FACTS
- Skid steer loaders put workers at risk of rollover and runover incidents.
- The operator’s seat and controls are between the lift arms and in front of the lift arm pivot points. Thus operators of skid steer loaders must enter and exit from the loader through the front of the machine and over the bucket. If the worker does not exit or enter properly, a foot or hand control may be activated and may cause movement of the lift arms, bucket, or other attachment. Such an incident could cause death or serious injury.
- These machines can also be lethal if not used according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
- Skid steer loader accidents occur because manufacturers’ designs are not safe, and manufacturers neglect to warn you of all the ways you can be injured while using these heavy machines.
STATS
- According to the 2016 WSIB Statistical Report by the Numbers, Struck By/Caught in Objects has accounted for 13% of all workplace fatalities in Ontario over the last ten years (2007–2016). It’s the third-highest cause of work-related deaths behind Motor-Vehicle Incidents (36%) and falls (18%).
- 37% of the 7,571 farm who died on the job between 1992 and 2005 were involved in tractor accidents, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
- A staggering 93,000 farm suffered non-fatal, on-the-job injuries, 12% of which occurred as a result of working with farm equipment.
- Both farm equipment crashes and rollovers are common on the job. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health reports that approximately 5.2 deaths per 100,000 farm occur each year due to traffic-related motor vehicle crashes. Tractor rollovers account for one of every three farm worker fatalities, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
- A 2007 U.S. Department of Agriculture report finds that the farm industries’ crash fatality rate is the third highest when compared to other industries.
- Rollovers account for the majority of injuries and deaths on a farm. According to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, 1,538 agricultural died from skid steer rollovers
- Of the 4.8 million skid steer currently operated in the U.S., for example, 50% don’t have ROPS or seat belts.
- Even when equipment does have ROPS, fatalities can still occur. The U.S. Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Administration investigated more than 50 roller/compactor rollover incidents involving a variety of equipment models. It found that 10% of these occurred with an ROP system. However, none of these accidents resulted in a fatality—a result also associated with operator use of seat belts.
- NIOSH looked at 37 fatalities involving skid steers found that 29 (78%) of them resulted from “pinning between the bucket and frame or between a lift arm and frame”.