ShopCare: connecting for healthier workplaces
ShopCare is building and connecting a community of people to lead positive change for the health, safety and wellbeing of people in our industry.
Led by CEO Liz May, formerly GM of Logistics for Countdown, ShopCare is implementing a range of initiatives to lead workplace improvements and to help put in place new processes and procedures to make workers safe.
The team is currently focussing on four workstreams: In-Store Safety, Manual Handling, Mobile Plant and Equipment, and Transport. A future workstream will focus on ways to reduce Violent and Aggressive Behaviour.
The Mobile Plant and Equipment workstream aims to understand better and address the factors contributing to work-related vehicle incidents in New Zealand, a major cause of work-related fatalities and injuries. This is also a priority focus area for WorkSafe and ShopCare’s collaborative approach to safety management that has contributed to several Good Practice Guidelines. Managing Work Site traffic, Safe Reversing and Spotting Practices and Seatbelts at Work are now published on the WorkSafe website.
Collaboration, knowledge sharing and co-creation are at the core of ShopCare’s values. By working together and leading the industry to achieve positive outcomes in terms of health, safety and wellbeing, the lives of workers across New Zealand are improved.
ShopCare is also working with organisations to help identify critical risks and to put into place controls and solutions to reduce risk and the potential for injury.
In the first-ever industry review, ShopCare has collected critical risks from multiple retail, manufacturing, and supply chain businesses and identified the most common critical risks. Businesses sometimes operate in their own ‘bubble’, so ShopCare leads the sharing of information between businesses. You can view the list of critical risks on the ShopCare website.
Through sharing sessions, webinars and workshops, ShopCare is helping health and safety representatives see how other businesses are operating, which has led to a series of ‘a-ha’ moments for many businesses. They have taken some of the ideas and implemented them in their own business to reduce risk. This initiative facilitates sharing information and ideas and benefits businesses of all sizes, particularly those who don’t have a dedicated health and safety representative.
You can be a part of this community, creating positive change and contributing to improved health, safety and wellbeing outcomes for our industry.
Connect with ShopCare by:
- Following the Shopcare LinkedIn page
- Registering for the ShopCare newsletter
You can also become part of ShopCare’s Critical Risk research by contributing your risks and controls and participating in the sharing sessions.
Liz May is the CEO of ShopCare – Retail and Supply Chain Health and Safety Sector Group.