The U.S. Poultry & Egg Association and National Chicken Council take exception to the recent OSHA citation against Wayne Farms for alleged safety violations at its Jack, Ala., plant involving musculoskeletal disorders and other workplace hazards. OSHA’s investigation into W ayne Farms was rooted in a complaint filed by the Southern Poverty Law Center, an activist group with a long history of animosity toward the poultry industry
OSHA’s accusations of wrongdoing lack evidence and are simply unfounded. OSHA incorrectly portr ays an undeserved negative image of the entire poultry industry despite its outstanding record of improvement in employee health and safety, particularly over the past three decades
The poultry industry finds it ironic that OSHA , in effect , is attacking the very same safety guidelines that it developed in cooperation with the poultry industry many years ago. In fact, this past summer OSHA and USDA issued a joint communication supporting “effective efforts by the poultry industry to protect the safety and health of employees.”
The poultry industry’s record of outstanding advancements in reducing ergonomic risks is based on fact. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reveals that poultry processing plants have reduced the rate of workplace illness, incl uding musculoskeletal injuries such as carpal tunnel syndrome, by 62 percent in the past decade. BLS data further indicate that “Total Recordable Injury and Illness” in poultry plants has dropped from 22.7 percent of employees in 1994 , down to just 4.5 per cent in 2013
In its recent citation, OSHA references an ambiguous section of federal law enacted in 1970. Commonly known as the General Duty Clause, it states that employers have a duty to provide a safe workplace. The poultry industry believe s that imp osing the General Duty Clause should require more than simple observation of job tasks. There should also be specific evidence of hazards that are not being addressed, evidence that is lacking in OSHA’s citation against Wayne Farms
The U.S. Poultry & Egg Association and National Chicken Council take exception to the recent OSHA citation against Wayne Farms for alleged safety violations at its Jack, Ala., plant involving musculoskeletal disorders and other workplace hazards. OSHA’s investigation into W ayne Farms was rooted in a complaint filed by the Southern Poverty Law Center, an activist group with a long history of animosity toward the poultry industry
OSHA’s accusations of wrongdoing lack evidence and are simply unfounded. OSHA incorrectly portr ays an undeserved negative image of the entire poultry industry despite its outstanding record of improvement in employee health and safety, particularly over the past three decades
The poultry industry find s it ironic that OSHA , in effect , is attacking the very same safety guidelines that it developed in cooperation with the poultry industry many years ago. In fact, this past summer OSHA and USDA issued a joint communication supporting “effective efforts by the poultry industry to protect the safety and health of employees.”
The poultry industry’s record of outstanding advancements in reducing ergonomic risks is based on fact. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reveals that poultry processing plants have reduced the rate of workplace illness, incl uding musculoskeletal injuries such as carpal tunnel syndrome, by 62 percent in the past decade. BLS data further indicate that “Total Recordable Injury and Illness” in poultry plants has dropped from 22.7 percent of employees in 1994 , down to just 4.5 per cent in 2013
In its recent citation, OSHA references an ambiguous section of federal law enacted in 1970. Commonly known as the General Duty Clause, it states that employers have a duty to provide a safe workplace. The poultry industry believe s that imp osing the General Duty Clause should require more than simple observation of job tasks. There should also be specific evidence of hazards that are not being addressed, evidence that is lacking in OSHA’s citation against Wayne Farms
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