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Managing Young Workers

If your organization employs young workers you would be interested to know that new or young workers are four times as likely to be injured during the first month on the job. Young workers tend to be especially vulnerable because:

• they change jobs fairly quickly and need to be retrained wherever they go
• they have a low perception of risk and often lack the experience to recognize and avoid hazards making them particularly vulnerable to illness and injury on the job
• many young workers consider themselves invincible and think they are capable of tackling any workplace hazards

The fact is, many young workers are getting hurt or killed on the job. Statistics reveal that

• 35% of young worker injuries occured with workers under 24 years
• 6.3% of injuries occured in the first 28 days on the job

Ministry of Labour Young Worker Blitz

Ontario's Ministry of Labour will be conducting inspection blitzes during June 2009 on workplaces employing new and young workers. Inspectors will expect to be be shown evidence that young workers have been provided with adequate orientation and training on performing specific tasks. Click here for more details.

What can employers do?

Employers can start by recognizing and being aware of the risks for young workers. Ask yourself these questions:

• Have I matched the job tasks to the young worker's physical and mental maturity?
• Have I provided orientation training in safe work procedures before assigning work?
• Have I ensured that all new and young workers are closely supervised until they demonstrate that they are capable of working safely?
• Do I encourage an open line of communication about health and safety suggestions for improvement or concerns?
• Do I represent a model for the safety behaviour I expect?
• Do I consistently provide positive feedback?

Click here to access articles, tools and other resources.

Products & Courses for Young Worker Safety

You don't have to walk this road alone. OSSA can help you prepare for the Ministry's blitz. Click here to know more about 'Dare to Care', a helpful resource to get your supervisors and managers up to speed with managing the safety of young workers.

OSSA also has training courses on roles and responsibilites and certification training for your joint health & safety committee or representative.Click here to view all courses.

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