Mana | Movement of the People

Ae Marika! 23 June 2014

Another key spot for me to meet people is Auckland Airport, on my way back from parliament to either go to Waitakere or the North Shore, or to catch link flights to Whangarei, Kerikeri, or Kaitaia on constituency business. Every time I stop there I get collared by people – all with their own stories, their own take on life, and of course their advice for how I can be a better MP!

One of the stories that hit hard came from different guys talking to me about forestry safety. One of them had lost a son in a forestry accident, and another was a forestry safety inspector. Forestry is a big business in the north and a big employer of young Maori men including a lot of my relations, and when I’m out on the road early in the mornings I’ll often catch up with crews stopping in at their local garages in Kaitaia, Kaeo and Kaikohe to gas up and get kai for the day, so forestry stories are more than just politics for me.

So when the Independent Forestry Safety Review came to Whangarei last week I went along for a listen. The Review is trying to identify the reasons for the high rate of serious injuries and deaths in forestry work. Since 2008, 96 workers have been seriously injured and one killed in Northland (28 across the country)

Everyone was at the meeting – workers, contractors, forest managers, forest owners and others – and I learnt heaps just from listening.

Training was clearly a big issue – making sure workers were ready to go, that the theory fitted with the practice, that safety was reinforced at every stage, and that when workers got started experienced hands weren’t taken out of the line to show newbies what to do every day.

And then of course old hands and contractors still had to make a call about when a guy was ready to be out on his own, that they understood the importance of safety, knew how to deal with hazards, and could cope with emergencies that might arise.

They also talked about getting the crew together at the start of each day to plan how the day is going to roll out, making sure everybody is in a good physical and emotional state, everyone’s got the right gear, identifying the hazards, having good maps and where necessary good technology to stay in touch with one another.

There were also some clear differences about how to handle issues (the politics of forestry I suppose) and I saw a few different managers/owners/contractors squaring off. And it was also painfully obvious that most of the workers were Maori and most of the bosses were Pakeha, and just as obvious was that most of those doing the talking were Pakeha as well, although the audience was about 50/50. No offence intended – just an obvious reality check.

There seemed to be a genuine desire to get safety standards higher, so I’ll stay in touch with some of the boys to make sure their voice gets heard. And I’d better have a sit-down with my next door neighbour too, ‘cause Shorty Murray knows more about forestry than I will ever know!

AE MARIKA is an article written every week by Hone Harawira, leader of the MANA Movement and Member of Parliament for Te Tai Tokerau. You are welcome to use any of the comments and to ascribe them to Mr Harawira. The full range of Hone’s articles can be found on the MANA website at www.mana.net.nz.