Inspection Detail

Inspection: 1496771.015 - Ratto Bros.,Inc.

Inspection Information - Office: Modesto District Office

Investigation Summary

At 10:40 a.m. on September 14, 2020, an employee was driving a tractor all day (open cab), fertilizing in the morning with a gantry box implement and cultivating in the afternoon with a wire cultivator attachment. The employee was wearing an N-95 respirator, due to the air quality in the area from wildfire smoke. The employee's throat started hurting, but he kept working and did not tell the employer. After work, the employee was having trouble swallowing and went to the emergency room. The employee called the employer the following morning to tell them he had been hospitalized but did not say why. On September 21, 2020, the employee showed up and let the employer know he had been hospitalized until September 18, 2020, for a throat infection (acute tonsillitis and pharyngitis) caused by work.

Keywords: Driving, Farm, Farm worker, Fertilizer, Respirator, Smoke, Smoke Inhalation, Throat, Tractor