MoreThousands and thousands of young workers 14-18 years old are working summer jobs that require safety skills and awareness to avoid injury.
Every year in the U.S., an estimated 200,000 young workers are injured on the job, according to NIOSH. About 70,000 require emergency room visits.
According to the California Department of Industrial Relations, young workers face these specific risks:
- Using powered equipment such as box crushers, bakery machines and forklifts when they are underage.
- Working late hours and on school nights - increasing their risks and vulnerability to crime.
- Working long hours - especially hazardous when working alone and in frequent contact with the public.
- Operating unsafe or broken equipment without supervision.
- Working around hot oil and cooking surfaces.
- Working on ladders, driving a car on public streets as part of the job, and unloading trucks and conveyors.
Check out the Web site www.youngworkers.org for tips on keeping teens safe at work.
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