2008 Woodie Awards
Teenagers tell researchers about on-the-job dangers
Issue date: 3/5/07 Section: News
CHICAGO (AP) - The first national study to interview teenagers about on-the-job dangers found many violations of federal laws, including sizable numbers performing risky tasks or working too late on a school night.
Many teens said they operated hazardous equipment, received no safety training and worked alone after dark, making them potential targets for burglary and homicide.
"Teenagers are being put in the position of doing tasks that are either illegal or dangerous," said lead author Carol Runyan of the University of North Carolina Injury Prevention Research Center.
While enforcement of laws could be improved, she said, "the real burden lies with employers."
Teenagers soon will start applying for summer jobs and parents should talk to them about safety, Runyan said.
Hundreds of thousands of U.S. teenagers are injured at work every year and 70 die from their injuries, according to federal statistics.
The new study found:
- Thirty-seven percent of teens under age 16 said they had worked after 7 p.m. on a school night, a violation of federal rules for that age group.
- Sixteen percent of teens under 16 reported they had worked past 9 p.m. on a school night.
- Forty-seven percent of teens who work in grocery stores and restaurants said they had performed tasks prohibited by law for workers younger than 18. The illegal tasks included operating a box crusher, dough mixer or power slicing tool.
- One-third of all the teens said they had received no safety training on the job.
- Nine percent said they had worked alone after dark.
The new findings, appearing in the March issue of Pediatrics, are based on a 2003 telephone survey of 866 teenagers working in the retail and service industry. The teenagers had jobs in restaurants, grocery stores and retail stores.
The same researchers found similar violations of work rules in a previous survey of North Carolina teens working in construction.The results don't surprise Toronto resident Rob Ellis, whose son David died at age 18 after becoming entangled in a dough mixer at a bakery on his second day on the job. David, who died six days after the traumatic injury, never received his first paycheck.
Many teens said they operated hazardous equipment, received no safety training and worked alone after dark, making them potential targets for burglary and homicide.
"Teenagers are being put in the position of doing tasks that are either illegal or dangerous," said lead author Carol Runyan of the University of North Carolina Injury Prevention Research Center.
While enforcement of laws could be improved, she said, "the real burden lies with employers."
Teenagers soon will start applying for summer jobs and parents should talk to them about safety, Runyan said.
Hundreds of thousands of U.S. teenagers are injured at work every year and 70 die from their injuries, according to federal statistics.
The new study found:
- Thirty-seven percent of teens under age 16 said they had worked after 7 p.m. on a school night, a violation of federal rules for that age group.
- Sixteen percent of teens under 16 reported they had worked past 9 p.m. on a school night.
- Forty-seven percent of teens who work in grocery stores and restaurants said they had performed tasks prohibited by law for workers younger than 18. The illegal tasks included operating a box crusher, dough mixer or power slicing tool.
- One-third of all the teens said they had received no safety training on the job.
- Nine percent said they had worked alone after dark.
The new findings, appearing in the March issue of Pediatrics, are based on a 2003 telephone survey of 866 teenagers working in the retail and service industry. The teenagers had jobs in restaurants, grocery stores and retail stores.
The same researchers found similar violations of work rules in a previous survey of North Carolina teens working in construction.The results don't surprise Toronto resident Rob Ellis, whose son David died at age 18 after becoming entangled in a dough mixer at a bakery on his second day on the job. David, who died six days after the traumatic injury, never received his first paycheck.
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