The holidays are a time when many companies hire part time workers. Many of these workers are students who are young and inexperienced. In short, they’re especially vulnerable to injury and illness. But instead of going out of their way to protect their part-time workers, companies tend to overlook them.

Company Liable for Not Protecting Part-Time Worker

Giving short shrift to the safety needs of your part-time workers can lead not just to injuries but liability. A recent case from my home province of Alberta drives home this point.

A high school student had a part time job at a lumber mill on the clean up crew. He worked once a week on the Friday night graveyard shift cleaning up debris like wood chips and sawdust. During one shift, he opened a floor hatch, got distracted and fell four metres to the basement floor below, breaking his leg and sustaining other injuries. He wasn’t wearing mandatory fall protection and there were no barriers around the hatch. The lumber mill was convicted of two safety violations.

The court noted that the lumber mill was, in general, a responsible and careful employer that had a comprehensive OHS program for its full-time workers. But it took short cuts with the part-time crew. Instead of a regular supervisor, the crew was overseen by a “working supervisor” who had cleaning duties in addition to his supervisory ones. Since they worked at night, senior management didn’t conduct walkthroughs or audits. Their training was spotty consisting of a short orientation along with some safety materials that they were supposed to read.

The court concluded that the training didn’t leave “a significant lasting impression on the high school students.” So the court rejected the mill’s defenses and found it liable for the two safety infractions.

Take Part-Time Workers Seriously

What happened to that student in Alberta and the mill that hired him is likely to happen anywhere in North America. It’s easy to overlook the safety needs of part-time workers especially if they work night shifts and unusual hours.

For example, at a grocery store where I was conducting a health and safety audit, I found that all of the full-time workers stocking shelves were wearing steel toed boots; but none of the part-timers had such foot protection. I asked around and it became apparent that the full-timers received an allowance to buy protective boots and the part-timers didn’t.

I explained to management that the fact that the bootless worked part-time didn’t make their feet any less vulnerable. As long as they were doing the same job, they needed the same protection as the full-timers, even if they were doing it on a part-time basis.

Conclusion

The law doesn’t distinguish between part- and full-timers. Employers must ensure that every worker has the safety training, supervision, instruction and equipment necessary to do his or her job safely. Ignoring the safety needs of the part-time worker only increases the likelihood of accidents and your company’s liability risks.

So my holiday message to you all: Protect your part time workers. And one more thing: Have a Merry Christmas and a happy, prosperous and safe New Year.

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