Young workers and safety: A critical review and future research agenda

• Published in: Journal of safety research 2022-12, Vol.83, p.79-95
• Main Authors: Turner, Nick, Deng, Connie, Granger, Steve, Wingate, Timothy G., Shafqat, Rabeel, Dueck, Paul M.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Gender; Injuries; Review; Safety; Young workers
• ISSN: 0022-4375; 1879-1247
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jsr.2022.08.006

•This paper critically reviews the extant research on young worker safety.•We reconcile the inconsistent definitions used in young worker safety research.•Safety campaigns and safety training should consider interactions among young workers’ age, gender, minority status, and job characteristics. Introduction: Research on young worker safety often relies on inconsistent definitions of young workers and poorly delineated indicators of occupational safety. This review aims to reconcile these fundamental issues by critically integrating research across disciplines and providing clear directions for future research on young worker safety. Method: We critically review the extant research on young worker safety. Results: We first reconcile the inconsistent definitions of young workers and specify the indicators of occupational safety used in young worker safety research. We next describe the prevalence of workplace injuries and population-level predictors of these injuries among young workers and then outline other factors that increase young workers’ susceptibility to workplace injuries. Finally, we discuss the convergence of many of these issues on family farms—a context commonly studied in young worker safety research. Conclusions: Clearer definitions of young workers and indicators of occupational safety can improve the interpretation and comparability of extant research findings. Furthermore, the prevalence of workplace injuries and population-level predictors of injury among young workers are subject to the interactions among age, gender, minority status, and job characteristics. Other factors that increase young workers’ susceptibility to injury include young workers’ responses to hazardous work, individual differences stemming from young workers’ biological and psychological development, managerial attitudes about young workers, and the limited safety training young workers are thus provided, the types of work that young workers typically perform, and the range of social influences on young workers. Practical Applications: Safety campaigns and safety training should consider interactions among young workers’ age, gender, minority status, and job characteristics, rather than considering these features independently.