The Joint Industry Safety and Health Council recognized Perdue with more awards than any other poultry company for implementing innovative and effective workplace safety health processes and systems.
Twenty-five Perdue facilities in 11 states, including 11 of the company’s 16 food-producing plants, received awards at the 2017 National Safety Conference for the Poultry Industry.
“For us, workplace safety is an absolute that includes an uncompromising commitment from our company and an ongoing safety culture that engages all our associates,” said Randy Day, chief executive officer. “These awards recognize company goals that put people first and our associates’ dedication to workplace safety. We’re proud of our teams’ accomplishments, and focus on continuous improvement.”
The company’s food-producing facilities that received Awards of Distinction — the Council’s highest honor — include operations in Bridgewater, Va., Concord, N.C., Cromwell, Ky., Dillon, S.C., Lewiston, N.C., and Milford, Del. The company’s hatcheries in Murfreesboro, N.C., Vincennes, Ind., and Westover, Md., and feed mills in Bridgeville, Del., Forsyth, Ga., and Nashville, N.C., also received the Award of Distinction.
The Award of Distinction criteria required these facilities to maintain their key Occupational Safety and Health Administration safety metrics — Total Recordable Incident Rate (TRIR), Days Away, Restricted or Transferred (DART), and Lost Work Day Incident Rate (LWDIR) — at levels at least 50 percent better than the industry average for three consecutive years. Award consideration was also based on each facility’s written explanation of its safety programs and processes.
Facilities that were recognized with the Award of Honor, the Council’s second highest honor, include food-producing plants in Accomac, Va., Monterey, Tenn., two plants in Perry, Ga., and another in Rockingham, N.C. Perdue hatcheries in Dillon, Hurlock, Md., Trion, Ga., and Santa Rosa, Calif., as well as a feed mill in Petaluma, Calif., received the Award of Honor. These facilities maintained their OSHA safety metrics at least 25 percent better than the industry for at least three straight years.
In addition, Perdue feed mills in Elkin, N.C., and Washington, Ind., received the Award of Merit for maintaining their OSHA safety metrics at least 25 percent better than the industry for at least two consecutive years.
Award consideration was based on injury statistics over three years and an evaluation of written applications by an independent panel of judges.
About the Joint Industry Safety and Health Council
The Joint Industry Safety and Health Council comprises members from the U.S. Poultry and Egg Association, National Chicken Council, and National Turkey Federation. Combined, these three organizations represent companies that produce 95 percent of the nation’s poultry products and employ more 350,000 workers.
