The HARMfree Transport initiative has been selected to receive an ACC Workplace Injury Prevention Grant of $850,000 in much needed funding to develop a transport wellbeing hub for the industry.

This has pleased the New Zealand Trucking Association Inc - NTA, and National Road Carriers Inc - NRC.

The ACC Workplace Injury Prevention Grants programme provides funding to organisations or individuals who are striving to solve workplace health and safety challenges.

'As an industry organisation we are closely connected to our members," says NTA General Manager Carol McGeady.

"Their health and safety and HR staff often tell us it's really difficult to connect across different companies. They want to learn and solve issues to create a safer workplace for their team, but it can be really challenging connecting with their peers to seek support, discuss issues and create better processes."

The grants are designed to be a vehicle through which to create impactful health and safety improvements. The initiative will include the implementation of a Good Work Design approach to address psychosocial risks of workers in the transport sector to reduce injury.

NTA and NRC, in partnership with AutoSense Ltd, Fatigue Management Fit for Duty Ltd, and Success Formula Ltd (NTI) will be working together to create a set of tools, information, resources, and training material that will be tailored to the needs of the transport industry. The programme, called HARMfree Transport, will be focused on improving workplace safety and worker wellbeing and includes the implementation of consistent processes, procedures and policies that can be adopted as a roadmap to achieving a risk-free workplace.

'Creating a programme that is industry-designed, industry-led, and supported by ACC, means that the programme will be designed in a language and style that's practical for transport," says Carol. "With the right systems and processes in place, workplace health and safety incidents will reduce, creating a safer work environment that results in less claims to ACC.”

According to Carol, HARMfree Transport will not only deliver the tools and resources required to create safer workplaces, but it will also provide an environment that encourages H&S and HR experts to reach out for support from their counterparts across the transport industry. The programme is being created to foster the sharing of knowledge via an industry network that discusses and solves problems with a view to creating a safer workplace environment.

'It follows on that a key outcome of a safer workplace environment is safer roads," says NRC CEO Justin Tighe-Umbers. "With stronger health and safety systems and processes in place, hazards and risks are reduced and this flows through to safer drivers and trucks travelling on our roads.

'The programme is ‘human-centred' in its design. It's about creating a sea of transport industry safety champions who share their knowledge of what works, and what doesn't, on a shared mission to create safer workplaces. The programme is designed by the transport industry for the transport industry, so we know this funding will make a difference.”

Expected outcomes will include increased use of best practice guidelines, greater engagement across all staff on the development of Good Work Design and an enhanced understanding of dynamic risk with a significant reduction of harm and injuries.

Carol and Justin both agree, that without the support from ACC it would be very difficult to get a project like this off the ground.

'This initial funding enables us to accelerate development of the HARMfree Transport programme. Helping our transport operators create safer workplaces and share best practice will have so many positive flow-on effects – least of all safer drivers and vehicles on our roads. It's exciting to announce this initiative and I thank ACC and our partners for making it happen,” says Carol .

National Road Carriers Association (NRC) and NZ Trucking Association (NTA) are the leading industry associations representing the transport and supply chain industry nationwide. The Associations represent 3300 members, who collectively operate 30,000 trucks throughout New Zealand. NRC and NTA support their members with legal, financial, employment relations, health & safety, workplace relations, business, and environmental advice. They advocate on behalf of members and work with Central and Local Government on road transport infrastructure and regulations.