completion of the assessment and any further action or retraining is conducted. This is not only a great opportunity to assess the operator but to also observe common tasks and ensure that all relevant hazards have been identified and to conduct an onsite review of our Safe Work Procedures.