"Dairy workers on Wisconsin’s small farms are dying. Many of those deaths are never investigated", 22 July, 2024

...Since 2009, at least 17 workers, most of them immigrants, have died on Wisconsin dairy farms. Twelve of the deaths happened on farms with fewer than 11 workers. OSHA did not inspect eight of those 12, each time citing the small farms exemption...

...How OSHA interprets and applies its definition of a temporary labor camp — and whether it should consider dairy workers temporary when farms produce milk year-round — has significant implications for the safety of thousands of workers in one of America’s most dangerous industries...

...The three men — all undocumented immigrants from Mexico — died from well-known hazards in agriculture. In two of the deaths, workers were performing dangerous tasks that OSHA includes on its “Dairy Dozen,” a list that is supposed to help inspectors and farmers ensure that farms are safe workplaces...

...What OSHA calls a temporary labor camp has varied from case to case. The agency has said it wouldn’t consider employer-provided housing a temporary labor camp if the workers’ jobs were permanent...

...Former OSHA officials said the agency’s scattered approach might be a byproduct of disorganization or shifting priorities in a large bureaucracy that’s responsible for inspecting hundreds of deaths in all kinds of workplaces each year...

...