Why Worksafe NZ agrees with Workdek’s approach to fall protection

When developing Workdek, along with wanting to work at the same speed we would on stable ground, a large part of our philosophy was to eliminate falls rather than introduce systems that would make potential falls more manageable. This is directly in line with WorkSafe NZ’s hierarchy of fall protection which states that it’s better to prevent a fall than it is to catch it.

Who are Worksafe NZ and why are they important?

Worksafe NZ is an organisation that regulates New Zealand’s workplace health and safety. Their organisation is composed of 550 staff nationwide who work tirelessly to lift New Zealand’s health and safety performance, supporting Kiwis’ right to get home in one piece. Their three key roles include: regulatory confidence, harm prevention, and system leadership. By implementing the most significant reforms to workplace health and safety in more than 20 years, they are helping the government reach their goal of reducing workplace injuries and fatalities by 25% by the end of 2020.

It’s time to shift the statistics

According to Worksafe NZ, an estimated 700-900 people die prematurely every year in New Zealand due to work-related ill-health, and a further 50-60 people are killed in work related incidents. It’s not hard to imagine how many of these deaths are related to construction work. Construction sites are incredibly dangerous and it’s our duty to put preventative measures in place to protect our teams.

Safety shouldn’t be a checklist, it should be part of your culture. When you put the safety of your team first, they know they’re valued. When builders feel safe and valued they’re less likely to mess around on-site, less likely to go on smoko, they’re more productive, and more likely to respect your authority. Improving your team’s well-being ultimately improves your wealth. As an industry, we need to do better. The change starts with you.

How safe is Workdek?

Workdek was designed to be as stable as solid ground. Because we have our own building company, we understand the needs of builders and why/where we’re more likely to fall while elevated on a building site. Workdek prevents potential falls, and objects from falling. Our system consists of 7 key components which all play a major role in ensuring the utmost stability possible.

The Workdek system can only be installed by trained professionals which ensures no mistakes or shortcuts are made during assembly. To date, there haven’t been any incidents related to failings on Workdek’s part. While Workdek is more expensive than safety nets, it’s safer and has a higher return on investment. The majority of builders who try Workdek say they’ll never go back to using safety nets or other inferior safety systems.

Ensure your team’s safety with Workdek

Safety nets and other inferior ‘safety’ systems aren’t as safe or reliable as they’re made out to be. There’s a better way to ensure your team’s safety, and Workdek is the answer you’ve been looking for. Workdek’s primary reason for existing is safety. The fact Workdek also increases productivity and profitability are happy side effects from an amazing product that ticks many boxes.

Our philosophy is shared with Worksafe NZ which means we have your best interests at heart. With Workdek, you can improve health & safety while providing a way for your team to work on all site levels, quickly and more profitably. We promise you that when you make the switch from unsafe systems today, your tradies will thank you. And so will your accountant. It’s time to build more and make more with your new stable workmate, Workdek.

To buy or hire Workdek for your next building project, visit www.workdek.com or call 0800 3255 7233 today.