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Raise Your Hand
Every day there are more than 350,000 young workers on the job in British Columbia. They might be changing the oil in deep-fryers, planting trees in the back woods, or cleaning up debris around construction sites. While their jobs may differ, young workers all have one thing in common: they are at high risk of getting injured at work.
Every summer, just as more youth are entering the workforce, WorkSafeBC launches the Raise Your Hand campaign to reach out to them.
“The reasons young workers get hurt vary from lack of training and supervision, to simply lacking the confidence to speak up about unfamiliar or unsafe work practices,” says Scott McCloy, WorkSafeBC’s director of Communications. “The bottom line is they get hurt because they don’t know. And the 2011 Raise Your Hand Campaign works to change that.”
Know your rights
In 2011, WorkSafeBC launched a website, hosted live events, and used social media components to bolster the campaign. The goal is to encourage young workers to be proactive about their own workplace safety by educating them about their three basic rights:
- The right to know how to protect themselves
- The right to speak up about safety concerns
- The right to refuse unsafe work
During 2011, the raiseyourhand.com website challenged young workers with an online game and a contest. The prize was an Xbox Kinect Prize Package (including a big-screen TV and a $300 gift card).
The Raise Your Hand street team visited several high schools and appeared at various festivals across the province.
“In order to educate young workers about their legal right to workplace safety, we need to meet them in the places they frequent, and engage them in the safety message speaking a language they understand,” Scott says.
For more information, visit Raise Your Hand.
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