The landscape industry has long relied on steel with revved up motors to get things done.  Machines move jobs efficiently and with less back strain.  Now, with the shortage of labor, companies are using them even more as they rely on compact equipment to carry more of the load on jobsites.  

The value in small equipment, particularly walk-behind compact loaders, is that it allows work to get done faster and with fewer people than ever before.  Will Hyde, Mile High Landscaping, Lakewood, says, “Every time someone climbs into a small loader as a driver, all the safety steps have to be followed for the seat belt and for starting them.  And you have to be careful getting in and out.” 

Employers: You could be liable for employees talking on their cells while driving during work hours – and even while driving to and from work. That sobering thought may prompt owners and managers to set specific policies and to train all employees about when use is restricted for their mobile devices.

Consider that 80% of the nation’s 94 million cell phone users talk on their phones at least sometimes while they are driving. And the issue is not hands-free versus hand-held devices. Studies have indicated that it is not holding the phone in a hand that should otherwise be on the steering wheel, but it’s the conversation itself, that impairs driving.