HALIFAX – As students trade their schoolwork for summer jobs this summer, labour and safety organizations are highlighting the importance of workplace safety.
According to the Workers’ Compensation Board of Nova Scotia, nearly 3,500 workers under the age of 25 were hurt on the job last year.
Those injuries included second-degree chemical burns, falls and sliced fingers.
The stats also show that the retail, accommodation and food sectors registered the most injury claims – even more than the construction and manufacturing sectors, which are typically considered dangerous.
“When you look at what some people see as inherent dangerous workplaces, we tend to have more awareness (and) more training,” says Rick Clarke, President of the Nova Scotia Federation of Labour.
“And when you go to some of the others that aren’t viewed as risky, then maybe they’re not doing the training that should be done or awareness programs.”
Clarke adds that workplace safety training within the school curriculum would help the next wave of young workers become better prepared for the workforce.
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“They’re going out into workplaces in the fast food industry where they’re dealing with hot beverages or they’re in the kitchen with sharp and heat and boiling oils and everything else. That there should be training on base knowledge very early,” Clarke says.
On the Halifax waterfront, where long lines of tourists and visitors stop in for a bite to eat, it’s typically young workers who staff the kiosks.
Daniel Boothroyd, who has never worked in the food industry before, is spending his first summer in Halifax by working at a sandwich and pizza kiosk.
“The main thing, especially around here, is communication,” Boothroyd says. “On busy days, we can have as many as three or four people kind of shuffling around back there beside a 500 degree oven so you have to make sure everybody’s communicating with each other.”
“Safety is common sense, right? Nobody wants to get hurt. I think it’s standard practice to pay attention to that kind of stuff.”
His supervisor, Hannah Soder, agrees that safety training and vigilance are vital.
“I think the most concerns would be burns because we have hot things like the oven, grills and stuff. So when we’re training people, we tell them to be very very cautious when around any of them.”
To reinforce workplace safety among young workers, the Workers’ Compensation Board has launched a social marketing campaign called ‘Speak Up About Safety,’ which encourages youth to discuss safety concerns with their friends, family and employers.
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