Pesticide applicators inject pesticides to
the bananas or directly spray it by backpack, some doing it as often as
daily. Two laborers who had used Gramoxone as spray were hospitalized,
and one of them died. Other workers have recurring spells of dizziness,
weakness, and skin itching, and are absent from work almost once a week
because of their illnesses. Edward Rama, who injects BAYCOR and DECIS every
week to banana buds, says that he is “always feverish, experiences stomach
aches, has skin that constantly itches, and tires easily.” Jose Antermo,
30, used FORMALIN daily, and experienced weakness and dizziness. “FORMALIN
is very painful to the nose, and my chest tightens when I smell it. My
wife, she lost our child when she was 4 months pregnant. I think it was
because of my job. She washes my work clothes doused with FORMALIN.”
Laborers who had served in the plantation for a long period of time already
became too weak and sickly they had to stop working altogether.
