2021 Forklift Operator of the Year - Time To Shine at Brisbane Markets®

The Brisbane Produce Market (BML) again hosted the 2021 Forklift Operator of the Year event. This year's grand final was held on 27 October 2021 as part of the Brisbane Markets Safety Month activities.

With over 4,500 people working or doing business at the Brisbane Markets® site daily, the Brisbane Produce Market has the highest concentration of forklift operators in Queensland with 386 registered forklifts and 1,072 forklift operator permits active on site. Therefore, promoting a positive safety culture is one of BML's main priorities. The event is a fantastic way to reward forklift operators who do the right thing and take a proactive approach to manage safety during their daily work activities.

IMAGE CAPTION: 2021 Forklift Operator of the Year Alfred Finau is on the 2021 course. Photo credit: https://news.brisbanemarkets.com.au/media-releases/

This year's event ran over six weeks. Forklift operators were nominated and entered an observation round where their safe work practices were assessed by Market Officers, Operations senior staff, Brismark staff, Work Health and Safety Queensland (WHSQ) Representatives and members of BML's Advisory Committees. Because the observation period runs over several weeks, the event worked to influence a positive safety culture over an extended period, rather than just on the Grand Final day.

The results of the observation round were tallied, and the top ten finalists competed over a competency course that tested their skills under safety, time, and procedural requirements.

With any significant event, there can only be one winner. We congratulate Alfred Finau from Costa Farms on his sensational commitment to safety and his Grand Final win. Alfred was presented with the coveted Forklift Operator of the Year title and awarded a cash prize of $3,000.

After coming third last year, the win was personal for Mr Finau, who had the goal of securing the title so that he could go head-to-head with his brother Na'a, who won the event in 2019.

"When Na'a won, he shared his winnings with me, so now I get to repay the favour!" Alfred said.

The event was hosted by Brisbane Markets Limited, with event sponsors Toyota Material Handling, The Drug Detection Agency, SBP Australia and Brismark. As a proud supporter of the event and supplier to BML, our cleaning operatives supported on the big day, ensuring each of the competition forklifts remains safe and sanitised throughout driver change over.

IMAGE CAPTIONS: 2021 Forklift Operator of the Year - Award presentations and Eaton Services Group event and cleaning support.

Eaton Services Group looks forward to being part of future initiatives just like this. Sharing in the Brisbane Markets Safety Month activities and the Forklift Operator of the Year Competition has once again been a rewarding and exhilarating experience for all involved.