Safety Debrief Sparks Ideas

_A greater understanding of risk management measures, mandatory Safety Officers, and industry-standard safety training were just some of the ideas discussed at an incident debrief in Auckland recently. _

Prompted by an on-set accident in February, the incident debrief brought together the line producer, relevant HoDs and safety personnel (as well as representatives from the Techos’ Guild) for a frank and robust discussion.

Here at Techos’ Guild, we applaud this effort – the debrief provided an opportunity to examine the incident in question, without any sense of recrimination or accusation, and participants were able to reflect and consider how it might be avoided in future. As with most accidents, a chain of contributing events led up to the actual incident. It was agreed that the incident could have been avoided with a more robust risk management approach on both prep and production days.

The meeting also prompted a discussion about safety measures in the industry as a whole and how we can continue to enjoy a reputation as a safe industry internationally. The discussion was timely, as the Guild is currently investigating options to update the Safety Code of Practice (SCOP) to make it more user-friendly and useful overall.

The participants acknowledged that as an industry made up largely of self-employed professionals, it was important that safety requirements were not unduly costly or time-intensive. However, it was agreed that there was scope to consider additional safety precautions.

As one participant noted, “The better prepared you are, the safer you are,” and each of the group’s recommendations was about ensuring those working on set were as well prepared as possible. These included:

• Mandatory requirement for Safety Officers on set, with the producer formally taking responsibility for opting out if the job is deemed too small or not appropriate.
• Developing risk management best practices for use by HoDs and producers that would include recommendations for contingency planning and an understanding of secondary measures as inevitable onset changes occur.
• Encouraging a debrief following the tech recce for each job to ensure no one starts on set with unanswered questions.
• Systematically sharing lessons learned with the wider industry when incidents happen (via debriefing sessions).
• Introducing a fixed-term and renewable ‘set safe’ qualification that included risk management as well as health and safety training for all freelance crew.

As we embark on revising the Safety Code of Practice and consider how we can make it more effective for the industry, we’re keen to hear your thoughts about these ideas, as well as any other recommendations you might have about safety in the industry.