Protecting the Vulnerable Worker from Injury & Disease

As we were driving past my daughter’s workplace recently she mentioned that she had placed out the twelve wheelie bins that were on the verge. I got to ask her how she did that and she told me how; she dragged two bins (probably weighing over 50lbs each) at a time. I asked her if her shoulders or arms hurt afterwards and she said that they had. On another occasion she came out from working smelling of bleach. I asked her if she used any gloves or other protective equipment and she hadn’t.

What my daughter represents is the vulnerable worker: those predominantly aged 15-24, those with disabilities or impairments, seasonal and holiday workers, and those from either culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) or non-English speaking backgrounds (NESB). She fits neatly into the first group.

Being involved in occupational safety and health (OS&H) is a privilege because it’s about people, relationships and caring. Finding solutions to problems is the means to augmenting positive ends. It’s also about protecting disempowered workers and groups, or those who had a lack of empowerment in the first place. When we recognise that vulnerable workers are often at a profound OS&H disadvantage and are ordinarily exposed to hazards at much higher levels of risk than we’d wish to tolerate, it should shock us into action.

If there’s one thing I’m passionate about it is protecting young workers because my daughter is one of them. So, the remainder of this article is dedicated to this issue.

Some key hazards that young people are vulnerable to are:

Decision-making – requiring young people to make judgments and decisions on the spot is asking for trouble. It is well recognised that a young person’s brain does not mature around decision making until the mid-twenties. (Go to the following link for more on this topic: http://ezinearticles.com/?Risk-In-Teenagers---Why-Do-They-Take-Work,-Driving-And-Life-Risks?--Explanations-Here&id=944972)

Manual Handling – at times young people look stronger than they actually are and this can be a trap if we expect their bodies to be as resilient as a mature adult’s. Occupational overuse syndrome (OOS) and various types of strain and sprain injuries are likely. Every now and then we should ask them how they feel physically... ‘Any aches and pains?’

Repetitive, Unpopular or Paced Work – we’ve probably all had the worst tasks at the workplace as a young person. Repetitive work without the right ergonomics, including rest breaks, heightens the risk. Paced work places pressure on young workers and they’re more likely than most to take short cuts, because they don’t as readily think of the consequences like most mature adults do and they’re more keen to impress and don’t want to ‘let the boss down.’

Noise, Vibration and Heat Stress – young people love loud music; a hazard often brought into the workplace. Whether it’s music or not, young people don’t often think much of the consequences due to noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL). Information on NIHL and constant reminders are necessary. In hot environments they’re less likely to drink water as a preventative not knowing how tenuous the human body’s coping systems are. Again, information on the consequences of heat stroke and worse is really critical.

Driving – there are obvious risks here and some not so obvious. The article linked above “Risk in Teenagers” certainly attends to these issues.

Violence and Bullying – young people are normally easy targets for bullies. A young person can even feel bullied when it’s not readily apparent to the perpetrator, making this one of the most difficult OS&H issues to resolve. Most young people will be bullied, but if we can anticipate it, the likelihood and consequences of psychological harm can be reduced and possibly eliminated.

SOLUTIONS

OS&H should be about identifying hazards and implementing solutions. For young people it is even more important that the legislative mantra of the ‘employer providing information, instruction, training and supervision’ be the case.

Information

The most basic requirement is the OS&H induction. This is a generalised collection of information only. Assessment to ensure understanding of the information provided is the key. The induction is a very basic tool and without the support of the following three controls the situation is fraught with danger. Expecting a young person to take a booklet home and read it in their spare time is ridiculous. Give them the time at work and assess for understanding.

Instruction

This is on-the-job training in the actual tasks, procedures and working environment the young person will be exposed to. The goal is that the young person will know the workplace well enough so that they don’t place themselves unknowingly at risk. This is where ‘orientation’ to the workplace is different from the ‘induction.’ Orientation is more about ‘this is where the toilets, emergency exits, muster points, and tea and coffee making facilities are.’

Again, it is important that the instruction is followed by some level of informal assessment and monitoring. Instruction manuals, where used, should be easy to understand and have more pictures and illustrations than words.

Training

This is a broad topic. There is safety (hazard) specific training and there’s training in the use of equipment or processes or materials. We would never want to send a young person into a confined space or have them work at height without the correct level of hazard awareness and equipment training. Training does not necessarily equal competence. Young people should be excluded from any unsupervised activity until they can demonstrate competence; even then there is a higher risk and some level of supervision is a must.

Supervision

This is probably the most underrated OS&H control for the young worker at the end of the day. The supervisor must care enough to mentor the young person and if he or she can’t, they should employ a buddy system, using a trusted and skilled worker. Supervision at its best is about a caring relationship. It goes without saying that the best supervisors are ‘people’ people, and the best of these for young people are those who’re passionate about being positive models to (and advocates for) young people in the workplace.

Inspiration for this article was via a WorkSafe Western Australia 4Thought Lunchtime Information Session titled “Keeping Vulnerable Workers Safe / Communicating Safety Messages.”