RESEARCH AREAS FOR IMPROVING UNDERSTANDING AND ACTION
TO ADDRESS YOUNG WORKER HEALTH AND SAFETY IN THE US AND CANADA:
I. Understanding factors associated with young workers experiences in the socioecologic context, including both precursors to work and outcomes of work:
I. A. Cultural context of work: (cultural values about adolescents working; cultural values
about acceptability of worker risk; cultural norms about worker safety; social context of
work among youth)
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What is the likely impact of demographic shifts on the jobs available to youth in next
15 yrs.
What factors enhance worker safety as a community value?
How do economic and employment trends influence job decisions of young
workers?
How does regional variability (i.e., local economies) impact young workers’
experiences?
I. B. Organizational /Institutional contexts of work: (organizational policies about teen
work; organizational training and supervision practices about teen work; workplace
“climate” and commitment to safety consciousness; relationships between employment and
school; safety environment / hazards in the workplace)
I.B.1. Workplace factors
 How do patterns of injury in family businesses compare to those in non-family
owned/run businesses?
 What are employer attitudes about young workers and how to they influence
workplace practices and safety?
 How do employer attitudes about young workers compare to public attitudes about
young people?
 How is work different for youth in businesses of differing sizes (e.g., differences in
supervision, training, or other safety practices or risks)?
 How do small business and schools help young workers achieve a healthy balance
between school and work?
 How do older workers transmit knowledge about work safety to young workers?
 What differentiates worksites with and without a positive safety culture?
 What organizational structures and processes are associated with the best
accountability of managers in achieving safety.
 What work conditions and behaviors (supervisors, co-workers, young worker) are
present in the settings in which youth work?
 What day-to-day experiences do young workers report about their work
environment as related to development, health and safety?
 What factors are used by businesses to select young workers as young supervisors?
 What risks are associated with specific characteristics of particular jobs among
young workers?
I.B.2. School factors
 What factors facilitate the successful movement of youth to jobs in school-to-work
transition programs?
 What organizational and/or individual factors are associated with young workers
successfully managing the double role or worker and student?
I.C. Interpersonal relationships between young workers and significant others
related to work: (parent relationships to working teens; parent relationships to the
employer; peer relationships at work; peer relationships among adolescent workers)
I.C.1. Manager/ supervisor relationships with young workers
 How do power relations, or perceptions of power, between young workers and
employers influence young worker safety?
I.C.2. Parent relationships with young workers
 What roles do parents play in their adolescents’ work decisions?
I.C.3. Parent relationships with employers
 What level of workplace injury risk and protection from risk is acceptable to
parents?
I.C.4. Young worker relationships with peers and peer workers
 How do social networks inside and outside of the young workers’ job impact safety?
 How do the social networks of young workers influence their safety and risk taking
at work?
I. D. Adolescent worker characteristics and behaviors: (adolescent development as it
affects working; influence of work on adolescent development; adolescent beliefs &
attitudes related to work; adolescent work-related behaviors; choice of employment;
behaviors at work)
I.D.1. Choosing work
 How does job choice among youth affect career choice and long term psychosocial
outcomes?
 What are the different patterns of work among young workers by type of setting,
socio-economic factors, or gender?
 What factors influence which children will begin work before their teenage years?
I.D.2. Developmental precursors and outcomes
 What are the developmental psychological benefits and risks of youth employment?
 What is the impact on youth development and wellbeing of having multiple jobs
over time (i.e., in succession)?
 How do early work experiences affect family formation as teenagers becomes adults
(e.g., does work opportunity reduce unwanted pregnancy)?
 What are the attributes of jobs that promote positive gains in adulthood?
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What are the long-term impacts of poor job quality, especially for those not
attending college?
How and how well do young worker perceive their competency to perform specific
types of jobs or job tasks?
Can we accurately assess the effect of work on self-efficacy?
What are the long-term impacts of work injury on work trajectory and psychological
outcomes?
How does work differentially effect the developmental outcomes of youth with
different characteristics (e.g., demographic differences, disability status, nonwestern cultures)?
I.D.3. Health precursors and outcomes:
 How, if at all, does work change the risks among adolescents with regard specific
health outcomes (e.g., sexual debut, unwanted pregnancy, drug abuse, alcohol use)?
 How do the same jobs differentially affect youth development and health?
 How does work effect development, safety and health differently from alternative
ways youth could spend their time (e.g, sports, recreation)
 Are young workers at greater risk than adults for specific conditions (i.e., back
injury, workplace violence, response to neurotoxins)?
 What is the role of sleep deprivation on injury risk?
 How do the occupational health and safety risks of immigrant workers differ from
those of non-immigrant workers?
 What factors are responsible for the increased injury risks among lower SES and
minorities?
 What is the lifetime disability among persons injured at work during adolescence?
 How does interpersonal conflict at work relate to injury risks?
 How do teen worker injuries vary by season and by work hours?
 What are the appropriate weight limits to avoid lifting-related injury?
 How capable are young workers at identifying workplace hazards/risks in their
work environment (or hypothetically)?
 What specific characteristics of young workers mitigate risks on the job?
 How do young workers make decisions in the face of perceived risks?
 How do adolescent learning disabilities affect workplace safety?
 What are the best methods for developing youth capacity to recognize and respond
to hazards?
 How do the risk perceptions associated with work injury differ between young and
older workers?
 What are risk factors are associated with workplace violence among young
workers?
II. INTERVENING TO IMPROVE WORK EXPERIENCES FOR YOUNG WORKERS:
II.A. Policy interventions
I.A.1. Public policy approaches
 To what extent do young workers use the workers’ compensation system?
 How effective are mandatory labor management safety committees in Canada?
 How can the model of graduated driver licensing be applied to protect young
workers?
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What is the impact and effectiveness of child labor law regulations (e.g., prohibited
work, work hour restrictions)?
How effective are work permits in reducing work-related risks for adolescents?
What would be the impact on teen work and work safety if the minimum ages for
specific hazardous work tasks were increased?
I.A.2. Organizational policy approaches
II.B. Programs
II.B.1. Employer / supervisor focused approaches
 What types of interventions could create incentives for employers/management to
create safer environments?
 What are the best practices in making work safer for adolescents in specific
settings?
 What selection and training processes are most effective in preparing young
supervisors to be successful?
 What constitutes effective and competent supervision of young workers?
II.B.2. Young worker focused approaches
 What are the optimal ways to orient young workers to their jobs (e.g., through
training)?
 What is the effectiveness of initiatives to integrate occupational safety and health
education into school-based curricula?
 How can young workers best be trained to exercise their rights as workers?
 How dictatorial/cooperative does a workplace need to be to achieve safety?
 Are there examples of effective mentoring of young workers that can be replicated
across work settings?
 What is the effect of formal apprenticeship programs in improving outcomes
(educational, health and safety) for young workers who participate?
 How effective would it be to create positive reward structures for young workers for
safety adherence?
 What kinds of experiences or training in school would help improve workplace
safety?
II.B.3. Approaches engaging other sectors (e.g., health care providers, schools)
 How can health care providers engage effectively with adolescent patients on
worker safety issues?
II.C. Translational research and dissemination
 How can the best evidence about prevention best be disseminated and applied in
the various types of places where adolescents are employed.
II.D. Evaluating and/or improving surveillance activities
 How can we improve surveillance of worker injuries among all working youth?
 What changes are needed to improve record keeping to enhance surveillance of
young worker injury?