About Us
Membership

MERS has been providing mediations services mainly in the workplace environment since 1999.

We have conducted in excess of 600 workplace mediations and a variety of mediations at the Magistrates Court of South Australia

We have been engaged on many occasions by Return to Work SA agents, employers and, employees in South Australia to mediate workplace disputes as well as commercial disputes.

In addition to our mediation services, we provide:

Industrial Relations advisory and advocacy service, and

Appearances before various Tribunals, including Fair Work Commission, the SA Employment Tribunal and the Equal Opportunity Commission of South Australia.

Our services include assisting workplaces by:

Developing workplace agreements including Enterprise Agreements,

Individual Flexible Arrangement Agreements,

Employment agreements, and

Conducting independent investigations into allegations of inappropriate workplace behaviour.

Our client base includes employers and employees in both the private and public sectors.

ARE YOU AT RISK OF THEFT?

It’s easy to become complacent when it comes to farm security. Sometimes it’s just more convenient to leave the ute keys in the ignition when it’s parked in the shed. How often do you lock the front door when you’re off down the paddock?

Theft from farms is actually a big problem. According to a 2015 University of New England study, the biggest criminal activities affecting farmers are trespassing and illegal hunting or fishing, stock theft, theft of tools or equipment, fuel theft and illegal rubbish dumping. Here are some tips to help keep your property safe.

NO ONE HOME?

If no one lives on your property, or if you’re away for the day or away on holidays, arrange for someone to regularly check on it. Even if this might not stop opportunistic theft, it does mean you’re able to get the police involved at the earliest possible time in the hope they can catch those responsible.

KEEP AN INVENTORY

Know what you own. Keep a complete list of all your tools, machinery and equipment in a safe place. Write down serial numbers and take photographs. It’ll help police track down the items and help with your insurance claim if the items can’t be returned.

BE INSURED

This seems obvious, but it’s all too easy to be underinsured — and you might not notice until it’s too late. Review your insurance coverage to make sure you have enough and that everything is included on your policy.

KEEP YOUR KEYS SAFE

Don’t leave keys in vehicles, no matter how convenient it might seem. Install a secure key cabinet in a suitable location and keep it locked.

LOCK UP YOUR FUEL

Fuel is an expensive resource and it’s among the top items stolen from farms. Keep your fuel under lock and key in a location well away from a public road and where you can monitor it.

LOCK UP YOUR VALUABLES

Tools, machinery and larger pieces of equipment like air compressors, pumps and generators are all prime targets for theft. Include them on your inventory. And, most importantly, lock your sheds and toolboxes where you keep these items.

MAKE ITEMS TRACEABLE

Engrave items so they are easily identified and hard to sell on. Or install GPS trackers on them so they can be located if they are stolen.

If you’ve received a letter from the EPA or want to get ahead of the game, call our office today and book in your first consult—FREE for Members.

The EPA has now signalled they’re cracking down on dairies.

SADA is taking the time to get trained up on a comprehensive tool to evaluate your Effluent Management and mechanism for submitting your plan.

Dairy effluent is described as a potential point source of nutrient pollution for waterways and mismanagement of it risks impacting the environment. Environmental legislation in all Australian States and Territories has set a minimum standard that dairies must comply with to prevent nutrient pollution leaving the farm boundaries. Compliance with such legislation requires that all dairies produce up-to-date and validated technical information about options for effectively managing its effluent.

The Australian dairy industry has changed dramatically since deregulation in 2000, with increased average herd size and increased intensity of use in supporting areas around the dairy. The increased volumes of effluent and solids generated must be considered in effluent and manure management plans.

To make the best use of Australia's knowledge in sustainable dairy management to progress effective and nationally consistent approaches. Agriculture Victoria and Dairy Australia collaborated to release national guidelines for dairy feed pads inline with a national trend towards larger, more intensive farms.

In addition to the Code of Practice for Milking Shed Effluent, the EPA in South Australia has drafted an odour separation distance guideline as well as a new planning and development guideline for intensive dairies. Both are consistent with the new national guidelines.

EFFLUENT MANAGEMENT PLAN GUIDELINES

• Effluent System Overview
• Growing Feed using Effluent
• Risk and Farm return
• State Guidelines
• Economics
• On Farm Data Collection
• Effluent system Components
• Planning intensive operations
• Nutrient Calculator and toolkit
• Geotechnical investigations and liners
• Dairy WatBal—hydraulic model for pond sizing

SADA is now managing the SA JD Dairy Score program, which it inherited from PIRSA this year. This means that Certificates and risk ratings already applied in many cases for over 15 years will be maintained in cooperation with private Veterinary practitioners, as previously.

As you have previously indicated to PIRSA that you are happy for your details to be shared with SADA, we will be able to continue to support your participation in the program. SADA will issue certificates to producers who are enroled and will provide reminders for tests to Vets and producers as needed.

The former Dairy ManaJD Program

The South Australian cattle industry, dairy processors and PIRSA developed the Dairy ManaJD program in 2004 based on a National Dairy Assurance Scoring system for Johne’s disease in Australian dairy herds.

This program was funded by the SA Cattle Industry Fund, administered through the SA Cattle Advisory Group that has representatives of both the beef and dairy industries. The program was designed in partnership with dairy food processors, SA dairy veterinary practitioners, the Dairy Authority of SA, and PIRSA.

The vision for Dairy ManaJD was to implement effective management of Johne’s disease in the South Australian dairy industry to improve on farm productivity, trade access and product quality through a quality management approach.

In South Australia, all Dairy Assurance Scores have been based on:

• Full herd blood tests of individual cattle over 2 years of age, with follow-up of any reactors
• Improved calf rearing (3 step plan) and calf credits, Annual audits
• Biennial maintenance or Check Tests of the herd using the HEC (Herd Environmental Culture) test.
• Individual Certificates issued to producers.

In 2018, most SA dairies were enrolled in the program, with over 70% of herds testing negative and maintaining this status. The SA program had significant differences to some interstate programs, but is now consistent with published scoring systems by Dairy Australia.

Please read the SADA JD Dairy Score Manual or alternatively give the office a call if you have any questions.