LAW
Writer®
Ohio Laws and Rules
(A) Employers shall comply with the following for the personal safety of migrant field workers who may enter areas when exposure to pesticides displaying the signal words “DANGER – POISON” or “WARNING” or their residues may reasonably be expected to be in excess of tolerance level.
(1) At or near the signing in of migrant field workers, employers shall provide all migrant field workers and their families with bilingual educational material supplied by the department of agriculture which outlines reasonable safety measures to be taken by migrant field workers in pesticide treated areas and in migrant labor camps.
(2) Direct field supervisor shall be informed of the usual symptoms of organophosphate and carbamate poisoning, and when pesticide poisoning is reasonably suspected in a migrant field worker, the employer or his designated agent shall cause the migrant field worker to be taken to a medical facility immediately.
(3) Any employee who believes that their person or belongings have been contaminated shall be entitled to leave the area without retaliation by the employer.
(4) Adequate handwashing facilities shall be available for migrant field workers.
(B) No person shall intentionally, recklessly or negligently apply any pesticide in such a manner that it contaminates the body or clothing of any migrant field worker during the application process, except for migrant field workers who are involved in the application process and who are wearing the appropriate protective clothing and/or equipment.
(C) Migrant field workers may re-enter fields after pesticide application under the following circumstances:
(1) Migrant field workers shall not be permitted to enter any area treated with a pesticide until the pesticide spray has dried or the pesticide dust has settled, unless that migrant field worker wears the same protective clothing and equipment specified for the applicator in the labeling of that pesticide. In no case does the waiting period for the drying or settling to occur need to exceed twenty-four hours, unless otherwise required in paragraph (C)(2) of this rule.
(2) A treated area may be entered by migrant field workers without restriction after the pesticide has dried or the pesticide dust has settled, except when the U.S. EPA label instructions of the pesticide specifies a longer re-entry interval. When more than one re-entry interval in this rule is applicable in a given situation, the longer interval shall apply.
(D) Whenever a mixture of two or more organophosphate pesticides having a re-entry interval is applied, the longer of the two re-entry intervals shall be applicable.
(E) When more than one pound per acre of actual parathion, methyl parathion or EPN is applied singly or in combination to any plant, a fourteen-day re-entry interval applies.
(F) The re-entry interval for methomyl on corn is two days.
(G) When there is no foliage on the plant that has been treated by a pesticide, the re-entry interval shall be reduced by fifty per cent, but in no case shall be less than twenty-four hours.
(H) If, after testing by the department, a field is suspected as having been a source of a pesticide-related illness, or of having a reasonable possibility of producing a pesticide-related illness, the director may prohibit entry of migrant field workers into the treated area. If entry is allowed, the director may require the employer to provide medical supervision for migrant field workers who will enter the treated area to engage in substantial and prolonged body contact with the plants. The director or his designee may also specify protective clothing and equipment to be worn by migrant field workers under such circumstances.
(I) Mixing, loading, storage or application of pesticides shall not be allowed within the perimeter of a migrant labor camp.
HISTORY: Eff 6-25-85
Rule promulgated under: RC Chapter 119.
Rule authorized by: RC 921.16(B)(6)
Rule amplifies: RC 921.16(B)(6)
119.032 Review Date: 4-21-00; 4-21-05