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Archived News Release--Caution:
information may be out of date.
For more information call: (202) 219-8151
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) strongly
supports Farm Safety Week, Sept. 21-27.
"Year after year, agriculture continues to rank as one of the most
hazardous occupations, with 775 deaths and 100,000 injuries and illnesses,
according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics," said Assistant Secretary of Labor
for Occupational Safety and Health Joseph A. Dear. "There are certain steps
that farmers and their families can take to abate the hazards that are causing
these deaths, injuries and illnesses."
- Make sure that your farm tractor has a rollover protective structure
and that you use seat belts while the tractor is in operation.
- Make sure that your machinery has guards. Unplug the machinery
before unclogging or servicing it, and make sure that guards are replaced after
maintenance.
- Review material safety data sheets and labels that come with
chemical products and communicate information concerning hazards to your
workers.
- Conduct periodic safety checks in and around buildings and lots and
remove or protect hazardous materials. Not only is a well-maintained place
safer, it also makes work easier.
- Take necessary precautions to avoid entrapment and suffocation
caused by unstable surfaces of grain storage bins, silos or hoppers.
- Be aware that methane gas, carbon dioxide, ammonia and hydrogen
sulfide can be present in unventilated grain silos and manure pits in
quantities sufficient to cause asphyxiation or explosion.
A safer, more healthful workplace provides such benefits as lower
worker compensation premiums and medical costs, increased production, and
improved morale.
A single free copy of an OSHA Program Highlight on Farm Safety may be
obtained by sending a self-addressed label to the U.S. Department of Labor,
OSHA/OSHA Publications, P.O. Box 37535 Washington, DC 20013-7535. Telephone
(202) 219-4667, fax (202) 219-9266.
Archived News Release--Caution:
information may be out of date.
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