Health and Safety of Young People at Work

By Dr. Richard Griffiths, PhD, MSc, MEd, Cert Ed, Grad R.S.C, CMIOSH, MIIRSM, AIEMA, FRSH, FRIPH

Young people are considered especially vulnerable to health and safety risks in the workplace. As a result of this, there are specific health and safety laws in place to protect them against such risks.

Let’s get a few definitions straight to start with. A young person is anyone under eighteen years of age; the term includes children (which is anyone who has not yet reached the minimum school leaving age (MSLA), currently 16 years of age). A young worker is, simply a young person who is in employment. It is now quite common for children in their final two years of compulsory education (years 10 – 11, that is 14-16 years of age) to go on work experience placements. In general, children under 13 are not allowed to work (though there are exceptions). Children aged 13-16 are only allowed to do light work, with minimal risk.

The Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 (HSWA) is in place to protect all workers from potential risks. The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 (MHSWR) further state that an employer should also specifically assess the potential risks facing young people. This risk assessment should consider their physical and mental strengths and weaknesses in reference to the work they will be expected to do.

Young people usually lack experience, both in work and life. As a result they are vulnerable to risks that more experienced staff are not. They may lack knowledge of the types of risks that face them in a particular role, and their age also restricts their experience of common risks. For example; they may not have the strength or skill to carry heavy objects safely.

It is the responsibility of employers to carry out a risk assessment before employing a young person, and there are several factors to consider. Not only are the young people likely to lack experience of potential risks, they are also likely to have less physical and mental capability than an older employee. The assessments should take into account physical and mental suitability to the type of work expected of them. They should also consider exposure to hazardous substances, noise and vibration, extremes of temperature, radiation, etc. and the potential effects of these on the individuals. After these assessments are carried out the employer is expected to introduce new measures to remove the risks identified, where possible, or to protect against them. The assessments should be sufficiently thorough to avoid repeating the process for each new employee. Changes made to protect young people should be universal and all types of risk to younger workers should be considered.

In most cases there will be relatively few additional adjustments needed to accommodate young people, as the provisions in place in common health and safety law are quite comprehensive.

One thing to bear in mind is that young people will need increased supervision when they start. As should be the case for any new employee, they should also be inducted on any significant risks to their health and safety arising from the work and the prevention measures and procedures in place to protect against these potential dangers.

The requirements for young workers aged above the MSLA are less stringent than for children. For example, where a significant risk remains, a young person over the MSLA is still allowed to do the work provided it is necessary for their training, they are supervised by an appropriately trained person and the risk is reduced to the lowest level reasonably practicable. However, where, after implementing risk controls, a significant risk still remains, you could not employ a child.

Written permission from a parent or guardian is necessary before a child can begin a temporary work experience placement, and the companies involved must also be granted a permit by their local authority. The 1996 Education Act allows children in Years 10 and 11 to take on the temporary status of a Young Person in employment law. Without this provision there would be several activities that would be prohibited by Child Employment Legislation. Young people on work experience placements are regarded as employees according to health and safety law, and as a result they are entitled to the same health, safety and welfare protection afforded to other employees and the same insurance.

Even in cases where a permit is granted by a local authority, there are still several restrictions on employing a person below MSLA. Employment in various sectors is prohibited, for example in factories and on construction sites where the risk levels are particularly high, unless it is part of an organized work experience exercise, and even in this case the work permitted is limited and must be carefully supervised. Local authorities can also create and enforce restrictions, such as permitted work types and maximum working hours, on children under the MSLA.

Risk assessments are not the only consideration for a potential employer of young people (or indeed for any potential employees). There are other limitations and restrictions in place for their protection. Local authorities enforce maximum working hours and time restrictions as laid out in the Working Time Regulations 1999 (as amended). There are rules which set out a minimum break each day and a minimum amount of time off each week for all employees. Advice on these restrictions is available to young people from the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS).

There is a great deal of care taken to ensure young people are protected in the work place, but the result of this is a series of complicated laws and regulations which are sometimes difficult to adhere to. The emphasis is on the employer to ensure they do not put employees at risk.

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