Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
dying to work
annual
no. of
rate of
no. of
rate of
occupation
average
occupational occupational occupational occupational
employment
injuries*
injuries
fatalities
fatalities
raising and slaughtering
618,400
44,600
1 in 14
150
1 in 4,123
animals in the meat, egg,
workers
workers
and milk industries
highway, street, and
347,000
19,500
1 in 18
95
1 in 3,691
bridge construction
workers
workers
roofing
205,000
10,800
1 in 19
94
1 in 2,158
workers
workers
coal mining
205,000
4,200
1 in 18
27
1 in 2,867
workers
workers
logging
61,600
2,900
1 in 21
88
1 in 700
workers
workers
and removing dead birds from cages with live hens, but there sim-
ply is not enough time in the day.”
The frustrations and dangers faced by factory farm workers
are rivaled by those endured by slaughterhouse workers. The
work environment in slaughterhouses poses “risks greater than
those faced by workers in many other manufacturing operations,”
according to the U.S. Government Accountability Office. Human
Rights Watch characterizes slaughterhouse jobs as “the most dan-
gerous factory jobs in the country.” A report about slaughterhouse
workers prepared by the organization states that “[a]lmost every
worker interviewed . . . began with the story of a serious injury
he or she suffered in a meat or poultry plant, injuries reflected in
their scars, swellings, rashes, amputations, blindness, or other
afflictions.”
Slaughterhouse work causes high rates of injury and muscu-
loskeletal disorders such as repetitive stress injuries, and may
even result in death. Exacerbating these problems are insufficient
training, long hours, cutting animals in close quarters, and fast
line speeds. The troublesome situation in which workers may find
themselves following an injury is compounded by the fact that em-
