As summer draws to a close, many teens and young adults looking for a bit of independence or to save money for school will be entering the workforce for the first time
Young people have been taking on part-time jobs for generations in order to help pay for incidentals, rent or tuition but awareness of workplace safety has become a hot topic in recent years.
According to Workplace Safety & Prevention Services’ First Job Safe Job blog, young workers are most vulnerable as new workers, with Ontario workers under the age of 25 three times more likely to be injured during their first month on the job compared to their more experienced counterparts.
After that first month, the risk remains: according to the same source, 40 percent of all workplace injuries happen during the first six months on the job.
Injuries range from minor (cuts, bruises) to severe (fractures, amputations, or fatalities), with injuries often stemming from unfamiliarity with equipment and tasks.
That’s where Workplace Safety & Prevention Services (WSPS) comes in.
A not-for-profit organization committed to making workplaces safer, WSPS provides businesses and workers in service, manufacturing and agriculture sectors – the more common industries where young people find themselves employed – across Ontario with the training, education and support needed to avoid accidents, injuries and illnesses, says WSPS senior health and safety consultant Ayden Robertson.
Ayden Robertson. Photo Courtesy WSPS
“When our kids start their first jobs, we all want to believe they’ll be safe, maybe stocking shelves, pouring coffee, working the register, or even helping out on a farm,” says Robertson, who is also a father of two young girls. “But as parents, we know how fast things can go sideways, even in routine roles – some jobs that young people get may seem innocuous but do contain real risks to their health and safety.”
Parents need to keep the conversation about safety alive at home, he says.
“Kids are often the newest and youngest on the team, and that brings its own risks,” Robertson says. That goes for every sector.
Entry-level jobs in the manufacturing sector can have a dangerous learning curve due to unfamiliar machinery and equipment, noisy spaces or long shifts.
“Young people may not have a full appreciation for the risks in these work environments,” says Robertson. “We need to remind our kids that it’s OK to double check, ask for a repeat demo, or even say, ‘I am not comfortable doing this,’ without worrying about being penalized.”
Although Robertson says many people “picture outdoor work as healthy and wholesome, we can’t forget how many young workers are injured in agriculture. Heavy equipment, working alone or in isolation, unpredictable animals, chemicals, a lot can go wrong.” In addition, young people may also not think to wear hats, sunscreen and gloves and drink enough water.
Even service jobs have unexpected hazards: “Running hot food or drinks, dashing to refill things, or helping customers who aren’t always polite… it’s easy for them to lose focus and slip on a wet floor, grab something sharp, or lift more than they should, just trying to keep up,” says Robertson. “Sometimes, in all the rush, they miss important safety steps just trying to keep up. And let’s be honest: it can be intimidating to speak up.”
The Ontario Occupational Health & Safety Act is based on the internal responsibility system where the employer, supervisor and worker all have shared responsibilities to keep all workers safe.
The worker’s role is to bring concerns to the attention of their supervisor and the employer; share ideas on how the work could be done safer; participate in all training; follow safety rules; ask for clarification; report hazards and refuse unsafe work – but the employer has the greater responsibility.
“By law in Ontario and elsewhere, employers must provide appropriate health and safety information, training, supervision, and a safe work environment for all workers,” says Robertson.
This includes ensuring providing hands-on training, clear instructions, and ensuring young employees understand how to work safely amongst the workplace’s hazards and know what to do if something feels unsafe. Knowing that employers are legally responsible for worker safety and where to find support should injury occur should be empowering for young workers and their parents, Robertson adds.
Parents can’t be responsible for what happens at the job site, but they play a crucial advocacy and support role. Having open conversations with their kids about job safety and encouraging them to ask questions goes a long way.
Parents can get proactive “by staying engaged and showing that workplace safety is as important as academics or sports,” says Robertson. He suggests that parents emphasize the importance of rest and support the child in balancing work hours with school and other activities.
“Young workers often don’t see the risks around them,” says Robertson. “They genuinely think, ‘this won’t happen to me.’ Their ‘danger radar’ isn’t fully developed. This low-risk perception, mixed with being new on the job and lacking real-world experience, means they’re less likely to notice hazards, ask questions, or follow safety procedures as closely as needed… inexperience, combined with a belief in their own invincibility, puts young workers directly in harm’s way.”
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Bring workplace safety education to your school, community centre or workplace
WSPS offers free, volunteer-delivered Health & Safety Awareness Presentations (HSAP) to introduce new and young workers to workplace safety and worker rights through engaging means including games, videos and group discussion.
The presentations and blog – now available in French – share crucial health and safety information with participants and helps to debunk common employment misperceptions. Participants are informed of rights and responsibilities (their own and their employers’); gain increased awareness of workplace hazards and learn how to deal with health and safety issues should they arise.
When making HSAP presentations to secondary school students entering co-op placements, Ayden Robertson said he “was surprised to find that many are not aware that they have legally protected health and safety rights and responsibilities.”
“If aware, many expressed lack of confidence or understanding to put them into practice,” Robertson says. “If they believe something they are being asked to do might hurt them or others, they can’t be punished for taking a step back and asking to make a better plan of how to do the work. These are young folks that don’t know what they don’t know but at the same time are eager to show initiative in what might be their entry point to their dream career which leave them hugely vulnerable to hazards and risks that don’t discriminate by age.”
HSAP is available in both in-person and virtual formats. For more information, visit wsps.ca/how-we-help/health-safety-awareness-presentation
What parents need to know as their kids enter the workforce
- Ask your child what specific training they were given, and when It’s not uncommon for managers to provide a rushed orientation or skip over safety in busy workplaces. Ontario law requires basic worker safety awareness training, but it’s often up to the worker to make sure it actually happened.
- Be alert for red flags If your teen describes being left alone to figure things out, using equipment they weren’t shown how to use, feeling rushed, or not being introduced to a supervisor or safety procedures, these are all warning signs that training has been missed.
- Start conversations with your teen Check in regularly and advocate for your child’s safety.
Source: First Job Safe Job
Workplace safety by the numbers
70,000: Number of injuries reported among workers aged 15 to 24 between 2011 and 2020 in Ontario
29: Number of deaths reported among workers aged 15 to 24 between 2011 and 2020 in Ontario
2024: Year that WSPS’s First Job Safe Job was launched, with a goal to equip the parents, caregivers, educators, coaches, community leaders who influence young workers with the knowledge, resources and strategies to advocate for workplace safety
Useful websites
wsps.ca/firstjob
healthandsafetyhelp.ca/
ontario.ca/document/your-guide-employment-standards-act-0/young-workers-rights