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Farmstrong has taken overall honours at this year's New Zealand Workplace Health and Safety Awards.
Fifteen awards were presented at a gala dinner at the Cordis in Auckland on Wednesday night, having been postponed from the original June date due to Covid-19.
Peter Bateman, convenor of the judging panel and editor of Safeguard, said Farmstrong's intense focus on the mental health of the rural community was to be commended.
"Farmstrong seeks to engage with farmers in a relatable and authentic way which a generation ago would have seemed unlikely," Bateman said.
"Farmstrong also has a real commitment to research, which is generating statistics that are being shared within New Zealand and abroad."
The awards were judged by a panel which included representatives from WorkSafe, NZ Council of Trade Unions, Safeguard, and two health and safety practitioners.
The winners were:
The WorkSafe New Zealand/ACC best overall contribution to improving workplace health and safety in New Zealand
Farmstrong
Dentons Kensington Swan best initiative to address a work-related safety risk
Ixom
A new training facility replicating a client site allowed trainee chemical tanker drivers to learn the basics of loading and unloading using water, eliminating the risk of chemical exposure.
WorkSafe New Zealand best initiative to address a work-related health risk
Fonterra Co-operative
Occupational health nurses were given additional training to enable them to lead and implement a new risk-based health strategy in their re-imagined role as health navigators.
Vitae best initiative to improve worker health
Treescape
Treescape partnered with the National Foundation for the Deaf to support staff with hearing loss, to offer apprenticeships to those with hearing disability, and to raise awareness of noise-induced hearing loss.
NZ Safety Blackwoods best initiative to encourage worker involvement in health and safety
Refining New Zealand
Replaced its global behavioural safety approach with E Tū Tangata, a values-based framework created and championed by its own workers and contractors.
3M best use of New Zealand design/technology to eliminate or manage a risk
Voideck NZ
A new modular suspended working platform design allowed a temporary floor to be fitted to a building under construction. The design is adaptable to voids of any shape.
Impac best collaboration between PCBUs
Frucor Suntory
A significant and open-ended collaborative project to review risks associated with machinery across multiple plants saw multiple improvements made.
ACC best leadership of an industry sector or region
Farmstrong
This wellbeing programme for farmers tracks its own progress using quantitative and qualitative measures and has become a widely recognised brand in the rural sector.
NZISM health and safety practitioner of the year
Adele Saunders, St John
Supported staff involved in traumatic events and had built a model of psychological care which aimed to build adaptive capacity for staff to be able to dynamically manage risk.
edenfx HSE Recruitment emerging practitioner of the year
Gareth Beck, Aurecon
Formed the Emerging Safety Leaders group to help establish a solid pipeline of younger people into the H&S profession.
Vero Liability health & safety representative of the year
Chris Gorringe, Department of Corrections
Issued a Provisional Improvement Notice to get door access made safer after a number of staff were able to be assaulted due to design faults, and contributed to the new design.
Countdown lifetime achievement awards
Colonel Clare Bennett
Recognised for developing a mental health strategy for the NZ Defence Force which had achieved real culture change and had been adopted by other organisations.
Mike Cosman
Recognised for devoting his working life to health an safety, including being an influential member of the Independent Taskforce which outlined new legislation and a new regulator.
ecoPortal judges' commendation awards went to:
Department of Corrections
Developed a structured, repeatable deep-drive approach to critical risks which highly engaged senior leaders, guaranteed input from staff and identified clear actions.
Grant Pritchard, Spark New Zealand
An advocate for mentally healthy workplaces who had created a 600-strong peer support community within Spark and had influenced other organisations on psychological safety.
The awards, which began in 2005, were organised by Safeguard magazine and supported by WorkSafe New Zealand.