Poultry industry facilities with outstanding safety programs are invited to apply for recognition under the Joint Poultry Industry Safety Award Program. The program is open to National Chicken Council, National Turkey Federation and U.S. Poultry & Egg Association members with poultry processing plants, further processing facilities, egg processing plants, hatcheries, feed mills and rendering facilities that, through the implementation of innovative and effective programs, have injury and illness rates below the industry average for three consecutive years.
Based on the latest data available from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the poultry processing OSHA total recordable illness and injury rate for 2014 was 4.3 cases per 100 fulltime workers. The 2015 rate represents an outstanding 81 percent improvement from 1994.
“The poultry industry depends on our workforce of dedicated employees to provide a nutritious and affordable food source, and we are deeply invested in processes and procedures to reduce workplace hazards. The substantial and consistent improvement in illness and injury rates among our workforce over the past two decades is a direct outcome of the poultry industry’s strong commitment to worker safety,” said Scott Rushing, manager of safety and health, Sanderson Farms, and chair of the Joint Industry Safety and Health Council.
Award program rules, regulations and application forms are available by clicking here. Application forms can also be obtained on the www.uspoultry.org website. The application deadline for the 2017 awards is April 20. The annual awards will be presented during the National Safety Conference for the Poultry Industry in August.
