Many young workers under age 25 enter the workforce before they have had a chance to develop foundational job skills. In fact, most high schoolers—an estimated 80 percent— hold a job at some point during their school years. With work-related injury among these young workers approximately twice as high as among older workers, the need for early training in foundational job skills is critical. To address this knowledge gap, researchers at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) developed a framework for teaching young workers fundamentals about safety and health on the job. These foundational skills include the abilities to read for information, apply mathematics, problem solve, think critically, manage social relationships, and communicate effectively. Called the NIOSH 8 Core Competencies, this framework includes eight steps that younger workers can take to help ensure their safety in any workplace, the researchers report in the Journal of Safety Research:
The researchers used the Health Belief Model, an established theoretical framework for effecting change in health behavior, to guide the development of the NIOSH 8 Core Competencies. In practical terms, according to the researchers, teachers and administrators can incorporate the NIOSH 8 Core Competencies into school curricula to help ensure that young workers have the skills and knowledge they need to stay safe and healthy at work.