According to the New York Daily News, a total of 42% of all workers who prepare and pack products in New York are injured while on the job. The Urban Justice Center performed a Community Development Project where they investigated a variety of food manufacturing locations and surveyed workers to learn more about injuries. One worker at a Queens bakery says that he was hit on the head by a metal card lid when he was packing and loading bread for his company.
According to the survey:
- 15% of food manufacturing workers have slipped and fell
- 14% of injured workers were cut
- 10% of injured workers suffered a back injury
- 10% of workers were injured when they were told to do something that put their safety at risk
Researchers say that food manufacture workers are working with heavy machinery and are on tight production schedules. This leads to extreme risk as workers carelessly try to speed through their projects. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration reports that there were 13 fatalities at city food factories between 2001 and 2011. Many food manufacture workers don’t receive job training and as many as 55% workers say that they are required to work while sick.
New York City’s food factories generate about $5 billion per year with about 900 firms across the city. There are about 14,000 workers in this industry within the city, many of whom are immigrants from Latin America and Asia. If you want more information about food manufacturers in the United States, don’t hesitate to contact the firm today. At Katz, Leidman, Freund & Herman, we are dedicated to helping clients recognize their rights when it comes to injuries at work. Call today to get more information!
