Investing in proper safety training is an important component of your operation’s preparations for a new year. As you can see below, just the financial costs of injuries – and deaths – from ag-related activities can cost your business thousands of dollars a year. And this is even before OSHA gets involved!
Intangible Benefits
And let’s not forget about some of the less tangible benefits of investing in safety training. There are 480 farm work-related deaths per year in the US. Tragically, one-quarter of those fatalities are children. Think of the emotional impact those deaths have on those families, and you start to have a better understanding of the importance of investing in safety training.
Consider, too, that five percent of ag-related injuries result in some sort of permanent impairment. This can mean anything from loss of limb to visual impairment, full or partial loss of hearing, scars from burns, and more. The effects of such injuries will be felt by these employees – and their families – for the rest of their lives.
Ag operations remain the most dangerous workplaces with the highest injury and fatality rates of any other industry. Investing in proper safety training, building a healthy safety culture, and training employees to be more aware of their surroundings are the most valuable things Farm Owners can do for their business and their employees.