Injury statistics for young workers are startling. StatsCan reports that every day 189 young workers between the ages of 15 and 24 are injured on the job. That grim toll adds up to 69,000 injuries each year.

Some studies found 80 percent of young workers don’t receive training in occupational health and safety.
These numbers are brought to life when you consider a real-life tragedy. In late 1994, Sean Kells was only 19 years old when on the third day of his part-time job. The chemical fluid that he was pouring ignited, and Sean was engulfed in a burst of flames. He received third-degree burns to 95 percent of his body and died the following day. With proper safety and emergency training, Sean’s death could have been prevented.

The Industrial Accident Prevention Association (IAPA), Canada’s largest health and safety organization, strongly believes workplace injuries and deaths, such as the death of Sean Kells, can be prevented. In 1995, we worked closely with the Workers Health and Safety Centre (WHSC) to develop the Young Worker Awareness Program (YWAP).

In 1996, volunteers and staff of both organizations delivered the program to more than 50,000 Ontario students. YWAP provides young workers with basic knowledge of workplace health and safety hazards, their rights and their responsibilities.

The program is available at no cost to Ontario schools, and combines a general assembly with classroom instruction to provide basic health and safety information.

Also available are educational health and safety materials, including videos, brochures, take-home resource books and posters. As part of the "Know Your Risks, Know Your Rights" campaign, the IAPA set up a toll-free hotline (1-888-406-YWAP (9927)) to handle calls from young workers, parents, and employers.

The responsibility for health and safety in the workplace must be shared by the employer and the worker. This summer, the IAPA and the WHSC launched a joint media campaign aimed at reaching young people during the peak summer employment period.

The goal of the campaign was to try to raise awareness of their rights and responsibilities under the Occupational Health and Safety Act. Studies show that 35 percent of those asked feel they regularly encounter harmful situations at work, and 24 percent say they have felt obligated to do dangerous work.

As president and chief executive officer of IAPA, I personally understand the message. My son was injured on the job three years ago in a workplace incident that almost claimed his life.

It is important that we use this program as a vehicle to reach young workers to reduce the number of needless injuries, illnesses and deaths. In the manufacturing sector alone, the injury rate for young workers is 35 percent higher than for other workers.

What should I review with my employees?

Young workers need answers to basic health and safety questions. Lack of practical experience, a carefree "it won’t happen to me" attitude, and fear for their jobs are all reasons why young workers may not ask questions about safety.

As an employer or supervisor of young workers, you should be prepared to cover a wide range of health and safety topics as components of your orientation training program. Young workers need to be made aware of job hazards, including training and protective equipment, and the rights and responsibilities of both workers and employers.

If you are a supervisor, it’s up to you to make sure workers follow the OH&S Act and your company’s policies and rules, to work safely, and use protective equipment. Inform workers about known hazards and demonstrate to workers how to work safely. What can you do?

There are a number of precautions you can take to ensure a safe workplace for young workers, including:

• Develop an effective health and safety training program for all new employees;
• Provide and maintain a safe workplace, including equipment and protective devices;
• Provide training so workers can work safely with materials used in your workplace, including equipment and protective devices;
• Inform new workers of any known hazards in your workplace, and provide training to work safely with the hazard.