Occupational health and safety in agriculture - a brief report on organization, legislation and support in selected European countries.

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVE: Agriculture and forestry are among the most dangerous professions in Europe, with a high level of accidents affecting the sustainability and viability of the sector. International conventions, EU directives and national legislation build the fundamental basis for prevention. The aim of the study is to describe and categorize national mechanisms of occupational safety and health (OSH) for agricultural workers in Europe, to assess the extent of implementing safety regulation, the body in charge, and to give examples of health and safety initiatives. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Results of a questionnaire-survey on basic safety regulations on farms sent by e-mail to the representatives of 30 participating European countries in the context of the Sacurima COST action network (CA 16123) are presented. Due to the complexity, only selected countries are described in this study highlighting the regulative bodies, occupational health services or specific training offers, as well as the complexity of the mechanisms. RESULTS: One of the most serious issues and deficits of EU OSH regulation is the exclusion of self-employed farmers who compose nearly 90% of the farming population. This leads to serious under-reporting of accidents, and because one of the most common measures for the performance of health and safety initiatives are the injury and ill health statistics, better registration systems are urgently needed in almost all countries as a basis for preventive efforts. CONCLUSIONS: The results of the study provide a basis for raising awareness about the current OSH systems in Europe, and the importance of developing sector specific OSH strategies. The proposed activities should assist in tackling high accident rates and poor occupational health for self-employed farmers.

Evaluation of a Physical Ergonomic Intervention for Milking Parlor Operatives - A Case Study.

Musculoskeletal pain and disorders frequently occur among milking parlor operatives on dairy farms, irrespective of the farm size and despite that the work is carried out in an upright position. The objective of this case study was to assess the effect of a new milking system, a physical ergonomic intervention, to reduce the prevalence of musculoskeletal pain and disorders among milking parlor operatives. The new milking system has a reduced cluster weight and single tube guidance and, consequently, abandons the positioning of the cluster underneath the udder, thus reducing the postural load. In a pre/post treatment study the parlor operatives of five farms were questioned, and parlor specifics were measured. The gap between visits was at least one year. There was no significant reduction in pain, but three-quarters of the workers experienced a workload reduction and would recommend the new system. The isolation of the effect of the ergonomic intervention was not possible, because all but one farm completely rebuilt their milking parlors, and several things were changed including work organizational aspects. The expected reduction in pain in the musculoskeletal system was noticed, but not statistically significant. Worker satisfaction and participation in decision making could be improved on the farms and might increase the effect of the intervention, especially because work satisfaction is correlated with the occurrence of pain in the musculoskeletal system.