Young workers plan 2019-20
This young workers plan 2019-20 is part of SafeWork NSW's At risk workers' strategy 2018-2022.
Introduction
- On average, approximately 17 percent of NSW workers are defined as young (aged up to 25 years old).
- In 2017, there were 61 young worker fatalities in NSW and in the financial year 2017–18 there were 13,536 temporary, 58 permanent partial and 5 permanent disability claims made by young workers2.
- Source: Safe Work Australia’s Traumatic Injury Fatalities data set, 2017.
- Source: State Insurance Regulatory Authority Workers Compensation Claims data set, 2015–16- 2017-18.
What we know
Workers compensation claims statistics for 2015/16-2017/18 combined showed that:
- The majority (42 percent) of young workers are employed in two industries: Retail Trade (21 percent) and Accommodation and Food Services (21 percent).
- 69 percent of young worker claimants identified as male.
- Young males have a higher incidence rate (31 claims per 1,000 workers) compared to older workers (27 claims per 1,000 workers).
- Construction (17 percent), Accommodation and Food Services (15 percent), Manufacturing (16 percent) and Retail (11 percent) had the highest percentages of claims (in total 59 percent) compared to all industries, indicating that these are the highest risk industries for young workers.
- Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing (72.7 claims per 1,000 workers) and Manufacturing (71.2 claims per 1,000 workers) had the highest incident rates of any other industry for young workers.
Who we are working with
As at October 2019, we continue to work with leaders in the field of young workers from industry and education. Through forums, and face-to-face engagement and surveys with young people, we continue to find that they face many work health and safety challenges and issues. These include: inadequate induction, supervision and training; limited understanding of rights and obligations around health and safety; no or limited experience at the workplace; high risk of mental health issues; not recognising bullying behaviours; and being reluctant to raise concerns about safety.
We will continue to address these challenges on a prioritised basis until 2022.
What are the issues (risk areas)
| At Risk group | Highest risk factor | 2nd factor | 3rd factor | 4th factor | 5th factor | 6th factor |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Young workers | Inadequate supervision and training | Limited understanding of work health and safety rights and worker obligations | Inexperience in the job and/or at the individual workplace | High incidence of mental health issues | Being bullied or facing peer pressure | Reluctance to speak up and 'make waves' due to multiple factors |
How we are addressing the issues
This is the second year of a six year strategy that will be implemented in partnership with industry and key stakeholders. For 2019-20 we continue to promote existing and develop further information, resources and research to better support young workers and those that employ them in NSW:
| Product development | Stakeholder engagement and collaboration | Research | Information promotion |
|---|---|---|---|
| Interactive poster and kit Retail | Stakeholder forum | Explore opportunities to improve SafeWork NSW data | Attend state-wide events |
| SpeakUp app | Collaborate with key stakeholders and young people | Explore the need for translation of E-toolkit | Social media posts |
| Case study E-toolkit | Support other RoadMap programs/projects | Gaps in Young Workers information | SafeWork Wrap |
| Stakeholder channels promotion |
What success looks like by 2022
- Young workers and their employers have an increased knowledge of their work health and safety rights and obligations at work.
- Employers have an increased understanding of the specific issues facing young workers and how to manage those risk factors in the workplace.
- Young workers and their employers know where to access work health and safety information.
- Industry, community and SafeWork have a better understanding of the changing work environment and the impact on young workers and their employers.
Catalogue No. SW09103