In 2015, 403 workers under the age of 24 died from work-related injuries, including 24 deaths of teens less than 18 years of age (NIOSH). The injury rate for young workers under age 25 is approximately two times higher than for workers 25 years and older, based on emergency room data. On average, a teen worker suffers an injury severe enough to require a hospital visit every 9 minutes in the United States.
To help reduce the numbers of injuries and fatalities among our young workforce, The Pacific Northwest OSHA Education Center has collected our top 10 free health and safety resources for young workers, their employers, parents, and teachers.
1. Health and Safety Awareness for Working Teens Website
This site covers basic information every young worker needs to know before he or she begins working, with workplace health and safety curricula and videos developed specifically for teens and young workers. Free materials can be used in a classroom setting or through independent study. Teens can learn information about: workplace hazards, child labor laws and worker rights, injury prevention strategies, workplace communication skills, ergonomics, and sexual harassment and discrimination in the workplace. The laws reviewed on this site are specific to Washington State, with additional resources provided to learn more about federal programs.
2. OSHA’s Young Worker Website
This website includes sections for teens, parents, and employers with lots of free resources, including videos and real-life stories. Users can explore hazards by workplace, and use OSHA’s interactive eTools for Restaurant and Agriculture safety.
3. Youth @ Work – Talking Safety NIOSH Website
NIOSH now offers Youth@Work—Talking Safety, a foundational curriculum in occupational safety and health. This curriculum is the culmination of many years’ work by a consortium of partners dedicated to reducing occupational injuries and illnesses among youth.
This curriculum is meant to be used in a classroom or other group training setting, and has been customized for each state, Washington D.C., Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands to address their specific child labor rules and regulations. Talking Safety is data-driven and routinely updated based on current research and changes to rules and regulations.
4. Work Safe Work Smart: A Curriculum Targeted to Adolescent Health and Safety in the Workplace
The Minnesota Department of Health’s Work Safe Work Smart curriculum was developed by public health professionals in collaboration with Minnesota teachers to explore occupational health and safety issues with high school students in an effort to reduce injury rates of young workers.
In Work Safe Work Smart, students use their personal experience of work-related injury to identify workplace hazards, brainstorm ways to protect workers from hazards, and discuss barriers to making safe choices at work.
This fantastic website features tons of free curriculum and resources, as well as information for health care providers who may be treating young workers or discussing workplace risks with young patients.
The youngworkers.org “5 Steps for Staying Safe on the Job” fact sheet series is a great place to start for teens entering their first jobs. The website also offers a free app for teen workers to download, giving them easy access to safety and health resources on the job!
6. Washington State Department of Labor and Industries (L&I) Youth Job Safety Resources Page
L&I’s Youth Job Safety Resource page includes helpful videos and recent news stories about teen worker safety and health. You can also find information specific to Washington State labor laws, and information for employers considering hiring young workers for summer positions.
7. Oregon DCBS Young Worker Video Series
This series of videos, available on YouTube, cover specific hazards like ladder safety, restaurant safety, safe lifting, and more! They also cover general awareness for teens about speaking up on the job. Austin Coburn, a 19-year-old summer intern at Oregon OSHA, created the videos. Coburn was the 2013 winner of the Oregon Young Employee Safety Coalition’s “Speak Up. Work Safe.” video contest for his video “Safety: The Musical.”
8. Oregon Young Employee Safety – O[yes]
This website, created by Oregon OSHA, features videos submitted to the annual “Speak Up. Work Safe.” contest, as well as a new 45 minute online, interactive training for teens entering their first jobs.
9. Your Construction Safety Program: Safe Students, Safe Workers Guide
This guide, created by the Labor and Occupational Health Program at UC Berkeley, shares data from a recent study on the current state of safety and health education in post-secondary construction CTE programs. It provides action steps CTE administrators and instructors can take to strengthen their programs.
10. Workplace Safety Tips for Teen Workers – article in EHS Today
Young workers are not as prepared and experienced as older adults when it comes to identifying and avoiding safety risks and hazards while on the job and are more apt to be injured. However, by adhering to laws governing teen workers, and by taking some precautions and conducting adequate training, teen workers can have a safe, productive, profitable summer. Read the full article on EHS today’s website!
BONUS! Check out the awesome organization, Young Workers United, to see how teens are taking charge of their workplace safety and health rights in San Francisco, CA.
The Pacific Northwest OSHA Education Center Blog 
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