Workers, generally speaking, are always exposed to higher or lower risk degrees. Farmers are particularly exposed, which is demonstrated in the specialized literature. Nevertheless, papers have stated that there are, in fact, some sort of common protection law that permit them carry on their activities. This is because the majority of the employers take part in the production process to guarantee their harvests using pesticide. This paper presents a research carried out in two cities in the Southwest Piauí State using a qualitative approach in order to understand the protection mechanisms farmers perform against their occupational hazards. The outcomes reveal defensive strategies such as alcohol consumption and subletting work to younger workers. There is also the existence of some level of awareness about the risks of pesticide use to health. Considering that, the importance of the designation given to pesticides as a protection factor must be discussed and that should be more valorized in order to maximize farmers self-protection instead of insisting on the information increase or the personal protection equipaments control strategies.
Pesticide; Risk warning; Occupational health