Set The Standard For Worker Protection

The federal Worker Protection Standard for Agricultural Pesticides (WPS) (40 CFR Part 170) was developed by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and adopted into the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) in 1992. The standard was fully implemented in 1995 and has been revised since. The WPS Regulation, as well as a listing of recent amendments, is available online. This federal regulation was designed to protect employees on farms, forests, nurseries, and greenhouses from occupational exposures to agricultural pesticides. Approximately 2.5 million agricultural workers and pesticide handlers, working at over 600,000 agricultural establishments, are protected by the WPS.

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The WPS requires that agricultural employers take the following steps to reduce the risk of injury or illness when agricultural workers (people involved in the production of agricultural plants) and pesticide handlers (people who mix, load, or apply pesticides) are exposed to pesticides: 1) provide information about exposure to pesticides; 2) provide protections against exposures to pesticides; and 3) offer ways to mitigate exposures to pesticides. This article summarizes the provisions of WPS and related regulations. A good reference for further detail regarding compliance with the WPS is the EPA publication, “How to Comply with the Worker Protection Standard for Agricultural Pesticides: What Employers Need to Know”, available online at http://www.epa.gov/agriculture/htc.html.

Related Regulations


Florida Agricultural Worker Safety Act (FAWSA)

The Florida Agricultural Worker Safety Act (FAWSA) (Florida Statute 487.2041), enacted in 2004, gives the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) responsibility for enforcing the WPS in Florida. The FAWSA is intended to ensure that agricultural workers employed in Florida are informed of the risks of pesticide use and receive protection from agricultural pesticides. Specific requirements of the FAWSA include the following:

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  • Sellers of agricultural pesticides must provide a Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) in printed or written format (not via CD, website, or email) to the purchaser upon initial purchase of each agricultural product and upon first purchase after an MSDS has been updated.
  • In turn, agricultural employers must then provide farm workers with either an MSDS or fact sheet, containing information about the impacts of the agricultural pesticide and approved by the state or federal government, in written format. The information must be made available to any worker who either: 1) enters an agricultural area where a pesticide has been applied or a restricted-entry interval (REI) has been in effect within the last 30 days; or 2) may be exposed to an agricultural pesticide during normal conditions of use or in a foreseeable emergency.
  • The MSDS or fact sheet must be made available to the worker within two working days of request. In the case of a pesticide-related medical emergency, the MSDS or fact sheet must be provided in written format promptly on request by a worker, a designated representative, or medical personnel treating the worker.
  • For the purposes of WPS training, FDACS offers a one-page general agricultural safety sheet they must make available to trainers upon request. The safety sheet must be in a language understood by the worker and must include illustrated instructions on preventing pesticide exposure and the toll free telephone numbers for the Florida Poison Control Centers.
  • The FAWSA prohibits agricultural employers from taking retaliatory action against employees who attempt to exercise their rights under this bill. If an agricultural worker has been subject to retaliatory action, they may file a complaint with FDACS.

Per the FAWSA, the FDACS Bureau of Compliance Monitoring (BCM) performs routine inspections of facilities and operations in which pesticides are used. Inspectors cover the components included in the Pesticide Use inspection report and the WPS inspection form. A pdf of these forms, as well as a FDACS Suggested Pesticide Recordkeeping form are available at http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pdffiles/PI/PI19500FDACSInspectionForms.pdf. Further information from FDACS on the FAWSA is available at http://www.flaes.org/complimonitoring/workersafety/links.html.

Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) Hazard Communication Standard Provisions

The Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) Hazard Communication Standard Provisions require that employers inform their employees, by means of a written Hazard Communication Program, of the dangers of hazardous chemicals manufactured, imported, distributed, stored, or used in the workplace. Additionally, agricultural employers with 11 or more employees (full-time or part-time) at any one time during the previous 12 months are subject to enforcement of OSHA’s Hazard Communication (or Right-to-Know) Standard.

The Hazard Communication Program must specify how the requirements for labeling and other forms of warning, MSDS’s, and employee information and training will be met. The program must also include a list of the hazardous chemicals present in the workplace, the methods the employer will use to inform employees of the hazards associated with use of these chemicals, and the methods the employer will use to inform contractor employers of the hazards their employees may be exposed to in the workplace.

Hazardous chemical training must be provided to employees at the time of their initial assignment and whenever a new hazard is introduced into their work area. Further information on the OSHA Hazard Communication Standard can be found in the “2009 Handbook of Employment Regulations Affecting Florida Farm Employers and Workers: Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) Hazard Communication Standard [Federal]”, which is available on-line at http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/fe409.

Where And When Does The WPS Apply?

The types of establishments covered under the WPS include: farms that produce agricultural crops, such as oranges, peanuts, watermelons, etc.; greenhouses and plant nurseries producing agricultural plants for flower or fern cuttings or transport to another location (for example, flowering/foliage plants or trees; tree seedlings; live Christmas trees; vegetable, fruit, and ornamental transplants; and turfgrass produced for sod); and forestry operations that grow trees for the production of wood fiber or timber. The WPS does not cover pesticide applications for golf courses, pasture lands, vertebrate pest control, mosquito control or similar area-wide public pest control programs, structural pest control, and lawn and landscape maintenance.

Employers are required to comply with the WPS if their work/operation falls into any of the following categories:
1) Own or manage a farm, forest, nursery, or greenhouse where pesticides are used in the production of agricultural plants; or
2) Hire or contract for the services of agricultural workers to do tasks related to the production of agricultural plants on a farm, forest, nursery, or greenhouse; this includes labor contractors and others who supply agricultural laborers to growers; or
3) Operate a business in which the operator (or people he/she employs) applies pesticides that are used for the production of agricultural plants on any farm, forest, nursery, or greenhouse; even if the pesticide handling task (mixing, loading, disposal, etc.) takes place somewhere other than the farm, forest, nursery, or greenhouse, the commercial pesticide handlers and their employees are still included under the WPS; or
4) Operate a business in which the operator (or people he/she employs) performs tasks as a crop advisor (for example, crop consultants and scouts) on any farm, forest, nursery, or greenhouse.
Under the terms of the WPS, employers are responsible for making sure that workers and handlers receive the protections required by the pesticide labeling and the WPS. The WPS considers people as employers, even if they are self-employed or use only members of their own family to do the work on their establishment. If supervisors are employed, the employer must provide them with information and directions about the WPS and require they make sure the workers and handlers they supervise comply with the WPS and receive its protections. Even if the employer assigns an employee to carry out the duties required by the WPS, the employer is responsible for making sure that all those duties are performed. Employers and the supervisors they employ must not prevent or discourage any worker or handler from complying or attempting to comply with the WPS and must not fire or otherwise retaliate against any worker or handler who attempts to comply. If found not complying with the federal WPS, including all revisions, agricultural worker and pesticide handler employers can be subject to civil and criminal penalties.

Most pesticide uses involved in the production of agricultural plants on a farm, forest, nursery, or greenhouse are covered by the WPS. This includes both general-use and restricted-use pesticides. If a pesticide is covered by the WPS, the label will include a statement of “Agricultural Use Requirements”, within the “Directions for Use” section. The Agricultural Use Requirements will include specific information, explaining how to comply with the WPS, to protect workers and pesticide handlers from occupational exposure to pesticides. In the event that the pesticide product labeling, including the Agricultural Use Requirements, contains specific instructions or requirements that conflict with the requirements of the WPS, the instructions or requirements on the labeling should be followed.

Who Is Protected By The WPS?

The WPS requires pesticide handlers and agricultural workers be protected from pesticides and given information regarding pesticides. EPA defines pesticide handlers as people who “mix, load, or apply agricultural pesticides; clean or repair pesticide application equipment; or assist with the application of pesticides in any way.” Agricultural workers are defined as people who “perform tasks related to the cultivation and harvesting of plants on farms or in greenhouses, nurseries, or forests. Workers include anyone employed for any type of compensation (including self-employed) doing tasks — such as carrying nursery stock, repotting plants, or watering — related to the production of agricultural plants on an agricultural establishment. Workers do not include such employees as office employees, truck drivers, mechanics, and any other workers not engaged in worker or handler activities.” (http://www.epa.gov/oecaagct/twor.html) The WPS is intended to protect agricultural workers and pesticide handlers from work-related pesticide exposure.

Owner Exemptions

Owners of agricultural establishments and members of their immediate family are exempt from many WPS requirements. However, the EPA encourages owners to provide all WPS protections for themselves and their families. The WPS defines an owner as any person who has a present possessory interest (fee, leasehold, rental, or other) in an agricultural establishment covered by the WPS. For example, if a person has rented or leased out their farm, forest, nursery, or greenhouse to another person and has no part in the management or profit/loss, then that person does not qualify for the agricultural owner exemption; instead, the person renting or leasing the establishment would be considered the owner. No exemptions are allowed for owners of commercial pesticide handling establishments or for people who operate or manage, but do not own, an agricultural establishment. The exemptions for agricultural owners include: information at a central location, pesticide safety training, decontamination supplies, emergency assistance, notice about applications, monitoring of handlers, equipment safety, specific duties related to care of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and management of its use, and certain early-entry duties. Owners are not exempt from other WPS requirements, including: employer information exchange, restrictions during handling tasks (e.g. use of PPE), restrictions during applications (e.g. keeping workers out of areas being treated with pesticides, including required treatment area buffers for nurseries and greenhouses, and making sure that pesticides are applied such that they do not contact anyone other than trained and equipped handlers), and restrictions during REI (e.g. no-contact early entry).

Crop Advisors

The WPS requires employers to provide certain protections to any crop advisors they may hire, whether the advisor is an independent or commercial crop advisor or an employee of the agricultural establishment. As defined by the EPA  (http://www.epa.gov/oecaagct/epa-735-b-05-002_unit6.pdf), the term “crop advisor” refers to “any person who is assessing pest numbers or damage, pesticide distribution, or the status, condition, or requirements of agricultural plants.” Persons performing any hand labor tasks, such as weeding, planting, cultivating or harvesting are not considered crop advisors. Crop advisors would include crop consultants, scouts, and integrated pest management monitors; they may be certified/licensed or uncertified/unlicensed.

For unlicensed/uncertified crop advisors, depending on the situation, required protections may include, but are not limited to: the same protections as required for pesticide handlers, pesticide handler pesticide safety training, PPE, information at a central location, decontamination supplies, monitoring (if entering during pesticide application), and emergency assistance. Certified/licensed crop advisors and persons performing crop advising tasks under their direct supervision are exempt from certain WPS duties and requirements, when specific conditions are met. Crop advisors, for the purposes of the WPS, are treated as employees and offered protections under the federal and state laws, based on their training and potential for pesticide exposure.

Protections For Both Workers And Handlers

Certain protections of WPS, as outlined below, apply to both agricultural workers and pesticide handlers. These protections require information to be provided regarding pesticides at a central location, pesticide safety training for workers and handlers, decontamination supplies to mitigate exposure, emergency assistance in the event of pesticide illness or injury, and exchange of information between employers and commercial applicators.

Information At A Central Location

Employers are required to post certain information in a central location, whenever agricultural workers or handlers they employ are on their agricultural establishment and a pesticide is about to be applied or has recently been applied. The required information includes pesticide-specific information (e.g. location and description of the area to be treated and information about the pesticide(s) to be used), emergency medical facility contact information, and a pesticide safety poster developed by the EPA or an equivalent poster meeting EPA criteria. The location of the display must be in a central location at the agricultural establishment, where it can easily be seen and read by workers and handlers. The information must be displayed continuously whenever any workers or handlers are on the agricultural establishment and, in the past 30 days, a pesticide has been applied or a REI has been in effect. If workers or handlers are on the establishment at the start of an application, the employer should display the required pesticide-specific information before the application takes place. Otherwise, if workers or handlers aren’t on-site at the start of the application, the information must be displayed no later than the beginning of their first work period. The information must be continuously displayed and remain legible and accessible to workers and handlers until at least 30 days after the REI expires or at least 30 days after the end of the application, if there is no REI for the pesticide(s).

Pesticide Safety Training

Both the FAWSA and the WPS require that agricultural employers provide protection from agricultural pesticides and information concerning pesticides to their agricultural workers and pesticide handlers. More specifically, handlers must be trained about general pesticide safety and correct ways to handle pesticides; workers must be trained about general pesticide safety. The training requirements are considered met if the worker or handler: has been trained within the last five years as a WPS handler or WPS worker, or is currently a certified applicator of restricted-use pesticides, or is currently trained (per EPA requirements) as a handler working under the supervision of a certified pesticide applicator.

Handlers must be trained before they do any handling task. Untrained workers must be given basic pesticide safety information before they enter an area where, within the past 30 days, a pesticide has been applied or a REI has been in effect. The training should provide the workers with at least the following information:
1) Pesticides may be on or in plants, soil, irrigation water, or drifting from nearby applications.
2) To prevent pesticide exposure:
a) Follow directions and/or signs about keeping out of treated or restricted areas;
b) Wash before eating, drinking, using chewing gum or tobacco, or using the toilet;
c) Wear clothing that protects your body from pesticide residues;
d) Wash/shower with soap and water, shampoo hair, and put on clean clothes after work;
e) Wash work clothes separately from other clothes before wearing them again;
f) Wash immediately in the nearest clean water if pesticides are spilled or sprayed on your body and then – as soon as possible – shower, shampoo, and change into clean clothes; and
g) More training will be provided within five days (or at least before the sixth day of work in pesticide-treated areas on this establishment).

Early-entry workers must be trained before they do any early-entry task on the establishment, if they will contact anything that has been treated with the pesticide which caused the REI. Other workers, including early-entry workers who will not contact anything treated with the pesticide causing the REI, must be trained before they accumulate more than five days of entry into treated areas where, within the past 30 days, a pesticide has been applied or a REI has been in effect. Please note that untrained workers must be provided with basic pesticide safety information as described above, before they enter into treated areas.

Each worker and handler must be provided with pesticide safety training at least once every five years. The following persons are qualified to offer WPS training to agricultural workers and pesticide handlers:
1) Certified applicators of restricted use pesticides (RUPs); or
2) Someone designated by a state, federal, or tribal agency having jurisdiction, as a trainer of certified pesticide applicators or pesticide handlers; or
3) A person who has completed a pesticide safety Train-the-Trainer (TTT) program approved by a state, federal, or tribal agency having jurisdiction. The goal of the TTT program is to establish a working population of knowledgeable WPS trainers of agricultural workers and pesticide handlers, to prevent pesticide exposure and related illness. Often, University of Florida (UF) IFAS Extension Agents will offer Train-the-Trainer programs. Anyone can become a Florida Certified WPS Trainer by attending a WPS TTT program offered by the UF/IFAS Extension, FDACS, or another organization meeting FDACS criteria and curriculum requirements.

Additionally, a person who is currently trained as a WPS handler may conduct worker training.
Trainers certified through the WPS TTT program, upon signing a WPS Trainer Agreement with FDACS, are eligible to distribute EPA WPS training verification cards to the agricultural workers and pesticide handlers they train. The agreement requires that certified WPS trainers maintain a record of each individual trained and the card number and type issued to each individual. Trainers must also submit an annual report to FDACS, indicating how many EPA WPS training verification cards were issued the prior year.

Employers must keep records, so that they can verify compliance with the training requirements. EPA recommends a system involving the employee’s signature, acknowledging receipt of the information.
To ensure the training is consistent, thorough, and effective, the WPS specifies training delivery and content requirements. Training must be provided in a language and using terminology that employees can understand, including written, oral, and/or audiovisual materials; a translator may be used if necessary. The training materials used must either be WPS training materials developed by the EPA or equivalent material that covers at least the required concepts listed in the “Criteria for Worker and Handler Training”. Any trainer, whether certified through the TTT program or not, may obtain training materials from FDACS or EPA to distribute to their trainees. See the resource list at the end of this article for details.

To complete this section on Pesticide Safety Training, link to the following two publications:
1) http://www.epa.gov/agriculture/epa-735-b-05-002_AppA.pdf and read EPA Publication EPA/735-B-05-002 “How to Comply with the Worker Protection Standard for Agricultural Pesticides: What Employers Need to Know Appendix A: Criteria for WPS Materials”.
2) http://www.nasda.org/File.aspx?id=3784 and read Chapter 4: Preparing to Train in the “National Worker Safety Trainer Handbook: Pesticide Safety for Agricultural Workers.”

Decontamination Supplies

The WPS requires that employers provide workers and handlers with decontamination supplies, so that they can wash off pesticides and pesticide residues. The supplies must be provided to handlers when they are doing handling tasks and to workers when they are working within a pesticide-treated area and doing tasks involving contact with anything treated with the pesticide. The supplies must be available to handlers for the duration of the handling task; for workers, supplies must be available until 30 days after the end of any REI or, if no REI applies, supplies should be made available throughout the 30 days after completion of the application. An exception is when pesticides used have an REI of four hours or less; in this case, the decontamination supplies only need to be provided until seven days after the end of the REI. The specific decontamination supplies required by the WPS include: enough clean water for routine washing and emergency eyeflushing; soap and single use towels; and for handlers, sufficient clean water to wash the entire body in case of emergency and a clean change of clothes to put on if the handler’s garments become contaminated and must be removed. It is generally recommended that at least one gallon of water be provided for each worker, and three gallons of water should be provided for each handler. Additionally, each handler should be provided with at least one pint of immediately accessible emergency eyeflush water, when the pesticide labeling requires protective eyewear for the handling task being performed. All decontamination supplies must be located together (though supplies for workers can be in a separate location from handler supplies) and in an accessible location. Worker decontamination supplies must not be within an area being treated with pesticides or under an REI. With limited exceptions, handlers mixing pesticides must have decontamination supplies at the mixing area. The location chosen for handler decontamination supplies should not be within an area being treated with pesticides or under an REI, unless the following criteria are met: 1) the supplies are within the area where the handler is doing handling tasks; 2) the soap, towels, and clean clothes are in closed containers; and 3) the water is running tap water or is in a closed container. Additionally, at the site where handlers remove their PPE, the employer must provide soap, clean towels, and enough water to allow handlers to wash thoroughly after removing PPE.

Emergency Assistance

Employers must provide emergency assistance to any of the agricultural workers or pesticide handlers they employ or have employed on their farm, forest, nursery, or greenhouse, if there is reason to believe the worker or handler has been poisoned or injured either by a pesticide used on the agricultural establishment or, in the case of handlers, as a result of their employment. Employers must promptly make transportation available to an emergency medical care facility able to provide treatment. The employer must also provide information to the worker or handler or to medical personnel about the pesticide(s) to which the person may have been exposed, including any obtainable information on the following: product name, EPA registration number, and active ingredients; antidote, first aid, statement of practical treatment, and other medical or emergency information from the pesticide labeling; a description of the way the pesticide was being used; and circumstances of the worker’s or handler’s exposure to the pesticide.

Employer/Commercial Applicator Information Exchange

Employers of commercial pesticide handlers must make sure that the operator of the farm, forest, nursery, or greenhouse where his handlers will be working knows certain information about the pesticide(s) before they are applied on the establishment. In turn, operators of farms, forests, nurseries, and greenhouses where a commercial handler will be doing pesticide handling tasks, including tasks as a crop advisor, must inform the commercial handler’s employer of specific information concerning treated areas on the agricultural establishment. Information commercial handlers must provide to agricultural operators includes: the specific location and description of area(s) that are to be treated with a pesticide; the time and date the pesticide is scheduled to be applied; the product name, EPA registration number, and active ingredient(s); REI for the pesticide; the type(s) of notification, written and/or oral, required by the pesticide labeling; and any other specific requirements on the pesticide labeling to protect workers and other persons during and after the application. Similarly, information operators of agricultural establishments must provide to employers of commercial handlers they hire includes: the specific location and description of any areas on the agricultural establishment that may be treated with a pesticide or covered under a REI during the time the commercial handler will be on-site, including notification of such areas which the commercial handlers will be in or will be walking within a distance of ¼ mile; and restrictions on entering those areas. The exchange of information is intended so that the employers of both the commercial handler and the agricultural workers can ensure their employees are protected.

Prevention Of Heat Illness

The WPS requires employers to take any necessary steps to prevent heat illness (too much heat stress) while personal protective equipment (PPE) is being worn. Employers can take many precautions against heat stress, including provision of training on how to control heat stress and recognize the symptoms; monitoring workers/handlers, taking into account the weather, workload, and employees’ condition and adjusting work practices accordingly; and making sure employees drink at least the minimum required amounts of water to replace bodily fluid lost through sweating. More details on all these measures are included in EPA’s “A Guide to Heat Stress in Agriculture,” May 1993 (EPA-750-b-92-001).

Further Protections Required For Workers

In addition to the general protections required for all agricultural workers and pesticide handlers, the WPS requires further protections specifically for agricultural workers, including: notification of pesticide applications, restrictions during and after pesticide applications, special application restrictions in greenhouses and nurseries, and protections for early entry workers.

Notice About Applications

Employers must make sure that workers are notified about areas where pesticide applications are taking place or where REIs are in effect. To determine the type of notification (written and/or oral) required, employers should consult the applicable pesticide’s label; if the label doesn’t specify that signs must be posted to warn workers, then an oral warning is all that is required. Notification requirements are found within the “Directions for Use” section of the pesticide label, under the heading “Agricultural Use Requirements.” In greenhouses, all treated areas must be posted, with some exceptions; depending on the pesticide used, the label may also require oral notification. The WPS does offer limited exceptions to the worker notification requirement. Any required posted warning signs should follow the WPS design specifications; posting for fumigant applications must use the WPS design for fumigant application warnings. On farms, forests, and nurseries, signs should be posted so they can be seen from all points where workers usually enter the treated area, including at least each border with any labor camp adjacent to the treated area and each established walking route entering the treated area. In greenhouses, signs should be posted so they can be seen from all points where workers usually enter the treated area, including doorways, aisles, and other walking routes. For all types of agricultural establishments, if there are no usual points of worker entry, signs should be posted in the corners of the treated area or in places where they will most easily be seen. Warning signs should be posted within 24 hours before the scheduled pesticide application and should remain posted, visible, and legible during application and throughout the REI (if any). Within 3 days after completion of the REI, signs should be removed; if there is no REI for the application, signs should be removed within three days after completion of the application. Workers should be kept out of the treated area the entire time the signs are posted, except for trained and equipped early-entry workers entering as permitted under WPS. If oral warnings are required, they must be communicated in a manner workers can understand and must include: the location and description of the treated area, the time during which entry is restricted, and instructions not to enter until the REI has expired. Oral warnings shall be timed so that workers who are on the agricultural establishment at the start of an application are warned before the application takes place; and workers who are not on the establishment at the start of an application are warned at the beginning of their first work period, if the application is still taking place or the REI is in effect.

Restrictions During And After Applications

During applications, everyone except for appropriately trained and equipped handlers should be kept out of areas being treated with pesticides. In nurseries and greenhouses, during some applications, workers and other persons must also be prohibited within the area immediately around the treated area, and in some greenhouse situations, the greenhouse must be adequately ventilated before workers are permitted to enter (see Special application restrictions in greenhouses and Special application restrictions in nurseries for more information). Workers should also be prohibited within treated areas during the REI, unless one of the following exceptions applies: 1) the worker is doing early entry work wherein they will not have contact with anything that has been treated with the pesticide to which the REI applies; or 2) the worker will be doing short-term, emergency, or specially excepted tasks (see Early entry section for more information).

Special Application Restrictions In Nurseries

Employers must make sure that, during nursery applications, workers and other persons do not enter treated areas on the nursery or, in some circumstances, do not enter areas that are near the treated area. For example, workers and other persons are prohibited in the pesticide-treated area, as well as 100 feet in all directions, while a pesticide is being applied: aerially, in an upward direction, or using a spray pressure greater than 150 pounds per square inch; or as a fumigant, smoke, mist, fog, or aerosol. A buffer of 25 feet is required while a pesticide is being applied: downward using a height greater than 12 inches from the planting medium; downward using a fine spray; downward using a spray pressure greater than 40 pounds per square inch and less than 150 pounds per square inch; or in another manner than those just described, but for which the pesticide labeling requires the applicator to wear a respirator. For all other pesticide applications within a nursery, workers and other persons are prohibited within the pesticide treated area during the application. Once the applications have been completed, workers may be allowed into any areas just outside the treated area that were off-limits during the application. With limited exceptions (see Early entry section below), workers should remain outside of the treated area itself until the REI has passed.

Special Application Restrictions In Greenhouses

Employers must make sure that workers and other persons do not enter specific areas within the greenhouse during and, in some instances, after certain greenhouse applications. For example, after some types of pesticide applications, employers must make sure that adequate ventilation has occurred before workers are allowed within the entire greenhouse, plus any adjacent structure that cannot be sealed off from the treated area. A complete explanation of these restrictions, including ventilation criteria, can be found in the EPA’s document, “How to Comply with the Worker Protection Standard for Agricultural Pesticides: What Employers Need to Know.”

Early Entry

The WPS allows workers to enter into treated areas during the REI in a few specific situations and only with special protections.
If workers will have no contact with anything that has been treated with the pesticide to which the REI applies, you may permit them to enter pesticide-treated areas when the application is finished. The EPA’s document, “How to Comply with the Worker Protection Standard for Agricultural Pesticides: What Employers Need to Know”, contains additional guidance to help employers determine which situations would qualify as “no-contact.” The no-contact early-entry workers must be provided the same information provided to other agricultural workers, including information at a central location, pesticide safety training, notification, restrictions during applications and during REI’s, and emergency assistance.
In the following specific work situations, workers may be permitted to do early entry work involving contact with treated surfaces: 1) short-term tasks that take less than one hour and do not involve hand labor; 2) limited-contact tasks that couldn’t have been foreseen, cannot be delayed, and do not involve hand labor; 3) emergency tasks that are performed because of an agricultural emergency; or 4) specific tasks approved by EPA through a formal exception process. Depending on which of the above exceptions applies, a specific set of protections are required for workers, including, but not limited to the following: PPE and instructions on the use thereof, oral or written notification of the specific exception and parameters thereof, no-entry periods within four hours immediately following pesticide application, prohibition against entry until inhalation exposure levels or WPS ventilation criteria are met, and pesticide safety training. Regardless of which of the four exceptions above applies, all early-entry workers expected to have contact with anything that has been treated with a pesticide, including soil, water, air, and surfaces of plants, must be provided with certain special protections. The special protections are in addition to the standard protections required for all workers, and include training and instructions, decontamination supplies, and PPE specific to early entry work. The normal five-day grace period for training of agricultural workers does not apply to early-entry workers.

Further Protections Required For Handlers

In addition to the WPS protections required for all agricultural employees, the following protections are required specifically for pesticide handlers: restrictions and monitoring of handlers during application, specific instructions for handlers, equipment safety, and handler PPE.

Restrictions And Monitoring Of Handlers During Application

Handlers are restricted in the way they apply pesticides, to ensure that other employees are not exposed to the pesticides they are applying. More specifically, employers and the handlers they employ must both make sure that pesticides do not come into contact with people, other than trained and equipped handlers, during pesticide application.
Handlers must be monitored, to ensure they are protected from pesticide exposure during handling tasks. When handlers are working with pesticides labeled with a skull and crossbones, someone must check on them visually or by voice communication at least once every two hours. If a handler is applying or otherwise handling a fumigant in a greenhouse, someone must maintain constant visual or voice contact with the handler; the person monitoring the fumigant handler must be trained as a pesticide handler and must have immediate access to the handler PPE required on the fumigant label.

Specific Instructions For Handlers

Before handlers perform any handling task, their employer must make sure they are given information from the pesticide labeling, including access to the label itself, and are instructed in safe operation of the equipment they will be using.

Equipment Safety

The employer must also make sure the equipment used for mixing, loading, transferring, or applying pesticides is inspected before each day of use and that any needed repairs are made. Before anyone other than a trained and equipped handler is allowed to repair, clean, or adjust equipment, pesticide residues must be removed. If this is not feasible, the persons repairing, cleaning, or adjusting the equipment must at least be informed that the equipment may be contaminated with pesticides, of the potential harm due to exposure, and how to properly handle the equipment.

Handler Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)

Employers must provide pesticide handlers with the appropriate PPE, required by the pesticide labeling, in clean and operating condition. To ensure the PPE is functional, employers are required to inspect all PPE before each day of use for leaks, holes, tears, or worn places; damaged equipment must be repaired or discarded. Employers must also make sure that the handlers wear the PPE correctly, using it in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions. If a respirator is required, the employer must make sure it fits the wearer correctly. Steps must be taken by the employer to prevent heat stress while PPE is worn. Handlers must be provided with clean places away from pesticide storage/use areas to store their personal clothing and change into and out of PPE. Handlers should not be allowed to wear home or take home PPE contaminated with pesticides. Instead, employers must wash pesticide-contaminated PPE separately from other clothing or laundry; PPE must be cleaned and dried before each day of reuse. The employer must inform people who clean or launder PPE of the following: the PPE may be contaminated with pesticides, of the potentially harmful effects of pesticide exposure, how to protect themselves from exposure, and how to clean the PPE correctly. If PPE has been drenched or heavily contaminated with an undiluted pesticide labeled with a signal word of “DANGER” or “WARNING,” the PPE must be discarded in compliance with any applicable regulations. Clean PPE must be stored separately from personal clothing and pesticide-contaminated areas. If a respirator is used, employers must ensure the filter, cartridge, or canister is replaced as needed; further specifications on the timing of replacements are provided in the WPS. Employers should be aware that there are limited exceptions to the requirements for handlers to wear PPE, if the handlers are using a closed system, in an enclosed cab, or in a cockpit; the exceptions are detailed in the EPA’s document, “How to Comply with the Worker Protection Standard for Agricultural Pesticides: What Employers Need to Know”. The intent of the WPS is to ensure employers provide the necessary PPE for a particular work situation, and to make sure the PPE and other handler equipment is kept in clean and working order, for the safety of the handlers, workers, and other persons.

Conclusions

The WPS, along with related federal and state regulations, are intended to protect agricultural workers and pesticide handlers from occupational exposure to agricultural pesticides. Agricultural employers are responsible for making sure that the WPS requirements are implemented and adhered to on their farm, forest, nursery, or greenhouse. The requirements include: pesticide training and informational posters/displays for workers and handlers; PPE, restrictions during pesticide application, and other protections to prevent pesticide exposure; and measures, such as decontamination supplies and emergency assistance, to lessen the effects of any pesticide exposure that does occur. By protecting their employees from pesticide injury or illness, employers can reduce the potential costs of improperly handled pesticide accidents/exposures and help their workers and handlers stay healthy and productive over the long-term.

Resources For More Information

Following is a listing of additional resources for further information.

Pesticide information

  • National Pesticide Information Center (NPIC) (www.npic.orst.edu or 1-800-858-7378) Established through a cooperative agreement between the EPA and Oregon State University

Pesticide exposure or complaints

  • FDACS Case Referral Office (1-850-617-7880)
  • Florida Farm Worker Helpline (1-800-633-3572)
  • Florida Poison Control Center (1-800-222-1222)

WPS regulation and training materials

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