Grains of Knowledge

Ag Safety: Detasseling

This post is the second in a series on agricultural safety that will educate readers about the risks associated with various farming and agribusiness jobs, as well as offer helpful tips for reducing and preventing hazards at your family or business operation.

The Basics of Detasseling

Are you familiar with detasseling corn and the benefits it creates for farmers? Farmers detassel corn to assist in the reproduction of the crop, thus creating a better type of corn seed for the next year’s harvest. One of the key benefits of cross-pollination is the growth of hybrid corn, which produces much larger yields than corn left to pollinate naturally.

Located at the top of the corn plant, the tassel consists of thin, flower-like strings that contain the plant’s pollen. Detasseling involves removing the tassel from certain rows of corn, and placing the tassels on the ground. This is a form of pollination control, which leaves the plant grain of the detasseled stalks to be fertilized by the tassels of other plants to create a hybrid.

While detasseling enables farmers to produce a better, more substantial crop, it can result in hazards to farm workers. This post highlights the risks associated with detasseling, and offers recommended safety precautions.

Common Risks and Precautions

Detasseling can be done one of two ways — manually or by machine. Each of these techniques exposes workers to a variety of risks associated with detasseling. Some of the most common injuries incurred by workers include the following:

Dehydration and Heat Exhaustion

Detasseling requires farm employees to work for hours in the heat and sun. And, without proper precautions, workers can become dehydrated or experience heat stroke. To avoid exposure to extreme heat, most detasseling operations start in the early morning hours and wrap up before the midday heat. To prevent workers from becoming dehydrated, farms should encourage workers to bring water into the field. Detasseling companies should also provide water to workers.

Eye and Skin Abrasions, Skin Rash

Workers move through rows of corn, coming into contact with the rough, and even sharp, stalks. To protect their eyes, workers are required to wear safety glasses. Additionally farms or detasseling companies may require workers to adhere to a dress code that include long-sleeved shirts and long pants. Wearing full-covering clothing can help reduce exposure to cuts and scrapes.

Ankle/Knee Twists and Sprains

Walking through uneven or rocky fields can cause workers to trip or fall. To avoid ankle and knee injuries, detasseling workers are encouraged to wear comfortable tennis shoes or boots. 

Electrocution

One of the less common, but serious risks associated with detasseling is electrocution. Works run the risk of becoming electrocuted by irrigation equipment found in the field, especially if the field is wet and muddy. If the irrigation system is damaged or being worked on, this can create electric vaults that run through the ground.

Recent discussions related to farm safety and detasseling include restricting child labor on non-family farms. This topic made headline news last summer after two fourteen-year-old girls were electrocuted and died while detasseling on an Illinois farm. The girls, as well as a number other workers, were electrocuted by a center pivot irrigation system.

Detasseling Resources 

A good resource on detasseling is D&D Detasseling, a detasseling company located in Michigan. The company website features information on the basics of detasseling, and provides suggestions on how to dress for detasseling

Another resource readers can use is NATS Detasseling, Inc., a detasseling company in Nebraska that is focused on creating a positive work environment and quality fieldwork. Both of these companies provide useful educational resources and safety tips.

 

Have you worked in detasseling? What safety precautions did your crew take to avoid injury? We welcome comments below from our readers! 

 

Spring Safety Tips for the Farm

Here at Westfield, we like to do our part in providing helpful tips to our followers. Below is a list of essential farm safety advice and information that we've summarized from a variety of online resources. We also included links to these great sites for your reference. Feel free to share this information with others who can benefit from these tips.    

Farm Safety Tips:

• Always wear seat belts while operating or riding tractors, trucks and other farm equipment
• Have a fire extinguisher nearby
• When leaving a tractor unattended, put it into "park", set the brake and remove the key
• Install a ROPS (rollover protective structure) on older tractors to prevent rollovers (see our previous post — Do You Have ROPS in Place to Protect You)
• Do not bypass the start safety features on your tractors
• Keep guards and shields in place
• Do not put young kids on farm equipment
• Ensure all headlights, flashing warning lights and turn signals are in good working order
• Have a Slow Moving Vehicle (SMV) emblem on your equipment
• Make sure all farm employees (including family members old enough to operate equipment) have proper training (this includes seasonal help)
• Wear proper safety equipment (goggles, ear plugs, gloves, hard hat, etc.)

   Resources

• Ag equipment visibility fact sheet: http://ohioline.osu.edu/aex-fact/pdf/AEX_598_08.pdf.
• Fun and good tips for kids: http://www.deere.com/wps/dcom/en_US/corporate/our_company/fans_visitors/kids/kids.page
• Ohio State University Extension's Ohio Ag Manager Newsletter: http://ohioagmanager.osu.edu/.

Share your farm safety tips in the comments below. We'd love to hear what precautions you've implemented to ensure a safe experience on your farm.

 Stacey Bruce is a member of the Marketing Communications team at Westfield Insurance.                                 

Ag Safety: Grain Bin Hazards and Safety Precautions

This post is the first in a series on agricultural safety that will educate readers about the risks associated with various farming and agribusiness jobs, as well as offer helpful tips for reducing and preventing hazards at your family or business operation.

Being a part of the farming and agribusiness industry can be greatly rewarding. In the U.S., families and businesses supply essential produce and consumer goods, support economic growth and contribute to the legacy of American farming.

Members of the agriculture community are aware that certain jobs and farming duties can be more hazardous than others. From operating tractors, to filling and performing maintenance on grain bins, dangers on the worksite are real and should be kept top-of-mind when developing an effective safety program.

This week’s post focuses on the hazards associated with grain bins, including key precautions that can be taken to reduce workers’ risks while performing duties in, and around, grain bins and grain dust.

Grain Bin Hazards and Safety Precautions:

Grain bins are used in a variety of agribusiness operations, including grain elevators, feed mills and farms that grow crops like corn, soybeans and wheat. Workers work in and outside of the bins, loading and unloading the grain, as well as conducting maintenance on the equipment.

Below is a list of some of the most common and hazardous situations that can exist from working with grain bins.  

• Respiratory and skin hazards — Grain dust created by the grain into bins can affect people’s health in varying degrees. While some people may not experience a reaction, others can suffer from difficulty breathing, digestion and stomach problems, or skin irritations and rashes.

 To reduce and prevent allergic reactions to grain bin dust, employees should always wear a dust mask and employers should mandate that all workers on-site wear proper protective gear appropriate for the present condition. For example, if entering a moldy grain bin, workers should be equipped with a high efficiency filter for their respirator. Additionally, all fumigated bins ventilated for several hours.

• Fire and explosion hazards — Grain dust is also extremely flammable and can be ignited easily by fire, sparks or hot bearings. Mixed with oxygen, the dust can also become highly explosive. 

Several methods can be used to reduce the possibility of a fire or explosion, such as not permitting smoking near the bins, never welding or grinding in a bin that contains grain, and performing routine maintenance checks to avoid machinery failure that causes flammable reactions.

• Flowing Grain — When workers unload grain, the grain flows out of the bin from the top center, creating a funnel-shaped flow that can submerge a worker waist-deep within a matter of seconds. This can happen as a result of moving the grain too quickly, using larger storage facilities, year-round storage of grain or a lack of awareness of the dangers associated with flowing grain. If this occurs, workers can become entrapped in the grain and suffocate.

Entrapment can be avoided by the following: never enter a grain bin alone or while the unloading equipment is running, do not enter a grain bin with automatic unloading equipment without locking the control circuit, be extremely cautious when working with out-of-condition grain and always have more than two people onsite when working in an uncertain condition.

• Collapsed Grain Bridge — Grain bridges occur when grain is moldy or during the winter months when it freezes, creating a hard crust on top of the bin. This thick crust can form over a hollow cavity within the bin, and if a worker attempts to walk across this “bridge,” they run the risk of it collapsing. If the grain bridge collapses, a worker is immediately submerged in the grain, trapped several feet below the point of entry. 

Grain bridges can be avoided by maintaining good conditions in the bin that prevent spoilage and bridging of the grain. If grain bridges occur, they look like inverted cones or funnels that appear after unloading. If you suspect a grain bridge exists, use a pole or weighted line to free it from a safe location, such as the bin roof hatch or an inside ladder. Do not walk directly across a grain bridge. 

• Grain Wall Avalanche — If grain is in a bad condition or spoiled, it can crust together, lining the bin wall. Workers may attempt to break the pillar apart, and if it is loosened, it can create an avalanche that quickly covers the bottom of the bin and any workers inside.

The most obvious form of prevention is to properly manage the condition of the grain. If grain walls do form, anyone that enters the bin should use a secure body harness that can withstand up to 5,400 lbs. of stress. Workers should be lowered from the top of the bin, dislodging the grain from the top down.

Additional safety tips:

• Install ladders inside and outside all bins.
• Require all workers go through training for specific hazardous situations related to entering and working inside of grain bins.
• Provide workers with adequate safety harnesses for entering a dangerous bin. If a hazardous situation is present, three workers should be present — one inside the bin and two outside for support.
• Do not rely on a rope, chain or pipe ladder hanging from the roof.
• When working with out-of-condition, moldy grain, do not work alone and always wear a respirator capable of filtering fine dust particles.
• Air quality inside a bin or silo should be tested prior to entry to detect the presence of combustible and toxic gases, and to determine if there is sufficient oxygen.
• If you should become trapped in a grain bin or silo, stay near the outer wall and keep moving.
• Issue a permit each time a worker enters a bin or silo, certifying that all precautions have been implemented.

Grain Bin Safety Resources: 

• National Ag Safety Database (NASD) safety topics, videos tips and other safety training resources.
• OSHA fact sheet, Worker Entry Into Grain Storage Bins
• OSHA safety and health information bulletin (SHIB), Combustible Dust in Industry: Preventing and Mitigating the Effects of Fire and Explosions
• OSHA Hazard Alert: Combustible Dust Explosions fact sheet

What precautions have you implemented on your farm or at your agribusiness? We'd like to hear from our readers, and share any additional tips that could be used to help keep workers safe while working with grain and grain bins. 

Agribusiness News - Week of April 9, 2012

USDA Extends CRP Sign-Up
 
There are so many farmers applying to idle their land -- opting to take government payments in lieu of planting crops -- that the Department of Agriculture is extending the enrollment period for a week.

The USDA would not release any data on new applicants for the land idling program, but spokesman Matt Herrick said officials there were surprised because strong crop prices had been expected to dampen interest.

Now farmers will have until Apr. 13 to apply for the Conservation Reserve program, or CRP. The program is designed to take the most environmentally sensitive land out of production.

The USDA is anxious to sign up more land to enter the program because on Sept. 30 contracts that keep about 6.5 million acres of potential farm land idle will expire.

About 30 million acres are idled under the program currently, but the 6.5-million-acre exodus will be the largest ever, USDA Under-Secretary Michael Scuse said recently.

The USDA spends about $1.8 billion a year on the program, paying "rent" to land owners, but government costs will likely go up because the USDA will have to pay more to compete with high crop prices that farmers can get for commodities such as corn. (source: Agriculture.com)

Beef Trim Debacle Bankrupts Company 

The controversy over adding lean beef trim to ground beef drove one processor to file for bankruptcy protection last week as AFA Foods Inc. said the negative publicity couldn't have come at a more terrible time for the company.  Beef processors are struggling with losses due to the extraordinarily high -- at times record-high -- prices they are paying for cattle or, in AFA's case,raw beef materials and beef prices that are not sufficient to cover costs.

Meanwhile, Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad has called for a congressional inquiry into how what he referred to as "a smear campaign" against lean beef trim got started.

Lean beef trim, also known as lean, finely textured beef, is made by separating beef from fat in beef trim that is left over when beef primals are cut into roasts and steaks. During processing, the product is sprayed with a mist of ammonium hydroxide to kill pathogens such as Escherichia coli O157:H7. Ammonium hydroxide has been approved for more than 20 years as a food safety spray, and lean beef trim, which is as much as 95% lean ground meat, is likewise approved as a nutritious and safe food product.

Nevertheless, a controversy broke out last year when celebrity chef Jamie Oliver picked up on a derogatory slang term that had been used to describe the product (“pink slime”), leading to so much consumer outrage in recent weeks that restaurants, supermarkets and school districts have pulled any ground beef made with lean beef trim.  AFA said less than 10% of the ground beef it produces uses lean beef trim, but demand for all ground beef has dropped sharply.

The company, headquartered in King of Prussia, Pa., last week closed its plant in California but continued operating its plants in Georgia, New York and Pennsylvania. (source: FeedStuffs.com)

Forest Insects and Diseases Arrive in US via Imported Plants

The trade in live plants from around the world has become a major industry in the United States, with new imports now valued at more than $500 billion annually. According to a study conducted by researchers at UC Santa Barbara's National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis, however, what has proved to be a boon for the economy has also been shown to have devastating effects on the environment.

The multidisciplinary working group found that almost 70 percent of the most damaging non-native forest insects and diseases currently afflicting U.S. forests arrived via imported live plants. The group's findings appear in the current issue of the journal Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment.

The study, led by Andrew Liebhold, a Forest Service researcher with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, shows that in the last 43 years, the quantity of plant imports to the U.S. has risen by more than 500 percent, peaking at 3.15 billion plants in 2007. Nearly half of the imported live plants entering the U.S. are destined for either California or Florida.

Once introduced, some of these imported insects and disease organisms become established, and a fraction of those become major economic pests. For example, Sudden Oak Death, which is caused by the plant pathogen Phytophthora ramorum, was introduced into the Bay Area and Big Sur regions of California via nursery plants. The disease has now spread through 14 counties in California, as well as southern Oregon, where it has caused large-scale die-off of tanoaks, live oaks, and black oaks.

The authors studied 82 high-impact invasive insects and diseases in detail. Of these, 95 percent of sap-feeding insects and 89 percent of foliage-feeding insects probably arrived on live plants. In contrast, roughly 85 percent of wood- and phloem-boring insects likely entered the country on wood packaging materials, logs, lumber, or other wood sources.

"The demand for live plants from outside the United States is not likely to diminish," said Liebhold. "As global trade expands, our knowledge of pest pathways must be improved to ensure trade is accomplished with minimal environmental degradation."  (source: ScienceDaily.com)

Ohio Severe Weather Awareness Week

Attention: Ohio Statewide Tornado Drill is scheduled for Wednesday, March 28 at 9:50 a.m. Check with your town, business or school for drill details. 

via losscontrol.westfieldinsurance.com

A great post from our sister blog, Risk Factors.

Agribusiness News - Week of March 19, 2012

Commodity markets gain strength

With consumers paying $4/gal. at the pump, cash corn nearing $7/bu. and copper trading near $4/lb., it's clear that commodity markets held fairly strong in the first 11 weeks of the year.

Global financial firm Credit Suisse said market strength in February stemmed from an overall improvement in the worldwide macroeconomic environment.

"The economic data released toward the end of the month highlighted continued gradual improvement in global growth momentum, which is supportive to future commodity demand," Nelson Louie, global head of commodities for Credit Suisse's asset management operation, said.

Louie noted that the markets remain particularly susceptible to supply-driven volatility, particularly in the petroleum and agricultural sectors.

Moving forward, speculation about the recovery of the U.S. economy leading to inflationary woes will have traders and analysts watching the strength of the dollar.

"While the economy is improving, we believe the U.S. Central Bank will be in no hurry to raise rates and possibly choke the budding recovery," said Christopher Burton, a senior portfolio manager with Credit Suisse's Total Commodity Return Strategy. (source: feedstuffs.com)

Is Seaweed the Future of Biofuel?

As scientists continue the hunt for energy sources that are safer, cleaner alternatives to fossil fuel, an ever-increasing amount of valuable farmland is being used to produce bioethanol, a source of transportation fuel. And while land-bound sources are renewable, economists and ecologists fear that diverting crops to produce fuel will limit food resources and drive up costs.

Now, Prof. Avigdor Abelson of Tel Aviv University's Department of Zoology and the new Renewable Energy Center, and his colleagues Dr. Alvaro Israel of the Israel Oceanography Institute, Prof. Aharon Gedanken of Bar-Ilan University, Dr. Ariel Kushmaro of Ben-Gurion University, and their Ph.D. student Leor Korzen, have gone to the seas in the quest for a renewable energy source that doesn't endanger natural habitats, biodiversity, or human food sources. He says that marine macroalgae -- common seaweed -- can be grown more quickly than land-based crops and harvested as fuel without sacrificing usable land. It's a promising source of bioethanol that has remained virtually unexplored until now.

The researchers are now developing methods for growing and harvesting seaweed as a source of renewable energy. Not only can the macroalgae be grown unobtrusively along coastlines, Prof. Abelson notes, they can also clear the water of excessive nutrients -- caused by human waste or aquaculture -- which disturb the marine environment.

While biomasses grown on land have the potential to inflict damage on the environment, the researchers believe that producing biofuel from seaweed-based sources could even solve problems that already exist within the marine environment. Many coastal regions, including the Red Sea in the south of Israel, have suffered from eutrophication -- pollution caused by human waste and fish farming, which leads to excessive amounts of nutrients and detrimental algae, ultimately harming endangered coral reefs. … Encouraging the growth of seaweed for eventual conversion into biofuel could solve these environmental problems. (source: sciencedaily.com)

Growing Up On a Farm Directly Affects Regulation of the Immune System, Study Finds

Immunological diseases, such as eczema and asthma, are on the increase in westernized society and represent a major challenge for 21st century medicine. A new study has shown, for the first time, that growing up on a farm directly affects the regulation of the immune system and causes a reduction in the immunological responses to food proteins.

The research, led by the University of Bristol's School of Veterinary Sciences, found that spending early life in a complex farm environment increased the number of regulatory T-lymphocytes, the cells that damp down the immune system and limit immune responses.

Dr Marie Lewis, Research Associate in Infection and Immunity at the School of Veterinary Sciences, who led the research, said: "Many large-scale epidemiological studies have suggested that growing up on a farm is linked to a reduced likelihood of developing allergic disease. However, until now, it has not been possible to demonstrate direct cause and effect: does the farm environment actively protect against allergies, or are allergy-prone families unlikely to live on farms?"

In the study, piglets were nursed by their mothers on a farm while their siblings spent their early life (from one day onwards) in an isolator unit under very hygienic conditions and were fed formula milk, therefore, reflecting the extremes of environment human babies are raised in. The work was carried out in piglets as they are valuable translational models for humans since they share many aspects of physiology, metabolism, genetics and immunity.

The researchers demonstrated that compared to their brothers and sisters in the isolator, the farm-reared piglets had reduced overall numbers of T-lymphocytes, the immune cells which drive immune responses, in their intestinal tissues. Importantly, these dirty piglets also had significantly increased numbers of a subset of these cells, the regulatory T-lymphocytes, which pacify immune responses and limit inflammation.

The researchers suggest additional work is required to determine the extent to which other farm-associated factors, such as social and maternal interactions, aerial contaminants, antigens from bedding and early nutrition, contributed to the impact of the environment on increased local and systemic immune regulation. (source: sciencedaily.com)

 

Celebrate National Agriculture Day on March 8, 2012

Welcome to 2012 National Agriculture Week! Thursday, March 8 is officially dubbed National Agriculture Day, and was selected by the Agriculture Council of America (ACA) to recognize and celebrate the abundance provided by American agriculture. Even though the national recognition is held once a year, the ACA works every day to expand awareness and appreciation of the essential role agriculture plays in American society.

 Since 1973, the ACA has worked to promote education and advancement of our country’s agriculture industry. At the root of the National Ag Day program, the ACA works to promote the following among Americans:

• Understand how food and fiber products are produced
• Appreciate the role agriculture plays in our society, both through its support of our economy and by providing safe, abundant and affordable products
• Acknowledge and consider the careers available in the agriculture, food and fiber industry

 Ways to Support American Agriculture

According to AgDay.com, National Ag Day is recognized by a variety of groups, including producers, agricultural associations, corporations, universities government agencies and more.

 Want to learn more about how you can support this initiative today and every day? Here are a few ways you can support the ACA, American agriculture and your local communities: 

• Buy locally grown food from your local grocery stores, farmers markets or directly from the grower.
• Consider buying into or starting your own garden share program, an arrangement that enables multiple people to pay for and enjoy the produce from a local garden
• Follow activities in Washington D.C. as various groups take to Capitol Hill to support American agriculture.
• Follow #agday chat on Twitter.
• Join organizations like AgChoice.com and the “Take Action” coalition (Americans for Choice and Competition in Agriculture).
• Plan and host an Ag Day event in 2013! Click here for the ACA Ag Day event planning guide.

 How are you celebrating National Agriculture Day/Week this March? We’d like to hear about the activities, events and news happening in your area surrounding this national recognition of American agriculture.

Stacey Bruce is a region leader for the small/speciality segment of Westfield's Agribusiness Division  based out of Westfield Center, Ohio, the corporate headquarters of Westfield Insurance. 

Photo attribution: AsDay.org

For more information please visit the ACA website at:

http://www.agday.org

Get in the Know...with "AgrAbility" Fact Sheets

Do you or a farmer you know suffer from a disability as a result of a farm injury?  Do you know anyone who has a disease that challenges their ability to complete the daily work and chores around the farm or in general?

Great new resources were just published by Ohio State University's Extension Agricultural Safety and Health team, along with the Education Program Coordinator from Ohio AgrAbility Program, to help with these situations.  These resources are called "Fact Sheets" and are available online as PDF downloads. 

There are Fact Sheets available for many diverse situations and conditions.  A few of the topics include:

• Farming with Diabetes
• Injury Protection:  Working in Cold Weather
• Initial Farm Emergency Response
• Managing Stress for a Healthy Heart
• Farming with Upper Extremity Limitation/Amputation
• Primary Caregiving for a Farm Family Member

There are many more available at the following link:  http://ohioline.osu.edu/lines/farm.html#FSAFE

 Ohio AgrAbility Program Coordinator Kent McGuire said the Fact Sheets are designed to provide useful information and resources to farm workers who have disabilities, injuries, and illnesses.  The focus in this new series is on coping with serious illness or disabilities.  The sheets are packed with tips, links, useful ideas and thoughts to share on relevant topics.  Diagrams and photos help make the Fact Sheets easy to follow and understand.

For more information or questions on the program, contact Kent McGuire, Educational Program Coordinator, Ohio AgrAbility Program, at mcguire.225@osu.edu  or visit the website at http://agrability.osu.edu.

Stacey Bruce is a region leader for the small/speciality segment of Westfield's Agribusiness Division  based out of Westfield Center, Ohio, the corporate headquarters of Westfield Insurance.

Ag-LINK - What Ohio Farmers Need to Know!

The State Treasurer’s office has a strong and rich 27 year tradition of working with Ohio’s farmer and lenders to offer an interest rate reduction on their loans and lines of credit.  In continuing this effort, we are proud to announce the beginning of the 2012 Agricultural Linked Deposit Program (Ag-LINK) application period which began on Thursday, January 19, 2012 and will end on Friday, March 9, 2012 at 5:00 PM. 

Agriculture is a vital component of Ohio’s economy, so much so that the industry employs one in seven Ohioans and pumps $98 billion into the state’s economy each year.  The Ag-LINK program helps offset the operating costs for things like feed, seed, fertilizer and fuel through interest rate reductions on up to $100,000 of a farmer’s on new or existing loan or line of credit with the Ohio Treasurer’s eligible banks and Farm Credit Lenders. 

This is the first year that the entire Ag-LINK program application will be completed exclusively on-line.  The Treasurer’s office is working to increase and improve our use of technology to better serve Ohioans. 

In order to qualify for Ag-LINK, farms must be for-profit with their headquarters and more than half of their operations maintained in Ohio.  To qualify, the farmer must apply and be approved for an operating loan or line of credit from a farm credit lender or an eligible bank.  After approval, the farmer may apply for an interest rate reduction from the Ohio Treasury’s Ag-LINK program. 

Below is the timeline for the 2012 Ag-LINK program:

• The application period began on Thursday, January 19, 2012.
• Ag-LINK applications must be received by the Economic Development Department at the State Treasurer’s office no later than 5:00 PM on Friday, March 9, 2012.
• Once the application process has been completed, notification of each application’s status will be sent to each lender no later than Friday, April 6, 2012.
• This year, the State Treasurer’s office is requiring lenders to confirm acceptance or denial of the linked deposit for each application they have submitted by Friday, April 13, 2012. This is only to confirm that your borrowers will participate in Ag-LINK. Once the application has been approved and confirmed, funding requests can be submitted beginning April 13th.
• Funding will begin on Monday, April 16, 2012 and may be requested through Wednesday, June 27, 2012. Requests for funding are due 24 hours prior to the funding date requested.

Detailed information on the program and eligibility requirements can be found by visiting the State Treasurer’s website at www.ohiotreasurer.gov/aglink or by calling the State Treasurer’s Economic Development Department at (800) 228-1102 (Option #3).

Fall Protection is the #1 OSHA Workplace Violation for 2011

Fall Protection is the #1 OSHA Workplace Violation for 2011

via losscontrol.westfieldinsurance.com

A good read filled with information from our sister blog, Risk Factors.