The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration is supporting the National Education Center for Agricultural Safety’s National Farm Safety and Health Week, September 15-21. “Working Together for Safety in Agriculture” is this year’s theme. According to Dr. David Michaels, OSHA’s Assistant Secretary of Labor, “OSHA has worked diligently with agri-businesses, farm agencies and communities in recent years to increase awareness of the hazards of confined spaces, farm equipment, grain handling and other hazards in the industry in an effort to promote safety and health on America’s farms.” Farm Safety Week is not a new phenomenon, it has been observed annually since 1944 during the month of September when farmers prepare for harvest.
Great emphasis is placed on safety in the agriculture industry because it has the highest fatality rates of any industry, according to OSHA. Farm workers are at high risk for a number of fatal and nonfatal injuries that include:
- Work-related lung diseases
- Heat exposure
- Noise-induced hearing loss
- Skin diseases
- Certain cancers associated with chemical use and prolonged sun exposure
In grain handling facilities major hazards include:
- Engulfment
- Falls
- Auger entanglement
- “Struck by”
- Combustible dust explosions
- Electrocution hazards
According to OSHA, approximately half of farm workers are Hispanic therefore employers must conduct all required training in a language and vocabulary workers are able to understand.
Compliance Poster Company (CPC) has an extensive line of agricultural-related posters and publications in both English and Spanish. Some of these products are mandatory-to-post or mandatory-to-communicate and others are informative tools to reinforce training workers receive. For a comprehensive compliance audit call CPC at 800.817.7678 and a Compliance Advisor can walk you through what is required by state and federal law.
Check out some of CPC’s top selling agricultural-related products:
Heat Stress Prevention Poster English and Spanish available
Federal Agriculture Safety Poster English and Spanish available
Federal Bilingual Agriculture Tractor Poster
Federal Pesticide Poster English and Spanish available