The San Diego Workforce Partnership funds job training programs.  Present contracts include MANPOWER, University of California, San Diego and ARC of San Diego.  We’re concerned about various workforce development issues, from occupational safety and diversity challenges to employment recruiting and higher education.  Check out this article from Sandy Bauler about keeping employees safe at work! – Rebecca Smith, Vice President, San Diego Workforce Partnership

Employment offers many benefits to young workers.  However, it also carries a significant risk.  This includes not only on the job, but traveling to and from the job or school.   These accidents not only affect the families emotionally, but also economically.  It causes an economic impact on the community while driving up risk management costs and turnover rates for employers.

According to the Governors Highway Traffic Safety Association, driving is the number one killer of teens in America.  It is estimated that each year four million new teen drivers receive a driver’s license.  Of this group 50 percent will be involved in a vehicle accident before they turn 20.   In San Diego County we have recently experienced our own tragedies that support these statistics.

When on the job, teens are currently injured at a higher rate than their adult counterparts.  Every year, approximately 55,000 teens are injured on the job seriously enough to seek emergency department treatment.

To be proactive and assist employers and parents in changing these statistics a panel of employers and the San Diego Workforce Partnership created the Work Site Safety Certificate.  The certificate covers topics including on the job safety, labor laws, recognizing work place hazards and addressing safety.

In addition, Ford Motor Company Fund, the Governors Highway Safety Association, and a panel of safety experts created Ford Driving Skills for Life, a web based program with free driver and passenger safety information.   The Driving Skills for Life web site educates young drivers and passengers on how to prevent and survive an accident from a professional’s stand point.  Other key topics are addressed such as hazard recognition, vehicle handling, and responsibility.

In San Diego County – free-of-charge Work Site Safety workshops are available to schools, community-based organizations and employers.   In 2009, more than 11 schools participated, 3,500 students attended the workshops and more than 1,000 students obtained the Work Site Safety Certificate.

Employers are embracing this certificate because it provides them with potential hires who have taken the time to understand driving responsibility and injury prevention.

Parents find it refreshing that professionals take the time to educate their teens on safety.  Parents feel it provides validation to the current discussions they are having in their own homes.

Teens enjoy the interactive format while understanding how safety and responsibility affects their future economic opportunities.

Currently the Sweetwater Union High School District’s Regional Occupational Program, the City of Chula Vista Parks & Recreation, the Price Scholarship Program, the Turning the Hearts Center, and Youth Build have all embraced the Work Site Safety Certificate.  Their interest is to prepare youth to have a safe and healthy future, while offering a certificate that employer can value in a job seeker.

Chula Vista Mayor Cheryl Cox recently promoted the Work Site Safety class to all young drivers, parents and workers in her city.  And because Mayor Cox is a strong advocate for the well being of her community, the 3rd week in October is now National Teen Safe Driving week.

Promoting the health and safety of our teens requires being proactive, But the outcomes can benefit the entire community. For more information contact Sandy Bauler 818.979.8188 or visit the reference websites below.

www.drivingskillsforlife.com

www.cdc.gov/niosh/talkingsafety

http://youngworkers.org/nation/smallbusiness-reourses.html

Read more stories like this at: San Diego at Work. For more information on San Diego Workforce Partnership visit www.sandiegoatwork.com.

Tags: ford driving skills for life, governors highway safety association, rebecca smith, San Diego at Work Blog, San Diego Workforce Partnership, sandy bauler, SDNN

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