Teens in the workplace

When teenagers go off to work--sometimes for the first time in their
lives--parents want to know they will be safe in the workplace.

When teenagers go off to work-sometimes for the first time in their
lives-parents want to know they will be safe in the workplace. Who will
look out for their safety? Industrial hygienists are professionals who
specialize in ensuring safe and healthy work environments for employees
of all ages.

Are teenagers safe in the workplace? Do they know what to watch out for
in terms of safety? Consider these statistics from the National
Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH):

• On average, 45 percent of American teens are employed each
year-more than any other developed country.

• More than three million U.S. teens enter the workforce every
summer and thousands of these teens are admitted to emergency rooms due
to work-related injuries.

• Nearly 200,000 adolescents suffer injuries on the job and
approximately 70 die from these injuries each year.

• Teens have the highest rate of nonfatal work-related injuries,
even though they encounter the same potential on-the-job hazards as adults.

• The reasons for teen work-related accidents include lack of
experience, gaps in current laws and enforcement, inexperienced
supervisors, working in industries that don't generally hire
professionals trained in industrial hygiene and/or safety, physical
limitations due to lack of size and strength, and simple lack of
maturity ("goofing off" on the job).

• The majority of deaths and injuries of teen workers on the job
occur in retail stores and restaurants.

• Common potential hazards include automobile and machinery
operation (for teens old enough for such tasks), working in
high-homicide industries such as retail, working with or near electrical
or hot equipment, working jobs with fall hazards, and working jobs
requiring manual lifting.