Chicago – The first national study to interview teenagers about on-the-job dangers found many violations of federal laws, including sizable numbers performing risky tasks or working too late on school nights.
Many teens said they operated hazardous equipment, received no safety training and worked alone after dark, making them potential targets for burglary and homicide.
“Teenagers are being put in the position of doing tasks that are either illegal or dangerous,” said lead author Carol Runyan of the University of North Carolina Injury Prevention Research Center. While enforcement of laws could be improved, she said, “the real burden lies with employers.”
Teenagers soon will start applying for summer jobs, and parents should talk to them about safety, Runyan said.
Hundreds of thousands of U.S. teenagers are injured at work every year, and about 70 die from their injuries, according to federal statistics.
The telephone survey found:
- Thirty-seven percent of teens under age 16 said they had worked after 7 p.m. on a school night, a violation of federal rules for that age group.
- Sixteen percent of teens under 16 reported they had worked past 9 p.m. on a school night.
- Forty-seven percent of teens who work in grocery stores and restaurants said they had performed tasks barred by law for workers younger than 18, including operating box crushers and power slicers.
- One-third of all the teens said they had received no safety training on the job.
- Nine percent said they had worked alone after dark.
The findings, in the March issue of the journal Pediatrics, are based on a 2003 telephone survey of 866 teens working in the retail and service industry, including restaurants and grocers.
The survey did not include non-English-speaking households, and 85 percent of the teens were white. More research should be done to include immigrant teen workers, Runyan said.
The study, funded by a grant from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, suggests a need for stricter enforcement of laws, Runyan said.
The surveyed teens told researchers they worked an average of 16.2 hours a week during the school year, Runyan said.
