During the celebration of the Ethical Trade Forums on 14 and 16 July, a workshop on Best Practices was held with the participation of five companies from the sector.
Raquel Torá, Quality Technician at Frutas Alhambra, opened the session with a presentation of the methodology for avoiding injuries to workers caused by manual work and repeated movements or postural overload, through the implementation of warm-up and stretching exercises prior to the working day. The different results obtained, such as the reduction of injuries and occupational accidents, improved performance, together with the good working climate generated, were a reflection of this best practice. Raquel shared some audios with the voices of the workers themselves explaining the benefits obtained since this practice was implemented in the company.
Secondly, Ana Chaffey, Quality Manager of the company Royalveg, described how they faced the challenge of Covid-19 with best practices in the company and the measures that were applied immediately, with special relevance to the harvesting personnel and the problem of worker transport. The creation of the Crisis Committee and the subsequent list of measures that were implemented in offices and in the warehouse, as well as the measures implemented in the field, resulted in “0” contagion at the end of the campaign, which has encouraged them to prepare a plan for the next campaign that has already been defined.
Juan Pérez Egea, Director of Human Resources and Sergio Castillo, Director of the PRL Department of Cooperativa Alimer, detailed in great detail the implementation of the measures taken in their facilities and for their workers for the protection of the Covid-19, offering abundant graphic information of their facilities already prepared for the prevention of any incidence related to the virus. Shielding of posts, social distancing, disinfectants and cleaning of facilities, information and protocols were some of the points included in their presentation.
Enrique Gomariz, Frutas Poveda’s Quality Technician, offered a best practice in relation to the exercise as minimization of labor risks and its impact in the mental health of the worker applied in his company. This practice is directly focused on the physical and mental well-being of the workers, which has a positive effect on motivation, on the quality of the work carried out and on the working climate. Therefore, it is a low cost measure but of great impact for the company.
Emilio José Gancedo, Quality and Purchasing Manager at Zanobeet, participated with a best practice regarding new technologies applied to the food industry to facilitate the relationship and control of workers both in the field and in the factory. Elements that facilitate access to electronic signatures, certified communications, etc, are tools that make it easier for managers and those in charge of Human Resources to verify that all workers are registered and that they are receiving their documentation in order, or that each worker has signed their documentation correctly.