CSN Discuss Bulletin

Young Worker Safety

June 2004

This bulletin comes to you from the Children's Safety Network through the CSNDISCUSS list, an electronic forum for the discussion of child and adolescent injury and violence prevention and related issues.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction
News and Developments
  1. Youth 2 Work website
  2. Federal Network for Young Worker Safety and Health (FedNet)
  3. NIOSH Safety Checklist Program
  4. Youth @ Work: Talking Safety
  5. 17 th World Congress on Safety & Health at Work
Articles and Reports
  1. Article: Age related differences in work injuries and permanent impairment: A comparison of workers' compensation claims among adolescents, young adults, and adults
  2. Article: Injuries to Youth on Minority Farm Operations
  3. Article: Why is work intensity associated with heavy alcohol use among adolescents?
  4. Article: Work-related injury among south Texas middle school students: prevalence and patterns
Resources for more information
  1. Children's Safety Network
  2. Young Worker Safety Resource Center

AVAILABILITY

Copies of many items can be delivered to state Maternal and Child Health and state public health staff upon request. Articles available by e-mail are so indicated. Some other articles can be faxed or mailed. To request an article or other publication, e-mail jhudson@edc.org with the item name, delivery preference (e-mail, fax number, or mailing address). This service is restricted to state Maternal and Child Health and state public health staff. Restricted time and resources forbids us from delivering articles to others.

URLs of publications that can be downloaded from the web are included in the bibliographic information.

Introduction

Maternal and Child Health professionals are committed to protecting the safety of adolescents. While many MCH and other injury prevention staff in health departments are involved in programs to reduce injuries related to motor vehicles, violence, and recreational activities, few are actively engaged in efforts to protect youth at work. Yet, work is a common activity for millions of teens – one that can be extremely hazardous. Every year, over 200,000 teens are injured at work—77,000 seriously enough to visit the emergency department—and approximately 70 teens die on the job. Teens are injured on the job at rates higher than are adult workers, largely because of their inexperience, lack of training, and the types of jobs they are hired to perform.

MCH and other injury prevention professionals in state health departments can play an important role in protecting teen workers. They can collect and disseminate occupational injury data; partner with departments of education and labor and business and employee groups to develop comprehensive state-wide initiatives to insure safe workplaces; integrate occupational safety into adolescent health initiatives and programs; and provide resources and training to local public health professionals, health care providers, and schools. The following information and research will assist you in these efforts.

News and Developments
  1. Youth 2 Work website
    This Department of Labor website has links to Youth Rules!, which contains information on child labor laws; and Teen Workers, which focuses on workplace health and safety. The Teen Workers site has a variety of resources and information for teens, parents, employers and educators, as well as a section on summer jobs and two e-tools on restaurant safety and youth in agriculture. For Youth 2 Work, see: www.youth2work.gov; for Youth Rules!, see: www.youthrules.dol.gov; for Teen Workers, see: www.osha.gov/SLTC/teenworkers/index.html
  2. Federal Network for Young Worker Safety and Health (FedNet)
    FedNet is an interagency workgroup formed in 2003 to optimize the impact of Federal resources in addressing young worker injuries and illnesses. Representatives from nine Federal agencies meet on a regular basis to share strategies and materials and develop coordinated approaches to the issue of young worker safety.

    For more information, contact Elise Handleman, Director for the Office of Occupational Health Nursing, Email: elise.handelman@osha.gov
  3. NIOSH Safety Checklist Program
    This new CD-ROM from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health provides information to assist schools in maintaining safe classrooms, shops, and labs for teachers and students in career-technical education. This information can also be used by colleges and universities with occupational safety and health programs.

    Available at no cost from: NIOSH—Publications Dissemination, 4676 Columbia Parkway , Cincinnati , OH 45226-1998 . Phone:1-800-35-NIOSH (1-800-356-4674). E-mail: pubstaft@cdc.gov Website: www.cdc.gov/niosh/docs/2004-101
  4. Youth @ Work: Talking Safety
    This is a curriculum designed to help teachers and job training programs teach high school-age youth about job health and safety. It consists of six units with a total of 13 interactive activities and an introductory video. Each unit contains adapted activities for youth with learning disabilities. Youth @ Work is a 2004 publication of the Young Worker Safety Resource Center.

    For cost and ordering information, contact: LOHP, University of California at Berkeley, 2223 Fulton Street, 4th floor, Berkeley, CA 94720-5120, (510) 642-2424. Website: www.youngworkers.org
  5. 17th World Congress on Safety & Health at Work
    The 17th World Congress on Safety & Health at work will take place in Orlando, Florida, September 18-22, 2005. This international forum is held every three years to allow over 3000 professionals to exchange ideas, research and best practices on important issues in the area of occupational safety and health. The theme of the upcoming conference is: Prevention in a Globalized World—Success Through Partnerships. Several sessions will focus on young workers.

    The Congress is sponsored by the International Labor Office, the International Social Security Association, and the National Safety Council. For more information: www.safety2005.org
Articles and Reports
  1. Breslin C, Koehoorn M, Smith P, Manno M.
    Age related differences in work injuries and permanent impairment: A comparison of workers' compensation claims among adolescents, young adults, and adults.

    This Canadian study compares occupational injuries among adolescents with those of adults. Workers' compensation records were used to examine work- related injuries among adolescents (15-19 years old), young adults (20-24 years old), and adults (25+ years old) between 1993 and 2000. Male adolescents and young adults had higher claim rates than adult males. Adult females had the highest claim rates and young adults the lowest. Preliminary evidence indicates that compensated work injuries sustained by youth are not as serious as injuries sustained by adults. Nevertheless, there was evidence that some young workers sustain injuries that have long term consequences. The authors suggest that documenting the consequences of the injuries that young workers sustain has implications for secondary prevention efforts and health services policy.
  2. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. (2003). Injuries to Youth on Minority Farm Operations. Cincinnati, Ohio: Author.

    This publication summarizes the results of a collaborative survey of minority farm operators by NIOSH and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The survey fills a gap that existed because the statistically small number of minority farm operations in the U.S. meant that NIOSH had insufficient data to assess whether patterns of injury and illness on minority farm operations were different from those of other farm operations. The survey is part of a broader NIOSH effort with diverse partners in agriculture to support the NIOSH Childhood Agricultural Injury Prevention Initiative.

    The publication is available at: www.cdc.gov/niosh/docs/2004-117
  3. Paschall MJ, Flewelling RL, Russell T. Why is work intensity associated with heavy alcohol use among adolescents?

    Journal of Adolescent Health. 2004 January; 34(1):79-87. This article examines and explains the relationship between work intensity (number of hours worked per week) and heavy alcohol use among adolescents. Analyses were conducted with two waves of in-home interview data provided by a representative sample of adolescents who participated in the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health. Higher levels of work intensity at Wave 1 (11-20 or more than 20 hours/week) were predictive of heavy drinking at Wave 2. However, these effects were substantially attenuated after adjusting for demographic characteristics and prior alcohol use. This study suggests that working more than 10 hours per week increases the likelihood of heavy alcohol use among adolescents, and that the effect of work intensity is largely, but not completely attributable to demographic characteristics (e.g., age, race/ethnicity, personal income), prior alcohol use, and family, school, and peer-individual factors.
  4. Weller NF, Cooper SP, Tortolero SR, Kelder SH, Hassan S. Work-related injury among south Texas middle school students: prevalence and patterns. Southern Medical J ournal 2003 December; 96(12): 1213-1220.

    Work experiences among early adolescents are largely undocumented. The purpose of this study was to document the prevalence of work and work-related injury among lower-income Hispanic South Texas middle school students.

    Anonymous surveys were conducted in classrooms of sixth- through eighth-grade students, and 3,008 students reported current or recent employment. Fifty-six percent of the students worked. They worked a mean average of 7.7 hours each week. Increasing weekly work hours were significantly related to work injury. The odds of injury were highest for agriculture, followed by restaurant, construction, and yard work. The authors conclude that working more than 20 hours weekly increased the likelihood of injury among middle school students and recommend that parents and professionals should monitor weekly school-year work hours.
Resources for more information
  1. Children's Safety Network
    CSN has a number of publications on occupational safety for teens, including many related to agricultural safety. CSN staff also can assist you in making connections with other agencies and professionals in your state, as well as colleagues in other states who are involved in issues related to young worker safety.
  2. Young Worker Safety Resource Center
    Education Development Center , in collaboration with the University of California at Berkeley , houses an OSHA-funded resource center to promote the safety of young workers. The center provides a four-hour training and follow-up technical assistance to job readiness and placement staff, seminars for small business employers of youth; and consultation and referrals for staff in state-level departments of education and labor who want to integrate young worker safety training into their existing programs.
For more information, contact:

Chris Miara

Education Development Center, Inc

55 Chapel St, Newton, MA 02458

Phone: 617-618-2238

Email: cmiara@edc.org

Next month's CSN Discuss bulletin will focus on firearm safety.

 

Please direct questions about this bulletin to Christine Miara at:

Children's Safety Network

Education Development Center

55 Chapel Street

Newton, MA 02458-1060

Ph: 617-618-2238

Fax: 617-969-9186

E-mail: cmiara@edc.org

www.ChildrensSafetyNetwork.org