ASSE members, along with the Canadian Society of Safety Engineering (CSSE), will be promoting safety during the annual NAOSH week May 4-10. Increasing the workplace safety knowledge of young workers not much older than Noah is one of the focuses of NAOSH.
"Nearly 200,000 young workers in the United States are injured each year in occupational settings and approximately 70 teens under the age of 18 years are fatally injured while at work," says ASSE President Mark D. Hansen, P.E., CSP. "Educating young workers and children as well as adults on the ins and outs of workplace safety and health and arming them with the knowledge they need to be able to discern between a safe and unsafe workplace will help in preventing future fatalities and injuries in the workplace."
For NAOSH week ASSE will have available a free "New Workers' Guide to Workplace Safety" brochure, posters, and fact sheets providing valuable information for new workers and employers on workplace safety, health and the environment.
As part of the NAOSH celebration and in an effort to educate young children on just what workplace safety means, ASSE held its first-ever "Safety on the Job" poster contest for ASSE members' children, grandchildren, nieces and nephews for those aged five through 12. Winners selected from four age groups will receive a $1,000 savings bond and the runners-up will receive gift certificates. The winners, those who best illustrate safety on the job, will be announced in later this month.
"We believe this poster contest helps ASSE members educate their children on how valuable their work is to the general public and to their own safety," Hansen continued. "Today, millions of people go to and return home from work safely every day due, in part, to the efforts of many unsung heroes the occupational safety, health and environmental professionals who work day in and day out identifying hazards and implementing safety advances in all industries and at all workplaces, thereby reducing workplace fatalities and injuries."
NAOSH week is a tool ASSE, CSSE and its members use to increase the understanding of the positive benefits of investing in occupational safety, health and environmental programs among employers, employees and the public.
"We live in a global society where safety knows no borders," Hansen said. "Today, society and the marketplace are demanding safer places in which to work and to live resulting in safer products and safer workplaces."
During NAOSH week many of ASSE's 30,000 members will disseminate key safety information and provide their expertise and insight on the value of workplace safety and health.
For information on how to participate in NAOSH week check ASSE's NAOSH web page by going to www.asse.org, then clicking on "ASSE news" and the NAOSH prompt in the middle of the page.
Founded in 1911, the Des Plaines, Ill.-based ASSE has 30,000 safety professional members located throughout the U.S. and abroad who manage, supervise and consult on safety, health and environmental issues in industry, government, labor and education. The Canadian Society of Safety Engineering (CSSE) is Canada's largest and most established professional organization for health and safety practitioners, with over 1,850 members and 33 chapters.