Image courtesy SAWIA

Wine business operations present safety challenges for both new and experienced workers.

With operations encompassing wineries, vineyards, bottling facilities, warehousing, cellar doors, hospitality venues, laboratories and tourism experiences, risks are numerous and diverse and can be underestimated.

To help create a safer wine industry, the South Australian Wine Industry Association (SAWIA) has developed a Safety Induction Course which is hosted on its new e-learning platform called WineSafety.

The 30-minute course covers key hazards, incidents and controls and features interviews with wine industry personnel and stunning video imagery from South Australian wine regions.

SAWIA Chief Executive Brian Smedley said managing safety risks effectively was one of the most important responsibilities of wine industry employers and employees.

“From working in confined spaces to working in extreme weather conditions, and from working around machinery and chemicals to working at heights, there are safety risks associated with many winery and vineyard operations,” Smedley said.

“Safety risks can be effectively managed, and this course will assist wine businesses and their employees to identify the risks and how to control them. It will be a key tool for wineries to use during worker inductions and training, and will help create a stronger safety culture.”

Minister for Primary Industries and Regional Development, Clare Scriven, said the new safety course and videos were important safety initiatives.

“South Australia is indisputably Australia’s wine state, and everyone who works in this industry should have a safe working environment. This will protect this important industry as well as support future growth,” Minister Scriven said.

“To make this as simple as possible for wine businesses, this video addresses common safety issues facing the wine industry to assist SAWIA in delivering this important safety initiative.”

The new course complements the comprehensive range of safety resources at SAWIA including the Work Health and Safety Guidelines for the Wine Industry, the free safety resources in four different languages for seasonal workers and the free Fit4Work safety tools for vineyard and winery workers.

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