NIOSH Reports On Worker Safety On The Farm

Washington, DC (CompNewsNetwork) - The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health recently published a report studying workers' safety in the farming industry. The study finds that:

U.S. Farm Operations and Adult Farm Workers*

• In 2007, 2.2 million farms were in operation in the U.S.
• Approximately 5.3 million adults worked on U.S. farms in 2004, including 1.8 million hired workers and 3.5 million adult family members.
• The majority of farms in the U.S. do not utilize hired workers. Less than 20% (434,000) of farms reported having hired workers 20 years of age and older.
• In 2006, an estimated 59% of the 4.2 million tractors in use were equipped with a roll-over protective structure (ROPS).

* Worker counts and non-fatal data were obtained from the 2004 Occupational Injury Surveillance of Production Agriculture. Worker and injury counts exclude contract laborers.

Non-fatal Adult Work-related Farm Injuries, 2004*

• An estimated 80,300 work-related injuries occurred to adults on farms (9.2 injuries every hour).
• Almost 75% (58,600) of the injuries were to adults living on the farm.
• The most common types of injuries were sprains, strains, and torn ligaments (22%), fractures (15%), and cuts (13%).
• The most common sources of injury were animals (16%), the ground (16%; usually from falls), and tractors (5%).

* Worker counts and non-fatal data were obtained from the 2004 Occupational Injury Surveillance of Production Agriculture. Worker and injury counts exclude contract laborers.

Fatal Adult Work-related Farm Injuries, 2003-2007**

• From 2003 to 2007, 2,233 workers 20 years of age and older died in agricultural production 25.9 deaths/100,000 workers).
• Twenty-seven percent (603) of deaths were to hired workers.
• Of the 2,233 workers who died on farms, 40% (888) were 65 years of age or older.
• Tractors were the most common source of fatalities (36%), and overturns were the most common cause of death (365 deaths).

**Fatality data were obtained with restricted access to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries. Calculations by NIOSH may differ from those published by BLS and views expressed here do not necessarily reflect the views of BLS.

Adult Work-related Tractor Fatalities in
Agriculture by Event, 2003-2007**

**Fatality data were obtained with restricted access to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries. Calculations by NIOSH may differ from those published by BLS and views expressed here do not necessarily reflect the views of BLS. 

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