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Archived News Release--Caution:
information may be out of date.
For more information call: (202) 219-8211
A 16-year-old boy was paralyzed when the car he was working
on fell from its hoist... a 16-year-old girl cut her finger operating an
electric meat slicer... a 16-year-old boy was injured when he was thrown from
the back of a moving pick-up truck.
These are the kind of on-the-job injuries suffered by
200,000 teenagers each year that Secretary of Labor Robert B. Reich hopes to
prevent with a public education initiative, "Work Safe This Summer," which he
announced in a news conference today.
"No parent wants to get that call from the emergency
room," said Reich. "With 3 million teenagers under 18 about to start their
summer jobs, we want to be sure that our sons and daughters work safely this
summer. They deserve to come away with only positive experiences from holding a
job and getting a regular paycheck."
Joined by Maryland teenagers who were injured on the job,
Reich outlined what parents and teens need to know to help avoid injury. The
Labor Department has issued a simple tip sheet for teenagers and parents, which
it will make available through DOL's Summer Jobs Program and on the
Internet(located at http://www.dol.gov/dol/teensafety). It urges teenagers to
participate in training programs at work and to let employers know when they
are doing a task for the first time. It also informs teenagers of the kind of
hazardous tasks they should not perform, like operating electric meat slicers
or power-driven circular saws.
"Employers realize the key to productivity is preparing
workers for the job. Proper training often can save time and money," said
Reich. "Along with learning the work ethic and responsibility, we believe young
workers should learn that training can mean the difference between a safe job
and an injury."
To assure a worthwhile summer job experience for teenage
workers and their employers, the department also has produced a pocket guide
for employers that contains a checklist of dangers and safety precautions.
"We are telling employers they can avoid many injuries
with training but some tasks are so dangerous they should not be performed by
adolescents at all," said Reich.
Department of Labor staff will distribute the pocket guide
this summer when they inspect companies and when they go out to speak about
labor issues to schools and civic organizations. The guide explains child labor
laws in simple terms, offers step-by-step guidance on preparing teens who are
new to the job and ideas that have worked well for other employers, such
as:
- issuing different-colored smocks to employees under 18 at a chain of
convenience stores. That way, supervisors know who isn't allowed to operate the
electric meat slicer.
- giving teens a laminated, pocket-sized "Minor Policy Card" on the
first day of work at a Pennsylvania supermarket. The card explains the firm's
policy and requirements for complying with child labor regulations.
Also at the news conference, Constance Battle, M.D., of
the American Academy of Pediatrics--a partner in "Work Safe This
Summer"--described some of the most serious injuries of young workers. "Many of
the injuries that young people sustain in the workplace leave them with serious
medical conditions and permanent disabilities due to amputations, burns,
scalds, scalpings, fractures, eye loss and electrocutions," said Battle. "Our
best weapon against these injuries is education."
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
estimates:
- 70 teenagers, about one every 5 days, are killed each year in
work-related accidents, primarily motor vehicle-related (24 percent);
- 64,000 are injured seriously enough to be treated in emergency
rooms;
- most injuries (54 percent) occur in the retail industry, where the
majority (51 percent) of teens work;
- the service sector, where 34 percent of teens work, accounts for an
additional 20 percent of injuries.
"Work Safe This Summer" is a joint effort of the American
Academy of Pediatrics, the Child Labor Coalition of the National Consumers
League and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health and the
Labor Department. These organizations will work to highlight safety among
first-line supervisors, employers, teachers, teens and their parents.
Archived News Release--Caution:
information may be out of date.
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