Tractor driving among Kentucky farm youth: Results from the farm family health and hazard surveillance project

This article documents the extent of children's involvement in tractor operations among a representative sample of Kentucky children living and working on family farms. Specifically, we describe children's exposures to tractor-related work activities, profile their use of the tractor (number of days worked), and assess compliance with generally recommended safety measures, such as using tractors equipped with ROPS (rollover protective structures), avoiding riding as passengers on tractors, and operating tractors on public roadways. Data for this study were collected in 1994 and 1995 as part of the NIOSH-sponsored Farm Family Health and Hazard Surveillance Project (FFHHSP). Despite recognition in the health and safety community of the hazards associated with operating tractors without ROPS on public roadways and with extra riders, these practices remain common among youth on Kentucky farms. Farms with annual incomes greater than $10,000, particularly with livestock commodities, appear to use youth for a greater number of days of tractor operation than other farms. Such farms may be an appropriate target for intervention.