Pierre, SD, USA / DRGNews
May 6, 2021 8:06 AM
The beginning of another growing season and the end of school means many children and young adults will soon play a more active role in their family farms, or as hired help.
Balanced against the positives of children doing farm work (such as development of work ethic and self-esteem, earned money) there are serious risks. During the past decade, more youth have died working in agriculture than all other industries combined.
Three new safety resource booklets covering farm equipment operation, working with animals and gardening provide guidelines that can help adults assign age- and ability-appropriate tasks to young people.
Aug 31, 2021 to Sep 02, 2021
Farms are a great place for kids to grow up, according to Marsha Salzwedel, youth ag safety specialist at Marshfield Clinic Research Foundation’s National Farm Medicine Center in Marshfield, Wis. Salzwedel and Cheryl Skjolaas, University of Wisconsin-Madison agricultural safety and health senior outreach specialist, spoke earlier this month during a Professional Dairy Producers webcast.
Salzwedel said growing up on a farm helps kids build character, and it instills them with a good work ethic. But she said there are also downsides to growing up on a farm.
Tragic numbers
Every day, 33 children in the United States are seriously injured on farms, she said. Every three days, a child on a U.S. farm dies in a farm accident.
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OUT OF HARM’S WAY: It is common for children on the farm to want to help out, even at a young age. Assigning chores that are suitable for their age is an important step to keeping them safe. Teaching children and caregivers about farm hazards can help reduce chance of injury or death.
Quite often the smallest moving parts on a farm get overlooked, and that oversight can prove to be the most disastrous when it comes to children.
Agriculture has long been considered one of the most dangerous workplaces in the U.S., and there are some sobering statistics about the littlest farm hands: