Conference stresses safety for ag workers

YAKIMA, Wash. -- Some 300 farmers and agricul-tural employees converged on the Yakima Convention Center on Wednesday to learn how to stay safe in what is one of the state's most dangerous industries, made even more hazardous during a tough economic climate.

Last year, there were eight agriculture-related deaths in Washington state, up one from seven in 2008, according to the Department of Labor & Industries.

Fatalities in farming, forestry, fishing and hunting, which are counted together, led the state last year, followed by transport-ation and warehousing. The third deadliest industry was construction.

At the conference, workshops in English and Spanish covered such topics as ammonia safety in warehouses, eye and ladder injury prevention, and machinery safety and inspection.

While there are no controver-sial new regulations so far this year to pit grower against government -- like a proposed heat stress rule a few years ago that was eventually modified by compromise -- safety officials say the recession may cause businesses to put safety last instead of first.

"There is a temptation to cut corners with economic pressures," said Michael Silverstein, assistant director for the division of safety and health services at Labor & Industries.

"But cutting corners can end up being more expensive in terms of lost productivity and quality. That's one of the big messages here."

The idea for the annual conference came about when the Washington Farm Bureau determined that while many of the state's largest wheat growers had regular safety meetings, the smaller tree-fruit growers and their many Spanish-language employees weren't receiving much-needed training.

"People in the orchards were getting little more than what their employers could provide and little of it was bilingual," recalled Jeff Lutz, safety director for the Farm Bureau.

This year's conference is co-sponsored by Labor & Industries and the Governor's Industrial Safety and Health Board.

Greg Davis of Edwall, near Spokane, an original member of the governor's board, said the mission has always been "to put tools in the hands of workers" to protect lives.

In tree fruit, some of the most common injuries come from falls from ladders. Workers descending an orchard ladder with a bag full of fruit often miss the lowest rungs and end up with twisted ankles. Falls from the top of the ladder, which are angled in like a tripod, are far more serious, Lutz said.

But machinery poses the greatest risk for farmers and farm workers.

Last year, a Grant County farmer died after he was run over by a drill seeder pulled by a tractor. A Sunnyside vineyard owner died after being struck by a blade that blew off an orchard sprayer.

Last month, Jim Stanton, Sunnyside's former fire chief, was severely injured after a tractor lurched backward as he and another worker were trying to load it onto a pickup.

Labor & Industries will soon start a new conversation with the Farm Bureau on tractor rollover protection measures, Silverstein said.

"I'm not going to be satisfied until we end deaths from rollovers completely," he said.

Between 1998 and 2005, there were 10 tractor or combine-related deaths in rollovers. Nine involved orchard tractors.

Under current regulations, growers are generally exempt from having to use rollover protective devices on older tractors and when those devices would interfere with normal operation. Most affected are orchards, vineyards, hop yards and dairies, where frequently there's not enough overhead or sideways clearance to accommodate a protective bar around the driver.

Rollovers happen when the center of gravity of the tractor rises above the most stable point of the machine. Tractors can roll to the side or rear. A field full of ruts, a slope or the edge along a road can be enough to tip a tractor.

• Leah Beth Ward can be reached at 509-577-7626 or lward@yakimaherald.com.