The Hazardous Occupations Order for Agriculture and Employment of Youth Under 16

by Jim Carrabba (published 4/2/2009 in Country Folks Safety Savvy)

In farming, there is a strong tradition of having children help out with farm chores. It is the belief that these experiences are great for instilling strong work ethics and responsibilities in children. However, farm work poses many hazards for youth. In the US, it is estimated that approximately 100 youth under the age of 20 die each year from agricultural injuries. The latest research has found that between the years of 1995 and 2000, an estimated 695 youth died on US farms with most of these deaths occurring among youth 16-19 years old. Farm machinery was the single biggest cause, accounting for 25% of deaths to youth under the age of 20.

The US Department of Labor’s Fair Labor Standards Act has declared certain agricultural tasks to be hazardous to youth under the age of 16. These tasks are listed in the Hazardous Occupations Order in Agriculture (HOAA). Employment of youth under the age of 16 for these hazardous tasks is illegal except for certain exemptions. The HOOA does not apply to children under 16 years of age employed "by their parents, or by persons standing in the place of their parents on farms owned or operated by such parents or persons." The HOOA restricts minors under 16 years of age from the following 11 (eleven) tasks:

- Operating a tractor over 20 horsepower*

- Operating a variety of farm machinery* -- corn picker, cotton picker, grain combine, hay mower, forage harvester, hay baler, potato digger, mobile pea viner, feed grinder, crop dryer, forage blower, auger conveyor, or the unloading mechanism of a nongravity-type self-unloading wagon or trailer; power post-hole digger, power post driver, nonwalking-type rotary tiller.

- Operating the following machines: trencher or earthmoving equipment; fork lift; potato combine; power-driven circular, band, or chain saw.

- Working in a yard with certain animals or working on a farm in a yard pen or stall occupied by a -- bull, boar, or stud horse maintained for breeding purposes; or sow with suckling pigs or a cow with a newborn calf.

- Harvesting timber

- Working on a ladder over 20 feet

- Driving a vehicle with passengers or riding on a tractor

- Working in confinement buildings under certain circumstances

- Handling or applying agricultural chemicals

- Handling or using a blasting agent

- Using anhydrous ammonia

* Listed items with an asterisk (*) indicate that minors age 14 and 15, who hold certificates of completion of their tractor and/or machinery operation program, may work in the occupations for which they have been trained. Farmers employing minors who have completed this program must keep a copy of the certificates of completion on file with the minor's records.

The Tractor and Machinery Certification course will allow exemption from this law for 14 and 15 year-olds. Youth who will only be working for their parents are encouraged to attend Tractor and Machinery Certification courses even though they are not mandated to do so. Farm safety education is a major part of the certification courses.

Cooperative Extension in each state oversees the Tractor and Machinery Certification Program, and it can be offered through the 4-H Youth Development Program or high school agricultural education programs. To find out if there is a course offered in your area, contact your state or local county extension office. Staff from NYCAMH provides training on farm safety for about 20 of these courses across New York State each year. Our topics usually include tractor, mechanical, Power-Take-Off (PTO) safety and personal protective equipment for farm work.

These courses cover the safe operation and routine maintenance of tractors and machinery. Certification courses are 24 hours long and are delivered over a number of weeks. Most certification courses are offered in the late winter to early spring months. The certification courses offer many hands-on activities and feature supervised time operating tractors. Students will also complete a written and practical exam at the end of the course. New educational materials and standards for the certification courses have been developed through the National Safe Tractor and Machinery Operation Program. You can view these materials and learn more about the certification program at this website: http://www.nstmop.psu.edu/

In New York, NYCAMH offers free on-farm safety surveys and safety training sessions. We can also do presentations for 4-H groups, high school and college agricultural classes and other agricultural meetings. These services are made possible by a grant from the New York State Department of Labor Hazard Abatement Board. If you are interested in our services, please contact me at 800-343-7527, ext 239 or e-mail me at jcarrabba@nycamh.com. A program of Bassett Healthcare, NYCAMH is enhancing agricultural and rural health by preventing and treating occupational injury and illness. Visit us on our website at www.nycamh.com.