According to OSHA, 335 young workers were killed on the job in 2013.

If that isn’t alarming enough, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that a U.S. teen gets hurt on the job every 9 minutes.

In 1999, 18-year-old David Ellis was killed on his second day on the job at a bakery. In honor of his son David, Rob Ellis founded the Our Youth at Work foundation, now known as MySafeWork, to protect other young workers from becoming hurt or killed on the job.

SafeStart is a proud sponsor of MySafeWork, supporting its initiative to educate youth on personal safety rights. Young workers need to understand safety policies and procedures and to be aware of hazards. They also need to know their right to speak up if a situation makes them uncomfortable and it’s important for them to build up the courage to ask questions when they aren’t sure of something.

In addition to awareness and courage, one of the best ways to keep young workers safe is to provide proper training and education which is why SafeStart is working with schools to teach students personal safety skills and habits before they go to work.