“US DEPARTMENT OF LABOR LAUNCHES PROGRAM TO STEM RISING FATALITY RATES, PROMOTE WORKPLACE SAFETY IN LANDSCAPING, HORTICULTURAL INDUSTRIES”

The U.S. Department of Labor announced that its Occupational Safety and Health Administration has launched a Regional Emphasis Program to promote workplace safety and protect people employed in the landscaping and horticultural industries in four western states and three Pacific territories.

From 2011-2021, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported 1,072 work-related fatalities in the landscaping and groundskeeping industry. Of these, the 234 industry worker deaths in 2021 exceeded the national averages for fatalities, injuries and illnesses in other industries, a result that prompted OSHA’s action.

For most landscaping industry workers, a day on the job means facing the risk of amputations, falls, electrocution, excessive noise, heat illness and ergonomic injuries; dangers associated with motor vehicle and machinery operations; and harm caused by animals, insects, pesticide and other chemical exposures…

The new regional emphasis program includes employers in American Samoa, Arizona, California, Guam, Hawaii, the Northern Mariana Islands and Nevada. Under the program, OSHA will conduct safety and health inspections of landscaping and horticultural industry employers…

OSHA encourages small employers to use the agency’s On-Site Consultation Program, which provides no-cost assistance with safety strategies and compliance with federal safety and health standards…