S.E. Jones, L.K.
Isaacs and T.L.
Bean
NIOSH Education and Information Division
Agriculture
is consistently listed as one of the three most dangerous
occupations in the nation. Although agricultural workers account
for less than 3 percent of the work force, they account for
14 percent of work-related deaths (NSC, 1993). Farmworkers
suffer the highest work-related injury, morbidity and mortality
rates in the nation. The U.S agricultural migrant worker is
exposed to numerous hazards due to the wide range of tasks
performed while planting, harvesting and packaging a variety
of crops. Some examples of migrant occupational injury and
illness are: traumatic injury by tractor or vehicle accidents;
amputations and lacerations from entanglement in machinery;
dermatitis from exposure to plants and pesticides; fractures
resulting from falls from ladders or equipment; pesticide
poisoning; eye injuries; parasitic infections and infectious
hepatitis; and heatstroke, hypothermia or frostbite (Murphy,
1992). Agricultural injury and illness surveillance data are
sorely lacking in Ohio, especially for the migrant farmworker
population. An estimated 10,000 migrants travel to Ohio each
year to harvest crops such as pickle cucumbers, tomatoes,
apples and nursery products. Without this necessary seasonal
labor, growers would not be able to maintain their high rate
of production.
This
statewide needs assessment provides baseline data on how and
why migrant farm laborers are at high-risk of injury and illness
in Ohio. The project consists of two phases: an employee interview
and an employer questionnaire. Targeting the migrant population,
the face-to-face employee interview consisted of a series
of close-ended questions in Spanish. Approximately 100 interviews
were conducted at migrant health clinics, labor camps and
the Migrant Rest Center in Fremont, Ohio. Additionally , a
written version, in both Spanish and English, was administered
to approximately 150 migrants. The questions addressed the
demographics of the migrant population in Ohio, as well as
issues such as incidence of injury and illness on the job,
prevalence of safety training received and availability of
sanitation facilities on the worksite. In the second phase
of the project, 250 questionnaires were mailed to a random
sample of growers who employ migrants in Ohio. The questions
were primarily concerned with implementation of a formal safety
program, specific safety and health training for employees,
and possible barriers to employee management communication
related to safety. A statistical analysis of the data will
be presented, as will results and conclusions concerning the
state of health and safety for migrant employees in Ohio.
The results and conclusions of this study will be used as
the basis for the future funding and development of educational
materials related to safety and health issues.
Disclaimer
and Reproduction Information: Information in NASD does not represent
NIOSH policy. Information included in NASD appears by permission
of the author and/or copyright holder. More
NASD Review: 04/2002
This
research abstract was extracted from a portion of the proceedings
of "Agricultural Safety and Health: Detection, Prevention and
Intervention," a conference presented by the Ohio State University
and the Ohio Department of Health, sponsored by the Centers
for Disease Control/National Institute for Occupational Safety
and Health.
S.E.
Jones, L.K. Isaacs and T.L. Bean, The Ohio State University,
Columbus, OH.
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