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WASHINGTON, D.C.
— The National Consumers League (NCL) issued the 2007
Five Worst Teen Jobs today as Vice President for Fair Labor
Standards Darlene Adkins called on parents and teens to focus on
safety when considering a summer job.
Based on statistics from the
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, a
teen American worker is injured on the job every two minutes,
and one teen dies from a workplace injury every five days.
“Don’t let a summer dream job turn into a nightmare experience,”
said Adkins. “When looking for employment, the most important
question teens can ask isn’t, ‘How much will I make?’ It’s ‘How
safe is this job?’ A good job isn’t just about earning money.
It’s about staying safe at work and going back to school next
fall with all of your body parts intact.”
NCL’s Five Worst Teen Jobs of 2007
This year’s Five Worst Teen Jobs are:
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Agriculture: Fieldwork and Processing
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Construction and Work in Heights
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Outside Helper: Landscaping, Groundskeeping, and Lawn
Service
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Driver/Operator: Forklifts, Tractors, and ATVs
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Traveling Youth Crews
Operating forklifts, driving, working on roofs, and applying or
handling pesticides on farms are currently prohibited by child
labor laws as hazardous, underscoring the need for teens,
parents, and employers to be aware of existing protections.
The list also includes work that has not yet been prohibited,
despite advocates’ urging of Congress and the Department of
Labor to do so. This includes work in heights, poultry catching
and processing, driving tractors and all-terrain vehicles
(ATVs), operating chain saws (prohibited for only use on wood),
and traveling on youth crews. All are legal work for minors,
despite compelling statistics on occupational injury and death
to working youth.
In 2002, DOL released the report, NIOSH Recommendations to
the U.S. Department of Labor for Changes to Hazardous Orders (HOs),
as a comprehensive review of the existing industries,
occupations, and machinery that are prohibited for working
minors. Additionally, the National Institute for Occupational
Safety and Health (NIOSH) recommended 17 new HOs to better
protect young workers in 21st century workplaces.
Despite the NIOSH report and the fact that some child labor
regulations have not been updated in nearly 70 years, there’s
been little movement by Congress or the Labor Department during
the last five years to improve protections for working minors.
Since the NIOSH report, NCL estimates that more than one million
teens have been injured on the job and 350 have died in
workplace accidents.
After pressure from NCL and 30 other groups comprising the Child
Labor Coalition, the U.S. Department of Labor published proposed
rulemaking to revise select child labor regulations on April 17,
2007. The public can submit comments on or before July 16, 2007.
The proposed rulemaking has been met with mixed reactions by
child labor advocates.
“It’s a mixed bag,” says Adkins. “Some are good, some aren’t,
some don’t go far enough, and some present new questions rather
than action.” What Adkins finds most disturbing is the lack of
proposed changes affecting children working in agriculture, the
nation’s most dangerous industry, where youth aged 15-17 have
four times the risk for fatal injury than young workers in other
types of employment.
NCL compiles the Five Worst Teen Jobs each year using government
statistics and reports, results from the Child Labor Coalition’s
annual survey of state labor departments, and news accounts of
injuries and deaths. Statistics and examples of injuries for
each job on the list are detailed in a report available at
www.nclnet.org/labor/childlabor. |
