A worker uses a Girette to prune trees. (Courtesy Flathead Cherry Growers, Montana) Regulators in British Columbia, Canada, have developed safety documentation for the elevated, mobile work platforms widely used in the province’s orchards—but have sidelined locally designed equipment that reflected local farming conditions. WorkSafeBC, the organization that regulates workplace safety and workers’ compensation in the province, took issue with the platforms in 2009. Girette lifts, three-wheeled systems with extensible buckets, and similar older equipment were deemed to be not compliant with existing workplace safety regulations. There were no engineering standards or operator’s manuals for the systems, nor operator’s training […]