Lawmakers in Massacheutus have said that poultry plants that disregard current poulty plant operations should face stiffer penalties and they called for stronger enforcement against chronic violators.

"Poultry workers' health and safety is threatened every day in a variety of ways," Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-Mass., said in written comments for a Senate subcommittee hearing focused on workplace safety.

"Their hands are crippled by hours on an assembly line that moves too fast. They are forced to work when they are sick or seriously hurt. Yet OSHA sits on the sidelines, ignoring such problems."

According to the Charlotte Observer, witnesses told Kennedy and other senators on the panel that in poultry plants and other factories nationwide, grueling job conditions and preventable deaths have illustrated the need for more robust safety laws and enforcement.