i

for Young Workers

A Community-Based 

Approach

A Resource Guide Documenting 

the Experiences of Three Young 

Worker Projects

Funding agency:

National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Public Health Service

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

Cooperative agreement partners:

Massachusetts Department of Public Health and 

the Education Development Center, Inc.

Project site: Brockton, Massachusetts

University of California at Berkeley

Labor Occupational Health Program

Project site: Oakland, California

University of California at Los Angeles

Labor Occupational Safety and Health Program

Project site: Los Angeles, California

Promoting Safe Work

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Public Health Service • Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health

November 1999
ii

Three community-based young worker projects provided the information in this guide,

which summarizes the activities and lessons from these projects.

The University of California at Berkeley Labor Occupational Health Program

(LOHP) coordinated a project in Oakland, California. Cooperative Agreement

Number: U60/CCU912042-02-554.

Diane Bush, Michele González-Arroyo, and Laura Stock 

The University of California at Los Angeles Labor Occupational Safety and Health

Program (LOSH) coordinated a project in Los Angeles, California. Cooperative

Agreement Number: U60/CCU912100-02-554.

Linda Delp 

The Massachusetts Department of Public Health (MDPH) and Education

Development Center, Inc. (EDC) coordinated a project in Brockton,

Massachusetts. Cooperative Agreement Number: U60/CCU112096-01-554.

Christine Miara and Robin Dewey 

These projects were the result of a cooperative agreement between the above

organizations and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health

(NIOSH) in Cincinnati, Ohio. NIOSH provided both funding and staff to 

collaborate on the conceptualization and execution of the projects.

Raymond C. Sinclair and María J. Ortega 

The Authors

Acknowledgments: This publication was produced by NIOSH. This report

received partial support from the Children’s Safety Network, which is funded

by the Maternal and Child Health Bureau of the Health Resources and Services

Administration. Editors for this guide were Melissa Burns, Education

Development Center, Inc., and Susan E. Feldmann and Jane Weber, NIOSH.

The graphic designer of the guide was Donna Wilson, Wilson Design

Associates. The graphic and layout editor was Pauline Elliott, NIOSH. We

would like to thank the many State and local public health experts and youth

program coordinators who carefully reviewed this guide. The cover photographs were reproduced with permission by Earl Dotter.
By the time they are seniors in high school, the majority of United States youth are, or have been,

employed for pay outside their homes. Injuries and illnesses are an all too frequent consequence

of work; youth are not exempt. In 1997, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that 62 youth

—under the age of 18—died from work-related injuries. In addition, an estimated 70,000 youth

were treated in emergency departments for work-related injuries based on data from the National

Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). NIOSH was instrumental in convening a

National Research Council/Institute of Medicine (IOM) panel to review available knowledge on

the safety and health implications for working youth and to make recommendations for research

and prevention. Among the recommendations in the IOM report, published in November 1998,

was:

“A national initiative should be undertaken to develop and provide information and training to

reduce the risks and enhance the benefits associated with youth employment.”

“Promoting Safe Work for Young Workers” is a step in that direction. It reflects the lessons

learned from three NIOSH-funded community-based health education projects on young worker

issues. In these projects, occupational health educators worked for three years, in three different

communities, to raise the awareness of young worker issues at the community level. In this

guide, those educators convey what they learned while working with different community groups

including parents, employers, educators, and local media. The guide also provides information

about materials that can be modified and used in other communities to meet their own needs. 

The welfare of our youth is a community issue. Interest in their occupational health and safety

extends well beyond the confines of their workplaces. We have prepared this guide for health

professionals, labor groups, educators, employers, and parent groups. Any group can take a 

leadership position in making young worker issues a priority in their community. This guide will

help you take the first steps.

Linda Rosenstock, M.D., M.P.H.

Director, National Institute for 

Occupational Safety and Health

iii

Foreword
Disclaimer

Mention of any company or product does not constitute endorsement by the

National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.

Additional copies of this guide may be obtained while supplies last by contacting:

National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Publications

4676 Columbia Parkway

Cincinnati, OH 45226-1998

1-800-35-NIOSH (1-800-356-4674)

Fax: (513) 533-8573

www.cdc.gov/niosh/homepage.html

email: pubstaft@cdc.gov

Readers are free to duplicate any and all parts of this publication. However, in

accordance with standard publishing practices, NIOSH requires acknowledgment,

in print, of any information reproduced.

CONTACT INFORMATION

Raymond C. Sinclair

4676 Columbia Parkway

Mailstop C-10

Cincinnati, OH 45226-1998

(513) 533-8172

RCS1@cdc.gov

Christine Miara

Education Development Center, Inc. (EDC)

55 Chapel St.

Newton, MA 02458-1060

(617) 618-2238

Diane Bush

Labor Occupational Health Program (LOHP)

2223 Fulton St.

4th Floor

Berkeley, CA 94720-5120

(510) 643-2424

Linda Delp

Labor Occupational Safety and Health Program (LOSH)

School of Public Policy and Social Research

6350B Public Policy Building

Box 951478

Los Angeles, CA 90095-1478

(310) 794-5976 

DHHS (NIOSH) Publication No. 99-141

iv
v

PREFACE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vii

PROJECT SUMMARIES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . viii

THE FACTS ABOUT YOUNG WORKER SAFETY AND HEALTH . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

STEPS IN COORDINATING A YOUNG WORKER PROJECT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

WORKING WITH COMMUNITY PARTNERS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Forming Partnerships with Schools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Developing Teen Peer Education Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Involving Parents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Linking with Job Training Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Including Health Care Providers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Working with Employers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Reaching the Broader Community . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

RESOURCES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

Appendices

A. Child Labor Laws . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

B. Agencies and Organizations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

C. Reports and Books . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

Contents

vii

his guide is for anyone interested in young workers safety and health issues. It is based

on the experiences of three NIOSH-funded community-based young worker projects.

Local health departments, school-to-career programs, and occupational safety and

health professionals are but a few of the groups with the capacity and mission to initiate a young

worker project in their communities or to implement an activity described in this guide. The

three projects featured were all based in urban settings. However, many of the approaches can be

applied to small towns or rural settings.

In the fall of 1995, as we prepared to launch young worker projects in Brockton, MA, Oakland,

CA, and Los Angeles, CA, we wondered how our message would be received. As public health

professionals, we were convinced of the need for increased awareness of workplace safety for

teens, but we were not sure that others would share our concern. Would community organizers

find occupational safety less important than more publicized issues such as substance abuse and

violence? Would local businesses recognize the value of having a more informed young workforce? Would teens find the topic boring?

But as community groups greeted our initial efforts with interest and enthusiasm, we quickly

discovered that our concerns were unfounded. At the first advisory board meeting in Brockton,

for example, representatives of 30 community groups and government agencies stayed on long

past adjournment, volunteering services and ideas. In Los Angeles, 100 youth leaders, teens, and

parents participated in the first media event, requesting information on everything from child

labor laws to sexual harassment in the workplace. At Oakland Technical High School, more

youths volunteered as peer leaders than staff could initially accommodate. Clearly, many wanted

to address this issue. 

Over the course of the projects, we learned several key lessons. The active participation of

diverse community members was necessary to develop a comprehensive educational approach to

young worker safety and maintain broad-based support. In addition, because representatives of

community groups already have full agendas, we realized the importance of demonstrating how

young worker safety and health can fit into existing initiatives for healthier youth, safer workplaces, and stronger community coalitions. Finally, we found it necessary to emphasize the value

of young worker projects to local businesses and the many members of the community who support their interests. We frequently made the point that insuring the safety and health of teen

workers lays the foundation for a better work environment and a more knowledgeable workforce.

This guide outlines the steps we took in planning and carrying out the young worker projects.

We invite others with an interest in teen safety to try one or more of the activities in this guide.

And we wish you success in improving conditions for working teens in your communities. 

T

Preface

Robin Baker

Principal Investigator

UC Berkeley, Labor Occupational Health Program

Marianne Brown

Principal Investigator

UCLA, Labor Occupational Safety and Health Program 

Letitia Davis

Co-Principal Investigator

Massachusetts Department of Public Health

Susan Gallagher

Co-Principal Investigator

Education Development Center, Inc.
viii

Massachusetts Department of

Public Health (MDPH) and the

Education Development Center, 

Inc. (EDC)

Brockton, Massachusetts, located 20 miles south 

of Boston, was formerly an industrial city whose

many factories now stand abandoned. Its current

multi-ethnic population of 90,000 has a workforce

that is primarily blue collar and service oriented.

Brockton has one public high school with 3,000 

students and a regional vocational technical 

school nearby. 

The Protecting Young Workers project in Brockton

was coordinated by the Occupational Health

Surveillance Program of the Massachusetts

Department of Public Health in partnership with the

Education Development Center, Inc. The project was

guided by an active community advisory board consisting of 35 representatives from Greater Brockton

high schools, the business community, local community organizations, health care providers, the mayor’s

office, labor organizations, nearby colleges, youth

groups, and the media. 

The staff selected Brockton for several reasons.

According to workers’ compensation data, Brockton

has the highest rate of injuries among teen workers in

Massachusetts. The public high school has a successful school-to-career program in place with strong ties

to local employers on which to build program activities. The demographics of the community reflect

national averages, making it a good model for other

communities interested in similar projects.

University of California at Berkeley,

Labor Occupational Health Program

(LOHP)

The city of Oakland, California is located 7 miles

across the Bay from San Francisco. Oakland has a

multi-ethnic population of more than 370,000 residents and a multi-faceted employment profile, with

jobs in the industrial, service, office/financial, and

construction sectors. Oakland Unified School District

is a major urban school district with a diverse student

population (54% African-American, 19% Asian, 19%

Latino, 7% White, and 1% other). It is the sixth

largest district in California and has six comprehensive high schools and seven alternative high schools

that serve more than 9,300 students. 

The Young Worker Project in Oakland was coordinated by the Labor Occupational Health Program

(LOHP), a community-service program of the

University of California at Berkeley School of Public

Health, in partnership with the Oakland School

District. The project’s advisory committee had 15

active members, representing school district teachers

and administration, local job training programs,

employers, Cal-OSHA, labor unions, and the PTA.

The Oakland School District was selected because

it is a large urban district; because LOHP had existing

relationships and had done previous work with key

teachers and administrative staff in Oakland; and

because the district had a strong commitment to

building its school-to-career program based on its

twelve existing academy programs.

University of California at Los

Angeles, Labor Occupational Safety

and Health Program (LOSH) 

The Los Angeles, California project was in the

Vernon-Central area, where well-paying manufacturing jobs were located until the 1980s. The population

is Latino and African-American. The existence of

sweatshops and an informal economy in Los Angeles

make it difficult for both students and adults to find

meaningful, safe employment, especially those who

are immigrants. Jefferson High School, the site of the

young worker project (Jefferson Safety and Health

Education Project—Jeff SHEP) has a student population of 3,400, of which almost 90% are Latino.

The Jefferson Safety and Health Education Project

was a partnership between UCLA Labor Occupational

Safety and Health Program (UCLA-LOSH), Jefferson

High School, and Concerned Citizens of South

Central Los Angeles. It was directed by a steering

Project Summaries
ix

committee consisting of representatives from each

partner organization and guided by a 15-member

advisory board representing the larger community of

students, parents, teachers, government agencies,

labor unions, youth groups and other communitybased organizations. 

This community was selected because of the 

potential to build school-community links. Existing

networks were used to provide bilingual education to

reach immigrant parents as well as students.

Concerned Citizens has developed a network of

neighborhood block clubs, and the school provides

English and citizenship classes to parents through an

adult education program. UCLA-LOSH had collaborated with both organizations on other projects and

wanted to begin integrating work-related curriculum

into the Los Angeles Unified School District, the

largest in California and the second largest in the

country, with 49 high schools and 45 continuation

schools.

Project Summaries

hrough part-time employment, school-to-work

programs, apprenticeships, and internships,

teens are a vital and an increasing part of our

labor force. For adolescents, employment can be a

valuable experience: in addition to its financial

benefits, work gives adolescents the opportunity to

learn important job skills, explore future careers, and,

in some cases, enhance their academic education. 

But employment also can have negative consequences for young workers. Far too often, working

teens suffer injuries that can have devastating effects

on their physical well-being. And working too many

hours can jeopardize an adolescent’s academic and

social development.

Although increased prevention efforts are needed

to reduce occupational injuries among all workers,

young workers warrant special attention for the following reasons:

Most teens in the 

United States work.

In 1996, approximately 42% of 16- and 17-year-old

teens were in the labor force at any single time.1 An

estimated 80% of youths are employed at some point

before they leave high school.2,3

Teens aged 16 and 17 worked an average of 21

hours per week, 23 weeks of the year in 1988.4

Teens typically work at part-time, temporary, or

low-paying jobs, often after already putting in a day of

work at school. Twenty hours of employment per

week during the school year combined with a full

class schedule adds up to a 50-hour work week, not

including homework or extracurricular activities. 

Teens work predominantly in retail and service

industries. Typical places of employment include

restaurants, grocery stores, department stores, gas 

stations, and offices.5

Thousands of U.S. teens

are injured or killed on 

the job every year.

No single data source provides a comprehensive 

picture of teen injuries, but the following findings

indicate the scope of the problem:

Many working teens get injured. 

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and

Health (NIOSH) estimates that in the United States,

200,000 teens aged 14 to 17 are injured on the job

every year.6 Among the most common injuries suffered 

T

The Facts About 

Young Worker 

Safety and Health

The Facts About Young Worker Safety & Health
2

The Facts About Young Worker Safety & Health

by working teens are lacerations, contusions, abrasions,

sprains and strains, burns, and fractures or dislocations. Not surprisingly, most injuries occur in the

workplaces that employ the most teens—retail shops,

restaurants, and grocery stores.7 What may be surprising is the fact that teens are injured at a higher rate

than are adult workers, even though youths are prohibited from holding the most dangerous types of jobs,

such as mining, manufacturing, and construction.8,9

Many occupational injuries 

are serious enough to require 

medical treatment. 

Approximately 100,000 teens aged 15 to 17 visit

emergency departments each year for work-related

injuries. This figure compares with 322,000 teens

aged 15 to 17 who visit emergency departments for all

motor vehicle traffic-related injuries, including vehicle

occupants, pedestrians, bicyclists, and motorcyclists.10

Approximately 70 teens died as a result of occupational injuries each year between 1980 and 1989.11

Work-related injuries can have 

long-term consequences. 

Common occupational injuries such as burns, back

sprains, and eye damage can cause permanent disability. In addition to injury, workplace hazards such as

chemical exposure, noise, extreme temperatures,

repetitive motions, and infectious agents can pose

long-term health risks for adolescents.

Teens are injured doing legal jobs

as well as doing jobs that are 

prohibited by child labor laws. 

Federal child labor laws restrict the types of jobs

teens can do and the hours they can work; some State

laws are stricter than Federal laws (see Appendix A).

Working in illegal jobs puts youth at particular risk

for injuries. According to one study, 19% of all

injuries to young workers treated in emergency rooms

involved working in illegal jobs;12 this figure is 41%

according to another study.13 However, laws alone

provide insufficient protection: most injuries occur

when teens are working in compliance with child

labor laws. 

Working too many hours is 

associated with social and 

academic problems.

Teens who work more than 20 hours per week 

are at risk for increased drug and alcohol use and

decreased academic performance.14

Teachers report that students who work many

hours outside of school are often sleepy and unresponsive in class.15,16

Young workers are at risk 

because they lack experience.

As inexperienced workers, adolescents are not likely

to be familiar with job tasks, workplace hazards, ways

to avoid injury, and their rights as workers.17,18

Although a common perception is that teens get

injured because they are reckless, teens injured on the

job often have a very different profile. The positive

characteristics of adolescents—their energy, enthusiasm, and desire for increased challenge and responsibility—combined with a reluctance to ask questions

or make demands, can result in their assuming tasks

for which they are either unprepared or incapable of

performing safely.19
The Facts About Young Worker Safety & Health

3

The physical characteristics of teens also make them

vulnerable to workplace injury. Adolescents between

the ages of 14 and 17, especially boys, grow at very different rates. Small teens may not be able to reach

machine parts and may lack the strength required for

certain tasks. Large boys may be given adult tasks simply because of their size without regard for their lack of

experience and maturity.

Injuries to young workers 

can be prevented.

Groups who work together to create safer workplaces for teens can bring many benefits to a community: more knowledgeable, responsible employees;

lowered workers’ compensation and health insurance

costs; and a safer work environment for everyone. 

Although the safety of young workers is primarily

the responsibility of their employers, many others in

the community also have a role. Schools, job trainers,

parents, youth-serving organizations, health care

providers, and the media are just some of the groups

that can initiate or participate in a young worker 

project. The following section, Steps in Coordinating a

Young Worker Project, offers guidelines for successfully

developing and carrying out such an initiative. The

final section, Working with Community Partners, outlines strategies for collaborating with communitybased organizations to create safer workplaces. All recommendations in this guide were drawn directly from

the experiences of the young worker projects in

Brockton, Oakland, and Los Angeles. 

References

1. BLS [1994]. Work experience data. Current population

survey, March Supplement. Washington, DC: U.S.

Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics.

2. Greenberger E, Steinberg L [1986]. When teenagers work:

the psychological and social costs of adolescent employment. New York: Basic Books.

3. Johnston LD, Bachman JG, O’Malley PM [1991].

Monitoring the future. Ann Arbor, MI: University of

Michigan, Institute for Social Research.

4. U.S. General Accounting Office [1991]. Characteristics of

working children. Washington, DC: U.S. Government

Printing Office, GAO/HRD–91–83BR, June.

5. BLS [1996]. Current population survey, March supplement. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau

of Labor Statistics.

6. NIOSH [1995]. Preventing deaths and injuries of adolescent workers. Cincinnati, OH: U.S. Department of Health

and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for

Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for

Occupational Safety and Health, DHHS (NIOSH)

Publication No. 95–125. 

7. Institute of Medicine [1998]. Protecting youth at work.

Washington, DC: National Academy Press.

8. CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) 

[1983]. Surveillance of occupational injuries treated in

hospital emergency rooms—United States 1982. MMWR

32(2SS):31SS–37SS.

9. Miller M [1995]. Occupational injuries among adolescents

in Washington State, 1988–1991: a review of workers’

compensation data. Olympia, WA: Washington State

Department of Labor and Industries, Safety and Health

Assessment and Research for Prevention. Technical Report

Number 35–1–1995 (March). 

10. Weiss HG, Mathers LJ, Forjuoh SN, Kinnane JM [1997].

Child and adolescent emergency department visit databook. Pittsburgh, PA: Allegheny University of the Health

Sciences, Center for Violence and Injury Control.

http://www.pgh.auhs.edu/childed.

11. Castillo DN, Landen DD, Layne LA [1994]. Occupational

injury deaths of 16- and 17- year olds in the United States.

Am J Public Health 84:646–649.

12. Knight EB, Castillo DN, Layne LA [1995]. A detailed

analysis of work-related injury among youth treated in

emergency departments. Am J Ind Med 27:793–805.

13. Suruda A, Halperin W [1991]. Work-related deaths in children. Am J Ind Med 19:739–745.

14. Bachman JG, Schulenberg J [1993]. How part-time work

intensity relates to drug use, problem behavior, time use,

and satisfaction among high school seniors: are these consequences or merely correlates? Dev Psychol

29(2):220–235.

15. Carskadon MA [1990]. Patterns of sleep in adolescents.

Pediatrician 17:5–12.

16. Carskadon MA, Mancuso J, Rosekind MR [1989]. Impact

of part-time employment on adolescent sleep patterns.

Sleep Research 18:114.

17. Bowling JM, Runyan C, Miara C, Davis L, Rubenstein H,

Delp L, Arroyo MG [1998]. Teenage workers’ occupational

safety: results of a four school study. Paper presented at the

4th World Conference on Injury Prevention and Control,

Amsterdam, The Netherlands, May 17–20 (available from

the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, Injury

Prevention Research Center).

18. Bush D, Baker R [1994]. Young workers at risk: health and

safety education and the schools. Berkeley, CA: University

of California at Berkeley.

19. Massachusetts Department of Health [1996]. Enhancing

young worker safety and health: focus group report.

(unpublished report available from Brockton Area

Protecting Young Workers Project, Boston, MA:

Massachusetts Department of Public Health).
ach young worker project developed its own

approaches to engaging participants, building

partnerships, and disseminating information

on the basis of the community’s needs. Yet all projects

shared common strategies drawn from established

public health education principles. The following section summarizes the most important steps. 

1. Identify and Involve 

Key Players in the

Community

Preventing occupational injuries to young people

requires the combined efforts of diverse groups and

organizations: businesses, labor groups, schools, job

placement and training programs, youth-serving

organizations, family members, health care providers,

the media, and government officials. We identified

representatives of these key groups in our communities and looked for ways to integrate young worker

safety and health into their ongoing activities and

policies. We found it helpful to recruit many of these

players into our project advisory committees.

By participating on the advisory committees, many

community members were able to accomplish aspects

of their own programs in a more effective way than

they would have been able to do on their own. For

example, representatives from school-to-work 

programs gained new materials and curricula, and job

training programs used peer educators and new fact

sheets to teach about safety and health. The advisory

committee meetings also became a place for people

concerned about similar issues to talk and network.

Right from the start, we coordinated our project activities with existing programs and agencies in Brockton.

We allied ourselves with the school-to-work program at

the high school, for example, where there were many

resources to share. The school staff also gave us contacts

in the business community—groups like the Private

Industry Council and others that were already involved

in teen employment. In fact, we got a large turnout at

each advisory board meeting and a lot of active participation through the duration of the project. 

We also got support from the local government. The

mayor’s office appointed a liaison to our board who

attended every meeting. When we first met with the

mayor, he emphasized that we should link our initiative

to existing local projects so that people wouldn’t feel

overwhelmed at the prospect of a whole new initiative.

That was very good advice.

—Robin Dewey, Project Director, 

Brockton, Massachusetts

E

Steps in 

Coordinating 

A Young Worker 

Project

Steps in Coordinating A Young Worker Project
5

Steps in Coordinating A Young Worker Project

2. Assess Needs and

Resources

Investigating community needs and resources provides valuable information on which to base a project:

(a) the extent and nature of local teen employment

and work-related injuries; (b) local knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs about the issue; and (c) the

resources available to address young worker safety

and health. Collecting this information can stimulate

community interest, as it allows you to identify where

interventions are most needed and feasible. Although

the time and resources may not be available to conduct a thorough assessment, the following tasks

should be considered:

I think our successes were based on our recognition of

the unique needs of our immigrant community, and we

tailored our work to those needs. For example, the role

the students played in the project turned out to be very

different from what we expected. Initially, we had

planned to reach teens by involving parents in the project. But in our community, where so many of the parents

are not proficient in English and know very little about

their own legal rights at the workplace, it went the other

way. The teens ended up educating the parents. In fact,

the teens became a very valuable liaison between the

project and the entire community, and in the process,

they developed their own knowledge, leadership, and

communication skills.

—Linda Delp, Project Director, 

Los Angeles, California

Collect, analyze, and publicize 

employment and injury data.

Most community members were unaware of the

extent of teen worker injuries. Consider providing

local, State or national statistics. Local data from workers’ compensation records and student surveys, presented in a user-friendly format, helped to "bring the

issue home." However, this data may be difficult to get,

and the numbers of injured teens may appear small.

State and national data is easier to obtain, and the

numbers may be more compelling (see Appendix B).

Identify relevant resources.

We met with representatives from key groups in

our communities to ensure that our efforts complemented and did not duplicate existing initiatives. We

discussed ways they could incorporate activities related to teen worker safety and health into their existing

programs, publications, and training sessions.

You may be asked to provide information, materials, and training on the topic of young worker safety

and health or to provide referrals to others who can

do so. Contact relevant State agencies including your

State’s Department of Labor, Department of Public

Health, and Department of Education; learn about

child labor laws; collect educational materials; and

identify sources for referral and assistance (see

Appendices A and B). 

Assess knowledge and 

attitudes about young worker

safety and health.

Before beginning your project, become familiar

with the knowledge and attitudes about young worker

safety in your community. This information will allow

you to tailor materials and programs to your target

audience’s concerns. You may find that issues such as

workplace stress, sexual harassment, and low pay are

of greater concern to many groups in the community

than are injuries. For our assessments, we used surveys, focus groups, and interviews with teens, parents,

and employers. 

Violet Muñoz, like many young girls in Los Angeles,

got her first job when she was 15, working in the

“alleys” of the garment district. Her job tasks included

unpacking garments, completing inventories, and selling

clothing. 

“Sexual harassment happens all the time in the

alleys,” she explains. “People would tell me that all these

weird things were happening on the job and nobody

would say anything because they thought ‘it’s OK, it’s

part of my job.’ I would tell them, ‘No, it’s not OK,’ but

they would say, ‘That’s just your opinion, Violet.’ But

now that I’m involved in this project, I can say, ‘hey, I

have proof now—it’s not part of your job.’ ” 
The issue of sexual harassment is an example of how

we adapted our plans to meet genuine community needs.

Many of the young girls in our community get jobs

downtown in the garment industry, and they informed us

that sexual harassment was a problem for them. We didn’t go into the project with an awareness of how important the issue of sexual harassment was in our community, but the girls educated us about the problem. Together

we were able to develop strategies for handling it. We all

learned that the issues involved in workplace safety and

health are a lot broader than just how to handle machinery safely. They encompass a whole range of legal and

ethical rights and responsibilities. We need to recognize

the most significant issues in each community and help

people find the resources to address them.

—Linda Delp

3. Develop a Plan

Working with your community partners, review

the information gathered through your needs and

resources assessment. Agree on attainable goals and

objectives for the project. Include the following in

your plan:

◆ Activities that will help you attain your objectives

(see Working with Community Partners). 

◆ Methods of measuring your activities.

◆ Individuals and groups who will be responsible for

each activity.

◆ A timeline (one that corresponds to the school year).

4. Initiate Activities

We performed a variety of roles in our young

worker projects. Your role in implementing a project

may require you to do the following: 

◆ Provide training for teachers, peer educators, and

other community leaders who can then provide

information to their constituents on an ongoing

basis. If you need assistance, contact relevant State

agencies (see Appendix B).

◆ Serve as a resource by providing materials and

technical assistance about safety and health and

child labor laws to community groups. 

◆ Implement educational activities in collaboration

with representatives of target populations. For

example, you can (1) help teachers develop a

workplace safety curriculum; (2) work with peer

educators to set up a display for a health fair; or

(3) give a presentation on teen workers to a local

medical society meeting. These and other examples

are detailed in Working with Community Partners.

◆ Collaborate with others who are engaged in related

activities at the State level. Examples of State-level

initiatives regarding young worker safety might

include a proposal to change the child labor laws,

developing school-to-career guidelines or training

manuals, and a State-level coalition to improve

adolescent health.

5. Evaluate Efforts

—Revise as Needed

Throughout your project, you will want to evaluate

your progress, the reach of your project, and the

impact on the knowledge and practices of your target

groups. The following are evaluation strategies we

found useful: 

Track your progress in meeting project objectives

by recording 

✔ the length of time activities require compared

with your original timeline, 

✔ the receptivity of target groups to undertaking

planned activities, and 

✔ barriers and problems that arise.

6

Steps in Coordinating A Young Worker Project
Determine the reach of your project by recording

✔ the number of materials distributed, 

✔ the number and type of individuals and organizations reached through training and presentations, and 

✔ the number and type of requests received for

information and assistance.

Measure the impact of your project on local knowledge and practices by conducting 

✔ pre- and post-surveys of target groups, such as

students and employers, 

✔ interviews with representatives of target groups,

such as youth and business organizations, and

✔ visits to workplaces to record safety changes. 

Understanding what impact your program has is really

important. We held discussion groups in several classes 

3 to 4 weeks after they participated in peer-led or

teacher-led health and safety activities. We also held discussion groups with students who had not been involved

in any of our program’s activities. We presented a scenario about a teen worker in a pizza restaurant to each

group and asked them to identify the work hazards, any

workplace rights being violated, and how the young

worker in the scenario should handle the situation. 

Students who had not been involved in the program

tended to dismiss health and safety issues as trivial and a

form of complaining. They were much more challenged

in offering solutions to the problem—"If nobody else

complained, evidently it isn't bothering anybody else—

buy your own safety equipment!" Students who had participated in our programs were able to name more job

hazards, including less obvious hazards, and were easily

able to describe a variety of problem-solving strategies,

including collective action. It was great to see how comfortable these students were with discussing health and

safety issues and analyzing possible solutions! 

—Diane Bush, Project Director, 

Oakland, California

6. Obtain Funding

Funding can be kept to a minimum by having

young worker safety and health integrated into existing efforts. However, you may need additional fund

for resource materials, special events, staff support,

outside trainers, etc. If so, it may be helpful to contact

local and State agencies, businesses, and foundations.

We discovered that many of these organizations were

interested in funding or providing in-kind resources

7

Steps in Coordinating A Young Worker Project
Steps in Coordinating A Young Worker Project

for various aspects of our projects. Some examples

include the following:

◆ State workers’ compensation agencies

◆ State health agencies

◆ State employment agencies

◆ local chambers of commerce

◆ private foundations, especially those that focus on

education, your locality, youth, or workplace issues

◆ local schools and universities

◆ insurers

◆ Federal or State OSHA agencies

◆ NIOSH

8
Working with

Community

Partners

This section is organized according to the groups in a community that have a

role in protecting young workers, such as schools, employers, and job trainers.

For all of the groups, we have provided reasons for their involvement and 

strategies for working with them. We have also included many examples from

our projects. 

Please keep in mind that this section provides ideas for a broad array of groups

and activities so that you have a variety from which to choose. We are not suggesting that you need to reach all of these groups or undertake all of these activities to be successful. Instead, we recommend that you begin with the one or

two groups and activities that best fit your community. 
Why should schools 

be partners?

Schools can be important allies in your work with

teens. Schools have a direct responsibility to ensure

the safety of teens in vocational education and 

school-to-career programs and an indirect responsibility to prepare students for adult life. Young people are

better prepared for their adult work lives when they

understand their workplace rights and responsibilities

and can learn how to apply them productively. Also,

because working too many hours can affect a student’s

school performance, educators are often interested in

teen work. 

Reaching out to

schools in your 

community

Identify existing 

work-related programs.

Your goal is to integrate materials and information about

occupational safety and health

into the school’s 

ongoing curriculum and activities. Meet with administrators,

school-to-work staff, and guidance staff to point out how safety and health training meets

school-to-work requirements

and other State and local mandates. Meet with teachers, especially those involved in

career-related classes and programs and core academic

subjects. Find out how they currently address workplace safety issues and elicit their cooperation and

ideas for new initiatives. 

Raise awareness of the issue. 

Staff and students are often not aware of the extent

of workplace injuries and their impact on young

workers. In addition to distributing materials, you can

conduct surveys about the kinds of work students do,

whether they have been injured, and what they know

about workplace safety and health. Then provide this

information to the school community along with personal stories of injured

workers and State and

national statistics.

Offer workshops and

ready-to-use curricula

ideas. 

Teachers often want

background information

on teen safety and health

issues, as well as tools

they can use to integrate

this information into

their existing curriculum. Workshops that

provide “ready-to-use”

safety and health curriculum adaptable to

Schools

F

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Partnerships with

PEOPLE TO CONTACT 

• School administrators

• Teachers of core academic subjects 

(e.g., science, social studies, English)

• Health education teachers

• Vocational education teachers

• Career or guidance counselors 

• Career exploration or work experience staff 

• Peer-education coordinators 

• School-to-work (also known as

school-to-career) program 

coordinators

• Work permit office staff

Working with Community Partners Forming Partnerships with Schools
core subjects like English, science, social studies, and

vocational education will assist teachers in teaching

the topic (see Project Resources).

Develop strategies for integrating materials and

information into existing programs and classes, such

as the following:

◆ School-to-work programs—Since the Federal Schoolto-Work Opportunities Act was signed into law in

May 1994, many States have developed school-towork or -career programs through school partnerships with local businesses, labor groups, government agencies, community organizations, parents,

and students. Safety and health materials should be

part of the school-based, work-based, and connecting activities that form the school-to-work system. 

◆ Career exploration classes—Using an academy

model, many schools are moving toward 

career-based education programs. These programs often require a career exploration class 

for all ninth graders, which is an ideal context for

introducing young teens to workplace safety and

health issues and worker rights and responsibilities. 

UCLA-LOSH develops a safety and health 

curriculum for Jefferson High School

After meeting with the teachers at the high school, we

learned that all 9th graders are required to take an

Education and Career Planning (ECP) class, but the

teachers felt that the curriculum they were using was out

of date and not interesting to the students. So we collaborated with the teachers to develop a 2-week unit for the class

that includes information about safety

and health, laws about child labor, sexual harassment, and workers’ compensation. The unit is participatory, engaging

students with case studies, videos, and

role-play activities to help them identify

risks and speak up on the job in productive ways. “We were looking for a curriculum that is relevant and engaging for

the students,” explains Ceci Grakal, an

ECP teacher and work experience coordinator at the high school. “Too often,

teens don't know what to do when faced

with safety and health problems at work.

This unit teaches them how to talk to

other people about problems.”

—Linda Delp

◆ Academic classes—Many classroom teachers are

concerned about the safety and health of their students and are willing to integrate relevant materials

into their curricula. In fact, occupational safety

and health can be effectively integrated into science, social studies, English, health, and other academic classes. 

◆ Peer-led education—Training teens to teach other

teens about occupational safety and health is one

of the most effective and rewarding methods of

sharing information. See detailed information on

peer education programs in the “Developing Teen

Peer Education Programs” part of this section.

Working with Community Partners Forming Partnerships with Schools

11
Working with Community Partners Forming Partnerships with Schools

12

◆ Work experience programs—Many schools have

work experience programs that allow students to

receive academic credit for work outside school.

The programs offer an ideal context for skillsbased instruction on workplace safety and health

hazards, students’ workplace rights and responsibilities, and communicating effectively with

employers.

Work Experience Coordinators Teach 

Safety and Health

UC, Berkeley-LOHP conducted a survey of work

experience coordinators in high schools throughout

California. The following are their suggestions for how

work experience coordinators can help protect young

workers:

• Inform employers about child labor laws

• Check job sites for safety records, training

programs, etc. 

• Use revocation of work permits as leverage with

employers

• Report and followup on unsafe conditions

• Give information about job safety and health to

parents

• Have students look for hazards on the job and

report these in class

• Provide students with fact sheets on their safety and

health rights, child labor laws, protection against

sexual harassment, and what to do if they are

injured

◆ Vocational education classes—Many vocational

education classes already offer instruction on occupational safety. Determine what sort of instruction

is underway, and then offer to supplement it with

other information about safety and health hazards,

workplace rights, and communicating effectively

with employers. 

◆ Career counselors—Provide career counselors with

fact sheets on workplace issues for distribution to

students and for posting. Share with career counselors relevant State and local resources, such as

posters, booklets with child labor laws, and relevant government agency contacts. 

◆ Work permit process—Most States require work

permits for teens under the age of 18, and students

often obtain their work permits at school or at the

school district office. Be sure that safety and health

and child labor law information is distributed to

students when they apply for work permits.

Office for Work Permit Applications 

Distributes Materials

In Brockton, the school district office processes work

permit applications for teens. We discovered that the staff

at the superintendent’s office were passing out old

brochures on child labor laws with the work permit

applications, but they were interested in finding more upto-date and attractive materials to distribute. In consultation with the work permit office, we developed

brochures for teens and parents explaining the child

labor laws and included information on safety and

health. Now every teen applying for a work permit

receives these two brochures (see p. 14).

—Robin Dewey

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Partnerships with
13

Working with Community Partners Forming Partnerships with Schools
Why involve peer educators?

Peer education programs, in which teens are

trained to teach other teens, have proven to be one of

the most successful components of the young worker

projects. Teens are effective

trainers: they bring energy

and enthusiasm to their

teaching, speak the language

of their peers, serve as role

models to other young people, and provide a fresh perspective on workplace issues.

In immigrant communities,

bilingual peer educators also

provide an important link to

non-English speaking adults.

Through these programs,

teen peer educators develop

leadership and training skills

that benefit them as students

and citizens.

A teen educator advises others on communicating

effectively

“It’s not easy to talk to the boss because of all kinds of

conditions. Some teens are afraid that they’ll be fired if

they tell the boss the problem. As a peer educator, I teach

other teens that it’s important to present your problem

clearly and know what solution you want when you go

talk to the boss.” —Laura M.

Oakland Tech Peer Educator

Former peer educator

develops a career in 

public safety

In 1996, when Juan

Garcia was in the 11th

grade, he volunteered to be a

peer educator. Today he has

graduated from Jefferson

High School and works as

an intern in the Safety

Department at the Los

Angeles Mass Transit

Authority. “I wanted to be a

peer educator so I could help

other people and learn more

communication skills,” he

explains. “I was very shy

but now I view the world a little differently. I have more

confidence to talk to people.”

Teens report that they listen when peer educators

speak

The peer education program has been a great success,

both for the peer educators and the hundreds of students

Working with Community Partners Developing Teen Peer Ed Programs

Developing

Education 

Programs

TEEN 

 PEER

PLACES TO DEVELOP PEER 

EDUCATION PROGRAMS

• Schools

• Career, leadership, health education, and

other special classes 

• School clubs 

• School health clinics

• Community programs

• Job training centers

• Community youth organizations 

such as Boys and Girls Clubs,

YMCA/YWCA

• Neighborhood health clinics 

• Neighborhood after school programs 
they’ve reached. Many teens told us they pay more attention to the health and safety information delivered by the

peer educators, because they do it in a fun way and

because the peer educators know what it’s like to be a

teen in the workplace. For many, the peer educators are

a more trusted source of information. A student receiving

peer education told us “If your peer is talking, you would

listen to them more. I learned my rights, and what to do

or not do.” Another said, “[Peer educators] get you more

excited. Teachers are too mature, too serious to do things.

Teenagers are serious too, but in a fun way.”

The program also had a positive impact on the peer

educators themselves. They developed great leadership,

communication, and problem-solving skills. They learned

how to articulate appropriate responses to health and

safety problems, and how to think on their feet. Their

increased confidence and skill help in other areas of their

lives. One peer educator described how she had participated in a classroom history debate for the very first

time. “Before joining the peer ed program, I never would

have had the nerve to speak up in class.” We know the

peer educators will continue to be great resources to their

peers, their employers, and their coworkers. 

—Diane Bush

Promoting peer education in your

community

Identify programs or people interested in sponsoring peer educators.

Participants in existing peer education programs

may be interested in adding occupational safety and

health to their agenda. Or, you may find people interested in starting a peer education group focused on

this topic. Regardless of whether the workplace safety

activity is integrated into an existing program or is

new, an adult advisor must be present to provide the

teens with ongoing training, support, and supervision. 

Provide materials and training to the 

peer educator advisors. 

The training should include information and

resources on child labor laws, safety and health 

training requirements, and strategies for protecting

young workers on the job. Reassure staff that they 

do not need to become safety and health experts.

Occupational safety and health is similar to other

health topics, requiring the ability to speak up in 

an effective manner, identify hazards, and develop 

simple prevention strategies. 

You can provide the training yourself or find others

in the community with expertise in safety and health

and in training youth.

Brockton staff teams up with peer 

educators in the community

We discovered that two peer education groups associated with community organizations were already active

in Brockton, so we decided to invite them to work with

us on the project: a group at the Boys and Girls Club,

and a group at Helpline, a social service organization

where teens could call and speak anonymously with

other teens about health issues. We provided these groups

with training in workplace health and safety issues, and

then they were ready to go. Because the teens were

already experienced peer educators, they brought a lot of

ideas and enthusiasm to the project. 

—Robin Dewey

Help peer educator advisors include safety and

health in their programs. 

It may be helpful to provide ideas and resources for

the following:

Establishing the program—Encourage the program

sponsor to consider the following logistical issues:

• Recruiting peer educators

• Whether and how to pay the peer educators a

stipend

• Finding the time for teachers or other advisors

to supervise the peer educators

• Providing transportation to the teens 

• Finding appropriate space

Inform the peer education sponsors about available

resource materials. Encourage participatory methods

such as skits, case studies, and games. To assist in

their recruitment efforts, share with program sponsors

Working with Community Partners Developing Teen Peer Ed Programs

15
Working with Community Partners Developing Teen Peer Ed Programs

16

the benefits peer educators derive from participating

in the program, such as enhanced communication and

leadership skills and increased self-confidence.

Training for peer educators—Peer educators need

training in effective teaching techniques and problemsolving skills. In addition, they need information on

the following:

• How to spot hazards and prevent injuries in a

variety of workplaces

• Current laws and regulations affecting young 

workers

• Agencies and organizations that enforce the law 

and provide information and assistance to young

workers.

• Effective teaching techniques and problem-solving skills (encourage participating methods such

as skits, case studies, and games).

Recruiting peer educators at Oakland Tech

We formed a peer education partnership with Oakland

Technical High School. First we went to the high school

and presented the issue to teachers who were very supportive and invited us to speak to the students in class.

Together, we recruited a group of 15 sophomores and juniors who were interested in teaching their peers about

health and safety and their rights on the job. Over the

summer, we held a series of workshops on health and

safety, child labor laws, and participatory training methods. During the next school year, we continued to meet

with the peer educators several times a month during

lunch and after school. Eventually, the students conducted

training seminars for more than 300 teens in classrooms

at the high school. They reached an additional 200 teens

through training workshops at the mayor’s summer job

training program and the school-to-career summer jobs

internships. —Diane Bush

Identifying teaching opportunities—Peer educators

can teach in a variety of settings, including high school

classes, PTA meetings, after-school workshops, job

training programs, community meetings, and health

clinics. They can also reach other teens by writing articles for the school or community newspaper and creating posters and display boards. 

Los Angeles teens reach out to the community

Our peer educators from Jefferson High School were a

big success in the community. During the course of the

year, they developed skits about health and safety, sexual

harassment, child labor laws, and workers’ compensation, which they performed at neighborhood block club

meetings, cultural celebrations, and English and citizenship classes. They also led a series of workshops to educate students and adults in the community about workplace issues. —Linda Delp
Why Parents Should 

Be Partners

During focus groups,

many working teens

indicated that they turn

to their parents for

information and advice

about jobs. But in order

to advise their children,

parents must be knowledgeable about workplace rights and responsibilities. In many States, parents are required to sign a work permit before their

teen is allowed to work, providing parents an opportunity to discuss work-related issues. They can also support their working teens who need advice about how to

raise safety and health issues effectively with their

supervisors. 

Reaching out to

parents in your

community

Identify organizations that

are parent-run or that

serve parents. 

Schools, social agencies,

and health organizations can

help you identify some parent organizations. Parent

groups that address issues

related to the health and education of teens and

resource centers that provide information and

materials to parents are likely to be interested

in integrating young worker safety and health

concepts into their existing activities.

Conduct workshops for groups of 

parents in the community. 

Workshops should include information

about job-related hazards, worker rights and

responsibilities, and speaking up effectively in

the workplace. Whether you conduct the

workshops yourself or solicit other experts to run

them, involving teen educators in the training is effective. When working with parents with limited English

proficiency, bilingual teens are an especially valuable

resource.

Teens and project staff educate parents about

their workplace rights

In the predominantly immigrant

community of the Vernon-Central

area of Los Angeles, we discovered

that parents had many questions

about their own rights at work as

well as their children’s rights. In

fact, not one parent in our group

had heard of Cal-OSHA (the

California office of the

Occupational Safety and Health

Administration). So our peer educators organized a series of comInvolving Parents

ORGANIZATIONS TO CONTACT 

• Parent Teacher Associations (PTAs)

• Religious organizations

• Neighborhood associations 

• Parent educator groups

• Bilingual parents’ groups 

• Adult school programs including English and citizenship classes

• Health clinics and doctors’ offices

• Labor unions 

Working with Community Partners Involving Parents
Working with Community Partners Involving Parents

18

munity workshops held after school for parents and students. We invited representatives from Cal-OSHA, the

Office of Fair Employment and Housing, local unions,

and legal aid organizations to speak to the group on topics including safety, child labor laws, workers’ compensation, and sexual harassment.

As one parent, Aurora Marquez, explained, “Many

people in our community don’t know what to do if they

suffer an accident or if they’re a victim of abuse at work.

These workshops are very important so we can obtain

information and remove the blinders that cover our

eyes.” Since then, Marquez has become an advocate for

adults and teenagers who face problems at work.

—Linda Delp

PTA meetings provide an opportunity 

for safety and health workshops

In each of the five largest Oakland high schools, we

conducted short workshops for parents during their PTA

meetings. We presented situations involving working

teens and asked the parents to identify hazards and laws

that were being broken and to discuss what the teen

should do. We discovered that many parents had never

heard of some of the child labor laws, such as restrictions

on the types of jobs and hours teens can work. Others

were interested in learning more about their own workplace rights. Many realized that they didn’t know a lot

about what their teens did at work. At the end of one

workshop, a parent summed up by saying: “We should

ask our kids exactly what they do at work. A lot of times

kids don’t know what to do about problems at work.

They are not problem solvers. That’s what we’re here for.”

—Diane Bush

Distribute posters, brochures, and other materials. 

Provide the work permit office with a brochure for

parents. Have a booth with information at school

events that parents attend. Distribute materials to parent organizations, schools, clinic waiting rooms,

health fairs, and other local gatherings. 

School distributes materials for parents 

and students

In Brockton, we worked with the high school to ensure

that every student received a packet of information on

health and safety and workplace rights and responsibilities. The packets included a letter from our staff, a

brochure for parents, a brochure for teens, and a work

permit checklist. In addition, we had the parent brochure

translated into Spanish, Portuguese, and Haitian Creole,

which the school mailed to the non-English speaking

parents.

—Robin Dewey
Why job training programs

should be partners

Many young people find their first jobs through job

placement and training programs. These programs

place teens in jobs ranging from outdoor clean-up and

construction to office work. Programs that pay the

trainees‘ wages are the “employer of record” and have

the responsibility to protect their teen workers.

Typically, the sponsoring agency provides training on

job tasks and may also include other job-readiness

skills, such as proper dress and communication.

Although historically these orientation programs

include limited information about workplace safety

and health, they provide an excellent venue for reaching young workers. 

Reaching out to job 

training programs

Identify the job training 

programs in your community.

Talk with representatives from

your local schools, mayor‘s office,

office of education, or other training programs. Contact your local

private industry council to find

out who in your community

receives Federal youth employment and training funding.

Find out what they need. 

Meet with directors of programs or with the local administrators of Federal job training funding to find out

what safety and health training they already provide,

what additional materials

they might need, and where

and how job trainers are

trained. If the job training

agency is the “employer of

record,” remind staff that

safety and health interventions can help lower injury

rates, thus reducing workers‘

compensation costs and

avoiding expenses associated

with lost work time.

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Job Training Programs

JOB TRAINING AND PLACEMENT

PROGRAMS TO CONTACT 

• Community organizations that provide job training or placement

• Youth employment and training

programs 

• Private industry councils or 

workforce development boards

• Mayor’s or city jobs programs

• Local or County Office of

Education

Working with Community Partners Linking with Job Training Programs
Working with Community Partners Linking with Job Training Programs

20

“In the last two years, we have really

focused on our health and safety program. As

a result, we haven't had any serious injuries

this year, and our workers’ comp costs have

been reduced by 25%.” 

—Michele Clark-Clough

Executive Director

The Youth Employment Partnership, Inc.

Oakland, CA

Provide materials and training to job

placement staff.

The training should include information

and resources about child labor laws, safety

and health training requirements, and

strategies for protecting young workers on

the job. Reassure staff that they do not

need to become safety and health experts.

Emphasize the importance of using common sense

when discussing how to address safety and health

problems.

Assist job placement staff in integrating safety and

health into their programs.

Offer a training curriculum or other resources that

will enable job placement staff to provide information

on safety and health, rights and responsibilities, job

hazards and child labor laws to participating teens

(e.g. during orientation sessions).

Ensure that participating employers provide adequate training and supervision. Train staff to recognize “red flags” that may indicate an employer who is

not concerned about safety and health, such as a

supervisor who is unable to describe hazards or the

safety training program. Questions to ask participating employers include the following:

• Who will carry out onsite supervision of

employees? 

• Is the supervisor familiar with child labor law

requirements?

• What hours will employees

work?

• What tasks will employees do?

• Will employee training include

hands-on safety and health

awareness?

• To whom do employees report

safety and health hazards?

Summer youth workers get health

and safety training

We worked with the Oakland Private

Industry Council and other communitybased programs that implement summer

job programs to develop a 30-minute

orientation to health and safety issues,

which includes UCLA-LOSH’s video

Your Work: Keepin' It Safe, and a question and answer session about the fact sheet Are You a

Working Teen? All 3,000 students who apply for

Oakland’s Summer Youth Employment and Training

Programs participate in the orientation, and the applicants who end up working in the program receive additional health and safety training. 

—Diane Bush

Job training agencies become resources 

for employers

New Ways Workers, a job placement program in

Oakland, has developed a checklist of key training and

compliance issues to review with participating employers. With our encouragement, they added a health and

safety component to the checklist, and now distribute

U.C. Berkeley-LOHP’s Facts for Employers—Safer Jobs

for Teens. Often, employers who do not hire large numbers of teens are unaware of child labor laws, so New

Ways Workers serves as an information resource to

employers.

—Diane Bush
Working with Community Partners Linking with Job Training Programs

21

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Why health

care providers

should be 

partners 

Although doctors and nurses frequently share information

with their teen patients about a

variety of health risks including substance abuse, obesity,

and sexually transmitted diseases, they rarely discuss the

risks of workplace injury. In a

survey of physicians conducted

in Brockton, nearly all the

respondents expressed interest

in the issue of workplace safety and health for young

people but did not have the relevant information or

materials to share with their teen patients. They

agreed that they would be more likely to talk about

occupational safety with their teen patients if they had

information and materials available. Because of their

direct contact with young people and their prominence in the community, health care providers can be

effective advocates for teen worker safety and health. 

Reaching out 

to health care

providers in your

community

Contact providers 

in community and 

school health clinics 

and elsewhere.

Introduce the issue,

learn how providers distribute health information

to adolescents, and discuss

ways occupational safety

can be included in existing 

practices. 

Provide resources and training to

medical providers. 

Distribute posters, brochures, and videos to share

with young patients. Look for ways to include worker

safety and health information in their existing publications and services. Suggest putting a poster in the

waiting room instructing young patients to tell the

provider about any workplace injuries. In some States,

physicians must sign work permit applications. If this 

Health Care Providers

Including

HEALTH PROFESSIONALS 

TO CONTACT 

• Community and school health clinic

staff

• Local health department staff 

• Pediatricians and pediatric nurse

practitioners

• Adolescent medicine physicians and

nurses 

• Family practice providers

• Hospital emergency department and medical records office staff

• Health educators

• Urgent care centers 

Working with Community Partners Including Health Care Providers
Working with Community Partners Including Health Care Providers

23

is the case in your State, provide local physicians with

materials to distribute to their teen patients seeking

work permits.

Brockton pediatrician is surprised by 

teen worker issue. 

We contacted a local pediatrician because we knew

that he had been active in teen safety issues, particularly

as an advocate for bike helmet use. We asked him to get

involved in our project and to help us make contact with

the State chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics.

At first he was skeptical about the importance of the

issue, but after he began to talk to his teen patients about

their work experiences, he saw it differently. In fact, he

was amazed at the number of hours the teens work, the

types of tasks they are asked to do, and the inadequate

training they receive. Now he gives all his young working patients the brochure, Do You Work? A Guide for

Working Teens and directs them to call one of the several

contacts listed on the brochure. He also makes a note in

their records to follow-up at their next visit.

—Robin Dewey

Consider providing training for the clinic staff so

they can better answer questions about child labor

laws and workplace safety. The training should

include information and resources on child labor

laws, safety and health training requirements, and

strategies for protecting young workers on the job. 

Adolescent health clinic offers resources.

While young people sit in the waiting room at the

Brockton Neighborhood Health Center, they can watch

Teens: the Hazards We Face in the Workplace, a 

13-minute video showing teens who have been injured on

the job discuss ways jobs can be made safer. On Monday

nights during Teen Clinic, they can talk informally with

peer leaders about health issues, including occupational

safety. In addition, teen worker brochures are available

on the resource rack, and a Know Your Rights on the

Job poster hangs on the wall. The pediatrician who

serves teens at the clinic reports that after viewing the

video, many patients are interested in discussing workrelated concerns. 

—Robin Dewey

Adolescent Health Nurse is a Resource 

to the Oakland Project

Early on in our project, we met with the nurse practitioner—a specialist in adolescent health—at the 

on-campus health clinic at Oakland Technical High

School. Together we explored how the clinic could incorporate job-related issues into its health education efforts.

We also invited the nurse practitioner to make a presentation to our project team on the developmental characteristics that contribute to teen worker risks. For instance, she

explained that although adults and teens assess risks in

similar ways, teens are also trying hard to assert their

independence. As a result, they can be reluctant to ask

questions of their supervisors or appear incapable in any

way; they may be particularly unwilling to seek advice or

help from their parents when faced with problems at

work; and they turn to other teens for models of behavior. 

So in our project, we looked for opportunities for

peers to influence each other in positive ways, such as

through peer education programs and classroom discus-
Working with Community Partners Including Health Care Providers

24

sions. We also developed occasions for teens to practice

speaking up about work problems, and we equipped

teachers and other influential adults with resources on

workplace issues.

—Diane Bush

Ask hospitals to provide data. 

Meet with emergency department and medical

records staff to explain the value of having local data

on work-related injuries. Request that intake staff ask

injured teens whether the injury occurred at work

and that this information be coded on emergency

department and hospital intake forms. 

Give presentations at State meetings.

State chapters of organizations such as the

American Academy of Pediatrics, the Society of

Adolescent Medicine, the American College of

Emergency Physicians, and the American Nurses

Association hold regular business meetings and may

be interested in a presentation on the scope of workrelated injuries to teens and the role medical

providers can play in prevention. 

Write an article for the State newsletters of these

professional associations.

In lieu of, or in addition to a presentation, provide

similar information in written form. 
Working with Community Partners Including Health Care Providers
Why employers are 

important partners

Employers bear direct responsibility for the safety

of teen workers, and they are important partners in

workplace safety and health initiatives. Employers of

young people under the age of 18 have an obligation

to comply with State and Federal child labor regulations regarding the tasks teens can perform and the

hours they can work. Employers should also provide

teen workers with supervision and training that is

age-appropriate. Nonetheless, many employers

express uncertainty about how to supervise and mentor young people effectively, and others are unclear

about child labor laws.

Educating employers and

supervisors is a key component of enhancing workplace safety. 

Reaching out to

employers in your

community

Enlisting employers in

community projects can be

challenging. Supervisors in

many of the businesses that

hire large numbers of teens

have busy schedules and are

often difficult to reach. Some

employers feel that they already provide adequate

supervision and training for their employees and do

not need to provide more. Others would like to do a

better job of mentoring the youths they supervise but

do not know where to begin. However, local businesses have much to gain from young worker projects and

can be committed partners. The following are strategies for engaging their participation. 

Identify local businesses that employ large numbers

of teens.

You can determine the major employers of teens in

your area in a number of ways: look at work permits,

talk to job placement coordinators in the school, survey

teens, and meet with the

Chamber of Commerce and

Private Industry Council staff. 

Mail multiple copies of fact

sheets or brochures to

employers.

Offer copies of materials

written for supervisors of teen

workers as well as brochures

that can be distributed to teen

workers. Include a letter

explaining your project and

offering to provide additional

safety and health materials

and training to supervisors

and mentors. 

BURGERS

Working With Employers

EMPLOYERS WHO MAY BE 

INTERESTED IN YOUNG WORKER

SAFETY AND HEALTH 

• Private and public sector institutions

and businesses that provide schoolto-career and vocational education

placements, such as banks, high

technology companies, construction

firms, government offices, libraries,

and hospitals.

• Businesses that employ large numbers of teens in part-time jobs, such

as restaurants, grocery stores, and

retail establishments.

Working with Community Partners Working With Employers
Working with Community Partners Working With Employers

27

Meet with employers to let them 

know how they can benefit. 

Explain how their business can

benefit from participating in young

worker projects through increased compliance with child labor laws, possibly

reduced workers’ compensation rates,

better morale among teen workers, better trained workers, and positive publicity. Offer to provide safety and health

materials and training. 

Restaurant workers and supervisors

receive health and safety training

We got a small grant from the

Massachusetts Department of Industrial

Accidents to provide safety workshops for

restaurant workers and supervisors in

Brockton. It took several meetings to get buy-in, but we

eventually got the owners of the five largest restaurants

to commit. Once they got involved, they were very receptive to our message. 

The workshops, which trained 180 staff members,

included hands-on exercises to help workers identify and

prevent hazards and a discussion about child labor laws.

It also offered a valuable opportunity for supervisors and

workers to discuss safety issues. Restaurant work is so

fast paced that employees don’t often get time for training or to compare strategies and ideas. We found that

participants appreciated the opportunity to sit down

together to talk. During one workshop at a pizza restaurant, the owner agreed to rotate tasks as suggested by a

teen employee as a way to reduce back strain. 

—Robin Dewey

Contact businesses participating in school-tocareer and vocational education placements. 

Offer to assist them in educating students about

safety and health issues. 

Contact local business organizations.

The Chamber of Commerce, the Private Industry

Council, and other business clubs may be interested 

in educational materials and brief

presentations to their members

about child labor laws and workplace safety and health issues. 

Workplace supervisors of student interns attend a health and

safety training

In Brockton, we conducted a 1-

hour workshop for supervisors and

mentors participating in the schoolto-career program. The topics

included the common causes of teen

workplace injuries; the need to provide explicit, clear, and repeated

safety instructions to teens; and the

importance for students to balance

learning all aspects of the job with

learning safety precautions. The positive response to the

workshop convinced State school-to-career staff to incorporate the curriculum into their State mentor training

manual. 

—Robin Dewey

Recognize business participation.

Most local business owners will view positive publicity as a valuable reward for participating in young

worker projects. You can recognize business partners

by issuing certificates of appreciation, reporting their

involvement to the press and at media events, and

highlighting participating businesses in project 

materials.

Oakland employers commit to safe jobs for youth

As part of Oakland’s Safe Jobs for Youth Week organized by the project and the City Council, we invited

Oakland employers to (1) commit to providing comprehensive health and safety training to young employees

and (2) ensure that supervisors are trained on child

labor law requirements. We mailed invitations to employers involved in job training programs and placed ads in

local papers. Nearly 50 employers signed on. In return,

the participating employers were acknowledged in newspaper ads, press materials, and by the Oakland City

Council.

—Diane Bush
Working with Community Partners Working With Employers

28

Provide referral information when necessary.

Community members may want to know what to

do when employers do not comply with child labor

laws or workplace safety regulations (see Appendix A).

BURGERS

Working With Employers
Working with Community Partners Reaching the Broader Community

Why it is important to have

community groups and

organizations as partners.

All members of a community share responsibility

for protecting the safety and health of their young

people. During the course of a young worker project,

you may want to reach beyond the organizations and

groups described in previous sections of this guide to

include the broader community. Working with an

array of local institutions

and groups, you can contribute to a community

standard that insists on

well-trained employees and

safe workplaces. 

Reaching out to

organizations and

groups in your

community

Identify community 

organizations, institutions,

and groups that provide

services and information 

to teens and others in the

community.

Discuss with them ways

they can incorporate young worker safety and health

information and activities in their existing practices and

policies. 

Provide resources and training to community 

organizations.

Distribute posters, brochures, and other materials to

groups that provide information to members of the community, such as youth-serving organizations and health

and social service centers. Look for ways to include

worker safety and health information in their publications and services. 

Consider providing

training for the staff of

these community organizations, so they can better answer questions

about child labor laws

and workplace safety.

The training should

include information and

resources on child labor

laws, safety and health

training requirements,

and strategies for protecting young workers on

the job. Reassure staff

that they do not need to

become safety and health

experts and that their

most important function may be to provide referrals to

the appropriate sources of information. 

Reaching the Broader

COMMUNITY GROUPS TO CONTACT 

• Youth programs and recreation centers like

the YMCA, YWCA, Boys and Girls Clubs, and

other local non-profit organizations

• Information centers for youths such as 

community drop-in centers, health education

resource centers, and other centers

• Neighborhood groups such as block clubs,

churches, and environmental justice, housing,

and community organizations

• Labor and legal rights organizations

• Government agencies, especially the mayor’s

office, community development agencies, the

local health department, and the workers’

compensation office

• Local media outlets including newspapers, 

television, and radio stations.
Working with Community Partners Reaching the Broader Community

30

You may provide training yourself, or find others in

the community who have expertise in safety and

health and in training youth.

Help local agencies and organizations integrate

young worker safety and health into existing 

activities and policies.

In addition to providing materials and training to

organizations in your community, encourage and help

them to make protecting young workers part of their

regular business. Organizations and institutions can

integrate occupational safety and health into existing

programs: 

Tips for engaging community groups

• Identify organizations that can provide in-kind

resources for education events such as supplies, food,

speakers, etc. 

• Acknowledge and highlight the participation of all

players involved in young worker education programs

with awards, certificates, and public acknowledgment. 

• Make meetings and events fun with skits, food, and

opportunities for socializing.

• Address workplace issues for teenagers and adults.

Often, parents have work-related concerns that should

be addressed as well. This is particularly important in

immigrant communities where many parents do not

know laws and regulations. —Linda Delp

Youth-serving organizations—Many youth-serving

organizations, such as the YMCA and YWCA, Boys

and Girls Clubs, and community drop-in centers

sponsor workshops related to health issues. While

these workshops typically focus on issues of substance abuse prevention, sexuality, nutrition and exercise, occupational safety can be added to the agenda.

Provide curriculum and ideas to the staff and suggest

that they link the issue of young worker safety to

other topics of interest to teens such as worker rights

and sexual harassment. Include booths on workplace

safety at job or health fairs. 

Youth fair becomes venue for sharing 

health and safety materials 

Each year for 3 years, the Brockton peer leaders prepared a Young Workers table for a regional Youth Fair.

They knew they would be competing for the attention of

the 300 teens who attend the fair with other booths on

drugs, alcohol, safe sex, and exercise, so they developed a

colorful board that lit up when participants correctly

answered questions about workplace safety. The table

was well attended and sparked many questions, particularly about the number of hours teens can legally work. 

—Robin Dewey

Community development associations—Neighborhood

associations usually address crime and safety concerns.

However, worker safety can also be of interest to local

groups. Offer to provide materials and training at block

club, church, and other local meetings. These venues

can also be good for peer educator presentations. 

Cultural organizations—Members of ethnic groups

may belong to cultural associations that provide information and activities related to health, social services,

recreation, and education. These associations provide

an opportunity to reach members of the community
Working with Community Partners Reaching the Broader Community

who may be especially vulnerable to occupational

injury because of limited English proficiency, employment in high-risk jobs, or lack of awareness of child

labor laws. Provide these organizations with materials

about young worker safety, and encourage them to

add the issue to ongoing workshops and meetings. 

Latino community center hosts teen 

performance on workplace hazards

At a Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) event, a

traditional Mexican ceremony of remembrance for the

dead, peer leaders in Los Angeles performed a skit to

dramatize the link between workplace hazards, illnesses,

and death. As a Día de los Muertos altar shone with candles and photos to remember those who died, the teens

portrayed a young worker who was asphyxiated by hazardous chemicals at work, a sad testament to the

exploitation of immigrant workers and the lack of adequate enforcement. 

—Linda Delp

Labor organizations—Labor organizations and legal

aid groups are instrumental in advocating for workplace rights. Many of them understand the importance of educating young people about safety and

health and are willing to contribute valuable information and expertise to young worker projects. They

may wish to speak in school classrooms, drawing on

their own experiences with safety and health on the

job. Union members also may be interested in learning more about protecting their own children who are

working. 

Union representatives speak at 

community workshop

Union representatives spoke at a workshop held for parents and teenagers at Jefferson High School in Los

Angeles. We contacted a local union that had successfully

confronted sexual harassment at a nearby hospital and

another local union that fought for a ventilation system

at a small manufacturing company that used chemicals.

The union representatives described the importance of

working together to resolve problems and the teenagers

at the workshop became more aware of the role of unions

in improving workplace health and safety conditions. 

—Linda Delp

Government agencies—Many local agencies set policies and provide information related to young worker

safety and health:

◆ The mayor’s office is interested in economic development and in policies that promote adolescent

health. 

◆ Three agencies that regulate aspects of workplace

safety are the Occupational Safety and Health

Administration, the State Department of Labor

office (within which the Wage and Hour Division

usually oversees child labor laws), and the

Workers’ Compensation Bureau. Often, these agencies have area branches or representatives who can

work with your community (see Appendix B).

◆ As part of its broad role in promoting health and

preventing disease, the local health department

should participate in many aspects of a young

worker project. In fact, the local health department

may be the most appropriate organization to coordinate the entire project. The department can also

assist with the initial needs and resource assessment, conduct health promotion campaigns, sponsor teen health education workshops, and contribute to other activities. In addition, as one of the

department roles is to inspect restaurants, department inspectors can inform employers directly

about ways to make the workplace safer for teens. 

31
Working with Community Partners Reaching the Broader Community

32

Resolved by the Oakland City Council: 

The Week of May 12, 1997, is Safe Jobs for Youth

Week—As part of a public awareness campaign in

Oakland highlighting the need for teens, parents,

employers, and the community to pay more attention to

the safety of working teens, we worked with Oakland

City Council members to develop a resolution in support

of Safe Jobs for Youth Week. The Mayor presented the

resolution to health and safety peer educators from

Oakland Technical High School, and he talked about his

own early work experiences. He asked Oakland’s

employers to make a special commitment to protecting

Oakland’s working teens.

Work with the local media

Local media can play an important role in raising

awareness about workplace safety and health for

teens. If your organization has a public relations (PR)

or press office, contact them to enlist their aid. They

can get coverage for you and make sure that it fits

with both your objectives and the overall objectives of

your organization. Frequently, they cultivate close

relationships with media organizations.

Getting media coverage takes some groundwork if

you don’t have a PR department. Find out what local

media are available to you. Neighborhood papers,

radio and television stations, and cable systems

(including community and health access stations)

may also be available. Next, read the newspapers, and

listen to and watch the news programs. Try to identify

journalists who are doing stories that are similar to

the issue of workplace safety and health for teens.

Journalists tend to specialize because of their own

interests or their assignments. You may be able to tap

those special interests with some aspect of your 

project.

Next, create a plan for getting coverage. Journalists

need to fill regular quotas for fresh copy. Your job is

to make it easier for them to fill their quota. Pick one

or more journalists and call them to suggest ways

they can cover the issue of young worker safety and

health. When you do this, be sure to connect young

worker issues to other issues that they’ve already covered. Offer them press releases about your project—

that’s material they can put to immediate use. In addition, invite them to attend one or more project activities to give them more material. If you can, develop a

list of community people who are articulate and who

can talk about your project with the journalist.

Reporters will almost always ask you for such referrals. In particular, look for young workers who have

compelling stories to tell and are willing to be interviewed by the media. Try to think of several aspects of

your project that are worthy of coverage. Followup
Working with Community Partners Reaching the Broader Community

33

any coverage you receive with appreciation and suggestions for further coverage. 

Teenagers create their own public 

service announcement

The peer leaders in Brockton worked with the director

of the local cable television station to produce a public

service announcement (PSA) directed at teen workers. The

30-second PSA was written, acted, and taped by the students. Aired daily for several months, it featured various

types of workers while delivering the following message:

I am only 16 years old,

And I got hurt at work.

I didn’t know I had the right to a safe workplace.

Every day 550 teens in the United States get

injured on the job!

Let’s not make it 551.

(As a group):

Know your rights!

Get a work permit!

Follow safety rules!

Speak up! Ask questions!

Project staff tell story to the Los Angeles Times

A UCLA-LOSH program staff person met a Los

Angeles Times reporter at a Workers Memorial Day

event honoring workers who had died on the job in the

past year. She "pitched" to the writer an idea for a story

about teen worker safety. The reporter liked the idea and

wrote a story based in part on interviews with working

teens at Jefferson High. CNN News saw the article and

followed up with another story. The publicity was great

for the project, and it taught us how the print and electronic media often pick up story ideas from each other. 

—Linda Delp

Reaching the Broader

Resources

The three community-based projects have developed many useful materials for educating

young workers about safety and health issues in the workplace. This resource section

describes the materials produced by these projects as well as other resources available

through other groups. The resource section includes a summary of Federal child labor

laws, Federal and State agencies curricula, educational videos, internet resources,

reports and books. In addition, other organizations and agencies can provide information

about occupational safety and health.
36

The Child Labor Laws were established to protect

the working conditions of adolescents. A summary of

the Federal Child Labor Laws follows. Many States

have their own Child Labor Laws. If your State’s laws

are more protective than the Federal ones, then those

apply. Make sure you know the laws of your State. 

By law, employers must provide:

• A safe and healthful workplace. 

• Safety and health training, in many situations,

including providing information about chemicals

that could be harmful to your health.

• For many jobs, payment for medical care if you get

hurt or sick because of your job. You may also be

entitled to lost wages.

• At least the minimum wage of $5.15/hour to most

teens, after their first 90 days on the job. Many

States have a higher minimum wage than the

Federal wage. Lower wages may be allowed when

workers receive tips from customers, provided that

the tip plus the wage is equal to minimum wage.

(Call your State Department of Labor listed in this

guide for information on minimum wage in your

State or visit http://www.dol.gov/dol/esa/public/minwage/america.htm).

Not all teens may do all types of work. Here is a

summary of the Federal laws that let you know what

the restrictions are depending on the adolescent’s age.

No worker under 18 may:

• Operate a forklift at any time.

• Operate many types of powered equipment like a

circular saw, box crusher, meat slicer, or bakery

machine.

• Work in wrecking, demolition, excavation, or

roofing.

• Work in mining, logging, or a sawmill.

• Work in meat-packing or slaughtering.

• Work where there is exposure to radiation.

• Work where explosives are manufactured or stored.

• Recent changes in the law state that minors under

17 may not drive a motor vehicle; 17-year-olds may

drive occasionally, if they meet certain requirements.

Also, no one 14- or 15-years-old

may:

• Bake or cook on the job (except at a serving counter).

• Operate power-driven machinery (except certain

types that pose little hazard such as those used in

offices).

• Work on a ladder or scaffold.

• Work in warehouses.

• Work in construction, building, or manufacturing.

• Load or unload a truck, railroad car, or conveyor.

Federal Child Labor Laws also have guidelines for

the hours that a teenager may work.

For young workers between the

ages of 14 and 15, work hours are

as follows: 

Not before 7 a.m. or after 7 p.m. between Labor

Day and June 1 and not after 9 p.m. between June 1

and Labor Day.

Not during school hours

—maximum hours when school is in session are as

follows:

18 hours a week, but not over:

3 hours a day on school days

8 hours a day Saturday, Sunday, and holidays

—maximum hours when school is NOT in session

are as follows:

40 hours a week

8 hours a day

Appendix A—Child Labor Laws
Appendix A—Child Labor Laws

Federal Contacts 

National Institute for Occupational

Safety and Health (NIOSH)

NIOSH is part of the Centers for Disease Control

and Prevention (CDC) and is the only Federal institute responsible for conducting research and making

recommendations for preventing work-related illnesses and injuries. NIOSH conducts investigations and

evaluates hazardous working conditions, chemicals,

and/or machinery. The institute develops and disseminates information about methods for preventing disease, injury, and disability. 

NIOSH

4676 Columbia Parkway

Cincinnati, OH 45266-1998

1-800-35-NIOSH

http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/homepage.html

(general information)

http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/childlab.html (child labor)

NIOSH Publications

4676 Columbia Parkway

Cincinnati, OH 45226

(513) 533-8287

emails: pubstaft@cdc.gov

U.S. Occupational Safety and

Health Administration (OSHA)

OSHA develops and enforces Federal regulations

and standards. Many free publications and a video

library are available.

OSHA

U.S. Department of Labor

200 Constitution Ave. NW

Washington, DC 20210

National hotline: 1-800-321-OSHA

http://www.osha.gov/

U.S. National Labor Relations

Board (NLRB)

The NLRB has information about employment

rights and labor laws. The Board investigates complaints by workers and unions in the private sector.

US National Labor Relations Board

Division of Information

1099 14th Street NW

Washington, DC 20570

(202) 273-1991

http://www.nlrb.gov/

U.S. Department of Labor,

Employment Standards

Administration, Wage and Hour

Division

This office enforces the Federal Fair Labor

Standards Act (FLSA) for employment in the private

sector, and in State and local government. It establishes and enforces national standards for minimum

wage, overtime pay, child labor, and record keeping.

This office also conducts workplace investigations and

gathers data on wages, hours, and other employment

conditions and practices, to determine compliance

with FLSA, and assesses penalties if violations are

found.

Headquarters

200 Constitution Ave. NW, Room S 3510

Washington, DC 20210

(202) 219-8305

http://www.dol.gov/

U.S. Department of Labor, The

Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS)

The BLS is the principal fact-finding agency for the

Federal Government in the broad field of labor economics and statistics. The BLS is an independent

national statistical agency that collects, processes,

analyzes, and disseminates essential statistical data to

the American public, the U.S. Congress, other Federal

agencies, State and local governments, business, and

labor. The BLS also serves as a statistical resource to

the Department of Labor.

Headquarters

2 Massachusetts Ave, NE

Washington, DC 20212

(202) 606-5886

http://www.bls.gov

37
38

State Contacts

ALABAMA

Wolfgang Trammell

Dept. of Industrial Relations

State Programs Division

Child Labor Section

649 Monroe St.

Montgomery, AL 36131-5200

Phone: (334) 242-8265

Fax: (334) 242-8403

ALASKA

J.R. "Randy" Carr, Chief, Wage and Hour

Labor Standards and Safety Administration

P.O. Box 107021

Anchorage, AK 99510

Phone: (907) 269-4914

Fax: (907) 269-4992

http://www.state.ak.us/local/akpages/LABOR/lss/lss.htm

ARIZONA

Orlando J. Macias, Director Labor Department

Department of Labor

P.O. Box 19070

Phoenix, AZ 85005-9070

Phone: (602) 542-4515

Fax: (602) 542-8097 

ARKANSAS

Sandra H. King, Administrator

Arkansas Department of Labor 

10421 West Markham

Little Rock, AR 72205

Phone: (501) 682-4501

Fax: (501) 682-4506

http://www.state.ar.us/labor

CALIFORNIA

Nance S. Steffen, Asst. Labor Commissioner

Department of Industrial Relations, Labor Standards

Enforcement

P.O. Box 420603

San Francisco, CA 94142

Phone: (415) 703-4810

Fax: (415) 975-0772

http://www.dir.ca.gov

COLORADO

Carlos M. Renteria, Administrator

Labor Standards Unit

1515 Arapahoe Street, Tower 2 - Suite 375

Denver, CO 80202-2117

Phone: (303) 572-2272

Fax: (303) 920-4599

http://www.state.co.us/gov_dir/labor_dir/labor_home.html

CONNECTICUT

Gary K. Pechie, Director

Wage and Workplace Standards Division

200 Folly Brook Boulevard

Wethersfield, CT 06109-1114

Phone: (860) 263-6790

Fax: (860) 263-6541

http://www.ctdol.state.ct.us

DELAWARE

Susan S. Anders, Administrator

Office of Labor Law Enforcement

4425 North Market Street

Wilmington, DE 19802

Phone: (302) 761-8200

Fax: (302) 761-6601

FLORIDA

Michelle Collins

Child Labor Coordinator

Jobs and Benefits

261 West Executive Center Circle

Clifton Building, Room 101

Tallahassee, FL 32399-2150

Phone: (850) 487-2536 or 1-800-226-2536

Fax: (850) 487-4928

http://www.state.fl.us/dles/

GEORGIA

John G. Clark, Chief

Child Labor Section

Georgia Department of Labor

148 International Boulevard NE, Suite 700

Atlanta, GA 30303-1751

Phone: (404) 656-3623

Fax: (404) 657-9923

Appendix B—Agencies and Organizations
Appendix B—Agencies and Organizations

39

HAWAII

Alan K. Asao, Administrator

Enforcement Division

830 Punchbowl Street, Room 340

Honolulu, HI 96813

Phone: (808) 586-8771

Fax: (808) 586-8766

IDAHO

Kenneth R. Flatt, Labor Relations Supervisor

Wage and Hour Section

317 Main Street

Boise, ID 83735-0910

Phone: (208) 334-6110

Fax: (208) 334-6430

http://www.labor.state.id.us

ILLINOIS

Connie Knutti, Assistant Administrator

Illinois Department of Labor

Child Labor Division

160 North LaSalle St., Suite 1300

Chicago, IL 60601

Phone: (312) 793-2800

Fax: (312) 793-5257 

http://www.state.il.us/agency/idol

INDIANA

Jonathon Weinzapfel, Deputy Commissioner

Indian Department of Labor, Bureau of Child Labor

402 West Washington Street, Room W195

Indianapolis, IN 46204-2739

Phone: (317) 232-2655

Fax: (317) 233-3790

IOWA

Marcielle B. Rockhill

Wage Collection Unit Manager

1000 East Grand Avenue

Des Moines, IA 50319-0209

Phone: (515) 281-8493

Fax: (515) 281-7995

KANSAS

Craig Liskey, Supervisor

Kansas Department of Labor

Employment Standards

433 SW Topeka Boulevard

Topeka, KS 66603-3151

Phone: (785) 296-4062

Fax: (785) 368-6462

KENTUCKY

Dennis Langford, Director

Division of Employment Standards

Apprenticeship and Training

1047 U.S. 127 South, Suite 4

Frankfurt, KY 40601

Phone: (502) 564-3070

Fax: (502) 564-2248

http://www.state.ky.us

LOUISIANA

Michael Long, Labor Program Manager

Office of Regulatory Service

Labor Programs Section

P.O. Box 94094

Baton Rouge, LA 70804-9094

Phone: (225) 342-2717

Fax: (225) 342-7664

http://www.ldol.state.la.us

MAINE

Anne L. Hamel, Director

Bureau of Labor Standards

Wage and Hour Division

State House Station 45

Augusta, ME 04333-0045

Phone: (207) 624-6411

Fax: (207) 624-6449
Appendix B—Agencies and Organizations

MARYLAND

Richard M. Avallone, Director

Prevailing Wage Program

Dllr 1100 N. Utah St.

Baltimore, MD 21201

Phone: (410) 767-2342

Fax: (410) 333-7303

http://www.dllr.state.md.us

MASSACHUSETTS

Joan Parker, Director of Safety

Attorney General's Office

Division of Fair Labor and Business Practices

200 Portland St.

Boston, MA 02108

Phone: (617) 727-2200 x 3248

Fax: (617) 722-3066

http://www.state.ma.us/

MICHIGAN

Michael Dankert, Chief

Bureau of Safety and Regulation

Wage and Hour Division

7150 Harris Drive, P.O. 30476

Lansing, MI 48909-7976

Phone: (517) 322-5269

Fax: (517) 322-6352

http://www.cis.state.mi.us/bsr/divisions/wh/home.htm/

MINNESOTA

Wendy Robinson, Division Director

Labor Standards Division

443 Lafayette Road

St. Paul, MN 55155

Phone: (651) 296-2282

Fax: (651) 215-0104

http://www.doli.state.mn.us

MISSISSIPPI

Claire M. Porter, Chairman

Workers' Compensation Commission

1428 Lakeland Drive

P.O. Box 5300

Jackson, MS 39296-5300

Phone: (601) 987-4200

MISSOURI

Colleen A. Baker, Director or

James Boeckman, Asst. Director

Division of Labor Standards, Wage and Hour

3315 West Truman Boulevard, PO Box 449

Jefferson City, MO 65102

Phone: (800) 475-2130 or (573) 751-3403

Fax: (573) 751-3721

http://www.dolir.state.mo.us/ls

MONTANA

John Andrew, Chief

Employment Relations Division

Labor Standards Bureau

P.O. Box 6518

Helena, MT 59604-6518

Phone: (406) 444-4619

Fax: (406) 444-4140

http://jsd.dli.state.mt.us/dli_home/dli.htm

NEBRASKA

Raymond Griffin, Program Manager

Labor Law Compliance

Safety and Labor Standards

1313 Farnam Street, 3rd Floor

Omaha, NE 68102-1898

Phone: (402) 595-3095

Fax: (402) 595-3200

http://www.dol.state.ne.us/

NEVADA

David J. Dahn, Labor Commissioner

Business and Industry

Office of the State Labor Commissioner

555 East Washington Avenue, Suite 4100

Las Vegas, NV 89101

Phone: (702) 486-2650

Fax: (702) 486-2660

http://www.state.nv.us/b&i/lc/index.htm

NEW HAMPSHIRE

Cynthia A. Flynn, Wage and Hour Administrator

New Hampshire Department of Labor

State Office Park South

95 Pleasant Street

P.O. Box 2076

Concord, NH 03301

Phone: (603) 271-3170

Fax: (603) 271-2668

40
Appendix B—Agencies and Organizations

NEW JERSEY

Martin Gartzman, Director

Office of Wage and Hour Compliance

225 East State Street, P.O. Box 389

Trenton, NJ 08625-0329

Phone: (609) 292-7860

Fax: (609) 695-1612

NEW MEXICO

Terrie F. Baca, Deputy Director

Labor and Industrial Division

501 Mountain Road NE

Albuquerque, NM 87102

Phone: (505) 841-8988

Fax: (505) 841-9317

NEW YORK

Richard J. Polsinello, Director

Labor Standards

Building 12, State Campus, Rm 532

Albany, NY 12240

Phone: (518) 457-2460

Fax: (518) 457-7997

http://www.labor.state.ny.us

NORTH CAROLINA

Thomas A. Harris, Bureau Chief

Labor Standards Bureau

4 West Edenton Street

Raleigh, NC 27601-1092

Phone: (919) 807-2788

Fax: (919) 807-2786

NORTH DAKOTA

Ron Gumeringer, Labor Standards Supervisor

Wage and Hour

600 East Boulevard, State Capitol, 13th Fl, Dept. 406

Bismarck, ND 58505

Phone: (701) 328-2659

Fax: (701) 328-2031

http://www.tradecorridor.com/ndlabor

OHIO

Jonathan L. McGee, Director

Wage and Hour Division

Ohio Bureau of Employment Services

145 South Front Street, P.O. Box 1618

Columbus, OH 43216-1618

Phone: (614) 644-2393

Fax: (614) 728-8639

OKLAHOMA

Sharon Eischen, Director

Child Labor Investigator

Wage and Hour Division

4001 North Lincoln Boulevard

Oklahoma City, OK 73105-5212

Phone: (405) 528-1500 x218

Fax: (405) 528-0954

http://www.state.ok.us/~okdol/

OREGON

Christine Hammond, Administrator

Wage and Hour Division

Bureau of Labor Industries

800 NE Oregon Street #32

Portland, OR 97232

Phone: (503) 731-4074 x247

Fax: (503) 731-4606

http://www.BOLI.state.or.us

PENNSYLVANIA

Robert E. Moore, Director

Prevailing Wage Division

1301 Labor and Industry Building

Seventh and Forster Streets

Harrisburg, PA 17120

Phone: (800) 932-0665 or (717) 787-4763

Fax: (717) 787-0517

http://www.li.state.pa.us

41
Appendix B—Agencies and Organizations

RHODE ISLAND

Jacqueline A. Cugini, Assistant Administrator

Labor Standards

610 Manton Avenue

Providence, RI 02909

Phone: (401) 457-1808

Fax: (401) 457-1806

SOUTH CAROLINA

Von E. Reeves, Administrator

Office of Labor Services

3600 Forest Drive

P.O. Box 11329

Phone: (803) 734-9688

Fax: (803) 734-4359

Columbia, SC 29211-1329

http://www.llr.sc.edu

SOUTH DAKOTA

Denise Bisson

Department of Labor

700 Governors Drive

Pierre, SD 57501-2291

Phone: (605) 773-3101

Fax: (605) 773-4211

http://www.state.sd.us/state/executive/dol/dlm/dlmhome.htm

TENNESSEE

Mary Ellen Grace, Director

Tennessee Department of Labor

Labor Standards Division

Anderson Tower

710 James Robertson Pkwy., 3rd Floor

Nashville, TN 37243

Phone: (615) 741-2858

Fax: (615) 253-3612

http://www.state.tn.us/empsec/

TEXAS

LaSha Barefield, Program Director

Texas Workforce Commission

Labor Law Department

101 East 15th Street, Suite G-1

Austin, TX 78778-0001 

Phone: (512) 837-9559

Fax: (512) 834-3562

UTAH

Colleen Strasburg, Bureau Manager

Employment Standards Bureau

160 East 300 South

P.O. Box 146600

Salt Lake City, UT 84114-6600

Phone: (801) 530-6803

Fax: (801) 530-7609

http://www.labor.state.ut.us

VERMONT

JoAnna Goodrich, Program Administrator

Department of Labor and Industry

Wage and Hour Division

National Life Building

Drawer 20

Montpelier, VT 05620-3401

Phone: (802) 828-2157

Fax: (802) 828-2195

VIRGINIA

Dennis G. Merrill, Director

Department of Labor and Industry

Powers-Taylor Building

13 South Thirteenth Street

Richmond, VA 23219

Phone: (804) 786-3224

Fax: (804) 371-2324

http://www.dli.state.va.us/home.htm

WASHINGTON

Greg Mowat, Program Administrator

Employment Standards Consultation and Compliance

P.O. Box 44510

7273 Linderson Way, S.W.

Olympia, WA 98504-4510

Phone: (360) 902-5310

Fax: (360) 902-5300

http://www.wa.gov/lni

WEST VIRGINIA

Steven A. Allred, Commissioner

West Virginia Department of Labor

Capitol Complex, Bldg. 3, Room 319

Charleston, WV 25305

Phone: (304) 558-7890

Fax: (304) 558-3797

42
Appendix B—Agencies and Organizations

WISCONSIN

Robert S. Anderson, Acting Bureau Director

Equal Rights Division

201 East Washington Avenue

P.O. Box 8928

Madison, WI 53708

Phone: (608) 266-3345

Fax: (608) 267-4592

WYOMING

Charles Rando, Acting Administrator

Labor Standards Division

6101 Yellowstone Road

North Building, Room 259C

Cheyenne, WY 82002

Phone: (307) 777-7261

Fax: (307) 777-5633

http://wydoe.state.wy.us

Teen Work Injury

Prevention Groups

Child Labor Coalition

Composed of 45 national and international organizations (academic, labor, religious, health, child advocacy, and consumer and women's groups) for the

exchange of information about child labor. Provides a

forum and a unified voice for protecting working

minors and ending child labor exploitation, and also

develops informational and educational outreach to

the public and private sectors and promotes progressive initiatives and legislation.

Child Labor Coalition

c/o National Consumers League

1701 K Street, NW, Suite 1200

Washington, DC 20006

(202) 885-3323

http://www.essential.org/clc/

Children’s Safety Network

Consists of 4 resource centers, which provide technical assistance information and resources to help

integrate injury and violence prevention programs

into new and existing programs. Conducts research

and policy activities that improve injury and violence 

prevention.

Children’s Safety Network

Education Development Center, Inc

55 Chapel Street

Newton, MA 02158-1060

(617) 969-7100, ext. 2207

(617) 244-3436 (FAX)

http://www.edc.org/HHD/csn/

National Committee for Childhood

Agricultural Injury Prevention

Makes recommendations for new research, education, policy, and evaluation efforts. Recommendations

are based on injury statistics and other relevant developments in such fields as general childhood injury

prevention, adult agricultural injury prevention, occupational safety, and traffic and transportation.

National Committee for Childhood Agricultural

Injury Prevention

National Farm Medicine Center

1000 North Oak Avenue

Marshfield, WI 54449

(715) 387-9298

http://www.marshmed.org/nfmc/

Labor Unions

Many union organizations are active in issues relevant to teen workers. 

AFL-CIO

The AFL-CIO’s Human Resource Development

Institute, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of

Labor, has produced a brochure for young workers

about their rights under federal laws.

AFL-CIO

815 16th Street NW

Washington, DC 20006

(202) 637-5210

http://www.aflcio.org

American Federation of Teachers

(AFT)

Represents primary, secondary, and college teachers.

Some of the members have developed and will share

curricula and other materials about workplace and

labor-related issues. The union offers a selection of

child labor materials and a free child labor poster.

43
Appendix B—Agencies and Organizations

44

American Federation of Teachers

555 New Jersey Ave. NW

Washington, DC 20001

(202) 879-4400

http://www.aft.org

UNITE (Union of Needletrades,

Industrial, and Textile Employees)

Textile unions which recently merged to form

UNITE have been fighting U.S. sweatshop conditions

since the 1900s. UNITE is concerned with the use of

child labor both in this country and around the world

and urges support for legislation that would bar the

import of products from countries where child labor

is used.

UNITE

1710 Broadway

New York, NY 10019

(212) 265-7000

http://www.uniteunion.org

Other Useful Internet

Addresses 

Association of Farmworker Opportunity Programs

Has information on migrant and seasonal farmworkers in the United States, including children.

http://www.afop.org

Child Labor Coalition

http://www.essential.org/clc/

Free the Children

http://www.freethechildren.org

International Labor Organization

http://www.un.org/depts/ilowbo (Washington Office)

http://www.ilo.ch (Geneva Office)

Kids Campaign to Build A School for Iqbal

http://www.digitalrag.com/mirror/iqbal.html

School To Work

Includes resources needed to promote a safe and

healthful work environment for students and young

workers.

http://www.stw.ed.gov

United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF)

http://www.UNICEF.org

http://www.UNICEFUSA.org (UNICEF USA)

U.S. Congress

They have copies of Senate and House bills. You must

have the bill number.

http://www.access.gpo.gov/su-docs/

U.S. Department of Labor, International Labor

Affairs Bureau (ILAB)

http://www.dol.gov/dol/ilab/public/aboutilab/org/child.

htm

Resources Developed by

the Young Worker Projects 

Safe work/safe workers: a guide for teaching high

school students about occupational safety and health.

Massachusetts Department of Public Health

(Occupational Health Surveillance Program) and

Children’s Safety Network [1997]. 

This 3-hour curriculum is designed to raise awareness

among young people about workplace safety and health

and injury prevention and includes a 13-minute videotape entitled Teens: The Hazards We Face in the

Workplace. Contact the Education Development Center,

Sewickley, PA: 1-800-793-5076.

Teens, work, and safety: a curriculum for high school

students. University of California, Berkeley Labor

Occupational Health Program (LOHP) [1998]. 

This curriculum covers basic safety and health information that can be used in either an academic or vocational

setting. It is subject-specific and includes units in general safety, English, science and U.S. Government; it also

includes a 12-minute video. Contact the LOHP, Center

for Occupational and Environmental Health, University

of California, Berkeley, CA: 510-642-5507. 

Safe jobs for youth. UCLA Labor Occupational Safety

and Health (LOSH) Program [1998]. This curriculum includes lesson plans about laws, hazards, sexual harassment, and child labor. It is appropriate for students with limited English proficiency. It

includes a 12-minute videotape entitled Your Work:

Keepin’ It Safe (1997) that illustrates the rights and

responsibilities of young workers. The video covers 

safety and health hazards in fast food, construction, and

grocery stores, shows teens teaching teens, and can be

used alone or with the curricula. Contact UCLA LOSH,

Los Angeles, CA: 310-794-5964.
Appendix B—Agencies and Organizations

45

Other Curricula

American Lung Association [1993]. Future workers'

education project: units for auto body and repair,

health occupations, and welding. New York: American

Lung Association.

These are flexible and easy-to-use programs for teaching

students how to protect their health in the workplace.

Additional units concerning agriculture, carpentry, and

woodworking are in process. Contact the American Lung

Association, State of Washington. 1-800-732-9339. (The

cost is only $5.00 to cover shipping and handling).

http:\\www.alaw@alaw.org

California Federation of Teachers (CFT) has a 

12-page listing of additional resources, Bringing Labor

into the K-12 Curriculum.

To get a free copy, contact the CFT Labor in the Schools

Committee. The CFT is also developing Golden Lands,

Working Hands, a series of curricula about the history of

the California labor movement. (510) 832-8812.

California Occupational Health Program, Labor

Occupational Health Program, and American Lung

Association [1992]. Toxics on the job: Protecting your

health. A curriculum for teaching workers about 

toxics and tobacco. 

For vocational education instructors. Includes 4 units

with trade-specific pamphlets for welders, machinists,

auto repair workers, and construction workers. Also

includes a general handbook for students in other trades.

Contact the Labor Occupational Health Program (LOHP),

University of California at Berkeley. 510-642-5507.

Council for Citizenship Education [1992]. The working teenager: A teacher's guide for secondary education (2nd ed.). 

Includes 5 lessons on workers' rights, laws affecting

working teens, unemployment benefits, and workers'

compensation. Includes a quiz for the working teenager.

Contact the Council for Citizenship Education, Russell

Sage College, Troy, NY. 518-270-2363.

North American Guidelines for Children’s 

Agricultural Tasks 

Guidelines which match a child’s abilities with specific

agricultural tasks. Details are available on 62 different

farm jobs commonly performed by children and adolescents. To order a Professional Resource Manual or the

Parent Collection of Illustrated Guidelines, contact:

Gempler's, Inc. Ph: 1-800-382-8473 or at 

www.gemplers.com or visit the North American

Guidelines Internet site at www.nagcat.org.

Videos

Danger: Kids at Work 

Shows graphic footage of child labor violations in the

garment industry, agriculture, and fast food restaurants.

Emphasizes the need for better child labor law enforcement. 15 minutes. Contact the U.S. Department of

Labor, Employment Standards Administration, Wage and

Hour Division, San Francisco, CA. (415) 744-5590.

Teens: The Hazards We Face in the Workplace 

Features teens who introduce the basics of job safety and

health and injury prevention. Part of a high school curriculum (Safe Work/ Safe Workers). Produced by the

Massachusetts Department of Public Health and the

Children's' Safety Network. 13 minutes, $35.00 (includes

curriculum). Order from Education Development

Center, Sewickley, PA. 1-800-793-5076.

Transit Tech

Shows New York high school students working with

unions, teachers, and the transit authority to develop a

new career focus. 17 minutes, $89.00. Reduced price on

multiple orders. Order from the We Do the Work,

Oakland, CA. (510) 268-WORK. (A lesson plan is also

available.)

When Children Do the Work

Show conditions facing young workers around the world

who produce high-end products for U.S. consumers. 30

minutes, $89.00. Reduced price on multiple orders.

Order from We Do the Work, Oakland, CA. (510) 268-

WORK. (A lesson plan is also available.)

Zoned for Slavery

Shows how young people labor in factories along the

U.S./Mexican Border and in Latin America to produce

trendy clothing for U.S. companies. Youth discuss the

hazards they experience every day, from 15-hour work

shifts to mandatory birth control. 23 minutes. To order

or for more information, call National Labor Committee,

New York, NY. (212) 242-3002.

For a catalog that lists over 40 educational videos on

workplace issues (which include lesson plans), contact

the producers of the public television series "Working in

America" at We Do the Work, Oakland, CA. (510) 268-

WORK.
46

American Youth Work Center and National

Consumers League [1990]. Working America’s children to death: reported child labor violations.

Washington, DC: AYWC. 

This report analyzes the types of work and locations

where youth get hurt and discusses the needs for child

labor laws and government oversight. Contact the

American Youth Work Center, Washington, DC: (202)

785-0764.

Bequele A, Myers WE [1995]. First things first in

child labor: eliminating work detrimental to children.

Washington, DC: ILO, Washington Branch. An

overview of child labor throughout the world. 

This document includes information concerning intervention, legislative action, enforcement, and public education campaigns. Contact the International Labor

Organization (ILO), Washington Branch, Washington,

DC: (202) 653-7652.

Beyer D [1995]. Understanding and applying child

labor laws to today's school-to-work transition programs. Berkeley, CA: National Center for Research in

Vocational Education. 

This document explains the basics of child labor law at

the Federal and State levels and lists whom to contact at

each State Department of Labor concerning local laws.

Contact the National Center for Research in Vocational

Education (NCRVE), University of California at

Berkeley: 1-800-762-4093.

Bush D, Baker R [1994]. Young workers at risk: safety

and health education and the schools. Berkeley, CA:,

University of California, Labor Occupational Health

Program.

This report describes the Young Workers at Risk project,

which collected information and data about the risk of

injuries, illnesses, and fatalities among young workers.

The report also makes recommendations for Cal/OSHA

concerning the best way to educate California’s youth

about workplace health and safety issues. Contact the

Labor Occupational Health Program, University of

California at Berkeley: (510) 642-5507.

Child Labor Coalition [1992]. Model state child labor

law. Washington, DC: National Consumers League. 

This is a guide for States to use as they update and

strengthen child labor laws. Contact the National

Consumers League, Washington, DC: (202) 885-3323.

Children’s Safety Network Rural Injury Prevention

Resource Center [1994]. Prevention of injury in children of migrant and seasonal farm laborers: a resource

list. Marshfield, WI: Marshfield Clinic. 

This document lists materials and videos about agricultural safety, general childhood injury prevention, maternal and child health, and agricultural chemicals.

Availability in Spanish is indicated. Contact the

Marshfield Clinic, National Farm Medicine Center,

Marshfield, WI: (715) 389-4999.

Frase BS, Charner I, Rose KL, Hubbard S, Menzel S

[1994]. Minor laws of major importance: A guide to

Federal and State child labor laws. Washington, DC:

National Institute for Work and Learning, Academy

for Educational Development. 

This booklet was developed for the Office of Educational

Research and Improvement, U.S. Department of

Education, and contains synopses of the Federal child

labor laws and State laws applying to ages, hours, and

occupations. Contacts in each State for more information

about State labor regulations are listed. Contact the

National Institute for Work and Learning, Academy for

Educational Development, Washington, DC: (202) 884-

8000.

Freedman R [1994]. Kids at work: Lewis Hine and the

crusade against child labor. New York: Clarion Books. 

This historical document uses photographs by Lewis

Hine to portray child labor in the United States’ fields

and factories.

Institute of Medicine [1998]. Protecting youth at

work. Washington, DC: National Academy Press. 

This book provides a historical perspective about working children and adolescents in the United States and

explores the framework of child labor laws that govern

that work. It presents a wide range of data and analysis

about the scope of youth employment, factors that put

youth at risk, and the positive and negative effects of

employment.

Appendix C—Reports and Books
Appendix C—Reports and Books

47

NIOSH [1995]. NIOSH Alert: preventing deaths and

injuries of adolescent workers. Cincinnati, OH: U.S.

Department of Health and Human Services, Public

Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and

Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety

and Health, DHHS (NIOSH) Publication No. 95-125.

This document summarizes risks and hazard to adolescent workers and contains recommendations to employers, parents, educators, and adolescents.

Parker D [1998]. Stolen dreams: portraits of working

children. Minneapolis, MN: Lerner Publications

Company. 

This book contains photographs of children in a variety

of occupational settings in the United States, Mexico,

Thailand, Nepal, Bangledash, Turkey, Morocco,

Indonesia, and India. It discusses the children’s susceptibility to illnesses and injuries associated with occupational hazards.

U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of International

Labor Affairs [1994]. By the sweat and toil of children: the use of child labor in American imports. A

report of the Committee on Appropriations, United

States Congress. 

This document examines child labor in 19 developing

countries that import goods to the United States, including types of industries, economic conditions, and other

factors.

The U.S. General Accounting Office reports on child

labor issues include the following:

Occupational safety and health: assuring accuracy in

employer injury and illness records [December,

1998]. Report No. GAO/HRD 89-23. 

Sweatshops in New York City: a local example of a

nationwide problem [June 1989]. Report No.

GAO/HRD 89-101 BR.

Child labor violations and sweatshops in the U.S.

[March 1990]. Report No. GAO/T-HRD-90-18.

Child labor: increases in detected child labor violations throughout the United States [April 1990].

Report No. GAO/HRD 90-116. 

Child labor: characteristics of working children [June

1991]. Report No. GAO/ HRD-91-83BR.

Labor’s child labor enforcement efforts: developments

after Operation Child Watch [August 1991].

Report No. GAO/T-HRD-91-44. 

Child labor: work permit and death and injury reporting systems in selected States [March 1992].

Report No. GAO/HRD-92-44FS. 

Child labor: information on Federal enforcement

efforts [June 1992]. Report No. GAO/HRD-92-

127FS. 

Washington State Department of Labor and Industries

[1990]. Protecting children in the workplace.

Olympia, WA: Employment Standards, Apprenticeship

and Crime Victims Compensations Division,

Washington Department of Labor and Industries.

This brief report describes State investigations of 395

non-agricultural worker compensation claims by minors

over a one-year period. More than 44 percent of the

employers involved were in violation of child labor laws.

Washington State Department of Labor and Industries

[1992]. Child Labor Advisory Committee final report:

recommended changes to Washington State and nonagricultural child labor rules. Olympia, WA:

Employment Standards Program, Washington

Department of Labor and Industries. 

This report contains recommendations and rationale

regarding hours of work, related variance issues, and

prohibited duties for minors in Washington State.
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

Public Health Service

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health

4676 Columbia Parkway

Cincinnati, OH 45226-1998

OFFICIAL BUSINESS

Penalty for private use $300

To receive NIOSH documents or more information about

occupational safety and health topics, contact NIosh at

1-800-35-NIOSH (1-800-356-4674)

Fax number: (513) 533-8573

E-mail: pubstaft@cdc.gov

or visit the NIOSH Web site at www.cdc.gov /niosh

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FIRST CLASS

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For information about other occupational safety and health concerns,

Call NIOSH at

1-800-35-NIOSH (1-800-356-4674)

Fax number: (513) 533-8573

E-mail: pubstaft@cdc.gov

or visit the NIOSH Web site at www.cdc.gov/niosh

Delivering on the Nation’s promise: 

Safety and health at work for all people 

through research and prevention

DHHS (NIOSH) Publication No. 99-141

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Public Health Service • Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health