Youth Safety and Lack of Training in the Workforce
Young people must be adequately prepared for all the obligations that come with employment and for how to take care of themselves while working. Government must set limits on how much labor children and adolescents are allowed to do. The rules are necessary because children cannot function as fully-grown adults who can carry out more demanding duties for longer periods of time. Children laboring in agricultural and non-agricultural environments are protected to varying degrees. The significance of educating kids before they join the workforce cannot be overstated. Preparation for the different world of work and responsibilities ensures that the youth do not become bombarded with the changes taking place in their lives. The lack of training may lead to unnecessary accidents and many mistakes that could be avoided long before taking place. Researching the topic of youth safety and lack of training they receive when entering the workforce we will see the different skills that should be learned by the young people for their safety at their workplaces.
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health Program
National institute for occupational safety and health has developed a program called Youth at work, talking security (The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, 2016). The foundation curriculum ensures that all youth know what is expect of them in the workplace and what to expect from their employers. Every state has different laws on handling different workplaces for the youth. The initiative of safety matters is only an hour long that mainly targets children from the seventh to twelfth grade. The information is essential for their working life which is in eight core components (The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, 2016). The components include foundational and transferable workplace safety and health knowledge, skills and abilities to manage the working environment.
Factors Contributing to Youth Work Injuries
Young people have a more likely hood of getting injured at work for many reasons which further shows the importance of the program. One of the factors that contribute to them having injuries is the fact that they have no experience (Rayner & Bell, 2016). Inexperience comes in when a young person is told to perform a task they may not be familiar with, and the environment also may be unfamiliar (The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, 2016). It is very dangerous for someone to do things that they have no idea about and they do not know the harms that may come with mishandling the task. The lack of knowledge on the risks of any work may cause the person to be careless and end up in harm's way during the process of the task.
The Importance of Training and Supervision
Limited training is a major factor in causing work injuries for the youth. Most young people who join the workforce have little training, and that is why the The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health program is phenomenal in giving much-needed guidelines. Supervision is important as the lack of it may cause the young people to make decisions that will most probably harm them. When machinery or even chemical substances that prove to be highly dangerous is involved then definitely there should be supervision even the more when the youth takes part as the workers (Rayner & Bell, 2016).
Lack of Knowledge of Rights and Responsibilities
Young people in the workplace tend to feel awkward because they have come into a foreign environment. Most of them do not know their rights and responsibilities, and they may not be confident enough to ask or articulate their concerns to their employers. The fear that they may offend someone and lose their jobs, in the long run, keeps them quiet even when the may be feeling uncomfortable about something at work (The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, 2016). The lack of knowledge of their rights and responsibilities sets the youth at a very vulnerable position of being exploited by the employers. Some of the young people have an attitude that some of the dangers that may come with working in certain environments cannot happen to them. The mentality that one is invincible in some situations promotes reckless behavior at the workplace which in turn brings injuries and even illnesses that were avoidable. Responsible behavior should be part of the values that the youth take to their workplaces.
The Importance of Proper Training and Resting
It is critical to give a good impression of the new workplace for anyone who has a new job. However, for the youth, a good idea may make the youth push themselves to perform duties they cannot do and which may end up harming the in the process (Rayner & Bell, 2016). It is important for the youth to make sure that they have proper training on tasks before performing them as they may injure themselves for the sake of good impression and end up hurting themselves or losing the job altogether. Many young people take work while still in school and end up so tired and fatigued. The importance of resting should be number one as fatigue causes underperformance and one thing will have to suffer, either work or school and that is not acceptable (Rayner & Bell, 2016). Casual jobs for the youth may also reduce their bargaining power because the job is only short term. Unions do not typically cover casual workers because of the instability which may prove disadvantageous for the youth.
The Importance of Knowledge and Decision Making
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health have so much to teach the young people and ensure that they do not fall victim of all the disadvantages that come with being young at the workforce. The students learn that all workers can be hurt and become ill while at work (, The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health 2015). The lesson teaches the students that no one is invincible in the workplace and care and precaution should always consider. The injuries can be predicted and prevented so the youth should always be keen to follow instructions and warnings. The youth learn how to identify potentially harmful situations and stop them from happening and also how to prevent illnesses in the workplace (The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, 2015). The students learn that the employer also has responsibilities towards them and that it is their rights to demand a safe and healthy working environment. The students also learn how to communicate with others such as the people in authority and also when there is the feeling of insecurity, or if they feel threatened.
The Importance of Training and Supervision
The level of knowledge the youth have on the workplace environment and how to carry them enables them to make good decisions. Many have no idea on what to do or how to carry themselves in workplace situation because they have no experience. Lack of training is a serious approach when offering any youth work and if they have no training then supervision mandatory to avoid injuries and unnecessary illnesses. When there is supervision, then the process might as well be considered training because the supervisor acts as an instructor and ensures smooth learning and operations at the workplace.
References
Rayner, K. & Bell, K. (2016). Cambridge checkpoints hsc community and family studies 2017-
19. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. (2015). Safety and health training for
Young workers, Centers for Disease control and prevention. Retrieved April 15, 2017, from,
www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/safetymatters/default.html
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. (2016). Young workers safety and
health, Centers for Disease control and prevention. Retrieved April 15, 2017, from, https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/youth/
