4
1.5 THE CHALLENGES OF INJURY CONTROL
IN AGRICULTURE
In other industries, victims of occupational
injuries are usually workers aged 18 to 65.
Agriculture is unique in that children and the
elderly sustain significant numbers of severe
work-related injuries. This is partly because
farms and ranches are not just work sites, but
also places where people of all ages live and
participate in recreational activities. Also, unlike
other industries, it is common for farmers and
ranchers to work full time and to operate
tractors and other heavy machinery well into
their 70s and 80s.
The prevention of injuries in agricultural work
settings is challenging because of the unique
nature of the agricultural work environment.
Also, in most jurisdictions, agriculture is not a
heavily regulated industry in terms of
occupational health and safety standards. Unlike
other industrial workplaces, many Canadian
agricultural workplaces have not benefited from
modern industrial hygiene and safety practices.
The composition of the agricultural workforce,
farming practices, and safety practices is
geographically diverse. This diversity adds to the
difficulty of establishing and enforcing safety
standards. There has traditionally been reliance
on voluntary, rather than regulatory, safety
standards; however, the effectiveness of
voluntary safety standards has not been well
evaluated.
Canadian Agriculture Injury Reporting
Agriculture-related Fatalities in Ontario
1990 – 2020
