OSHA unveils summer job safety program for teen workers

Teen workers are the focus of a new campaign launched Thursday by Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health Ed Foulke at a special event at Edison Academy in Alexandria, Va.

"Summer is peak time for teen employment," said Foulke, who was sworn in April 3 as the new Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) assistant secretary. "We're launching this safety campaign now to help educate teens on workplace dangers and offer solid safety tips that will help them stay safe and healthy on the job."

The Teen Summer Job Safety Campaign, sponsored by OSHA, is a multi-year project to increase awareness about workplace hazards, and provide possible solutions to those hazards, for young workers and their parents. The campaign will focus on industries in which young people are likely to work during their high school and college years. The first year will target the landscaping industry. The kick-off event also highlighted the Department of Labor's YouthRules! Initiative to bring teens, parents, educators, employers, government, unions and advocacy groups together to ensure young workers have safe and rewarding work experiences.

The safety campaign stems from OSHA's ongoing efforts to design new ways to raise job safety and health awareness among teens. OSHA is launching the campaign from Edison Academy which is affiliated with SkillsUSA, a national organization of nearly 300,000 high school and college students and professional members enrolled in training programs in technical, skilled and service occupations. OSHA signed an alliance with that organization last October.