Europe Passes Tractor Vibration Rules

Europe Passes Tractor Vibration Rules TRACTORS Miscellaneous The European Union recently enacted “whole body vibration” rules designed to protect workers from health risks due to vibration on tractors and other farm equipment Critics of the new rules passed by the EU say they could limit the time farmers spend in their tractors to less than 1 hr a day A spokesman for the EU says “Whole-body vibration can have debilitating and often life-changing health implications particularly through back pain ” However George Lyon a Scottish member of the European Parliament said “If these rules are implemented and enforced without flexibility we could end up with a situation where some people will not be able to plow their fields This would be an utterly ludicrous state of affairs ” A regulator responded “It’s mostly equipment built before 2007 that will not meet vibration guidelines By rotating jobs and buying new equipment farmers will be able to meet the whole-body guidelines ”

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