Safety guide for seafood industry in NT

A new guide has been produced to assist the Northern Territory Seafood Industry understand and manage its work health and safety requirements. The guide was produced in a collaboration between NT WorkSafe and the Northern Territory Seafood Council.

NT WorkSafe Director of Operations Neil Burgess said the guide was a good example of NT WorkSafe working with industry to support businesses in developing a safer workplace.

“The idea for developing a guide for the seafood industry came about from a comment made by a fishing vessel owner during a workplace visit,” Burgess said.

“The vessel owner indicated that with all the different Northern Territory and Commonwealth legislation that his industry had to comply with, it would helpful to have a single document to refer to which explained the work health and safety requirements.”

The Northern Territory Seafood Industry covers a diverse range of workplaces, from wild catch fisheries and aquaculture, to the processing, trade and retailing of seafood.

“Each workplace has its own unique hazards, when you consider some of the harsh environments this industry operates in,” said Burgess.

“We consulted with each subsector of the industry to make sure they had input into the development of the guide.

“Mud crabbers operating out of a dinghy in the croc-infested rivers face some different hazards compared to a prawn trawler in the Gulf of Carpentaria, and we wanted everyone to have their input.”

“The NT Seafood Council was invaluable in connecting us to each industry segment and coordinating industry input into the development of the guide,” said Burgess.

Northern Territory Seafood Council CEO Katherine Winchester said the initiative shown by NT WorkSafe’s Karyn Ellis to get this project off the ground is commended.

“The Seafood Council is exceptionally pleased with the final product and is proudly distributing this guide to our members and the local seafood industry,” Winchester said.

The ‘Work Health and Safety Handbook: a safety guide for the NT Professional Seafood Industry’ is available from the NT Seafood Council website.