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Stress Safety With Kids On “Take Your Kids to Work” Day
A weary safety coordinator is asking for help from the SafetyXChange Forum. I don't know if she's the same member who posted this time last year, but I know I've seen this plea before. And I'm guessing there are several other safety supervisors out there who need assistance right now, too. What's the annual dilemma? What to do for Take Your Kids to Work Day.
Stress Safety With Kids
One day a year, workplace doors open across North America to give young people a glimpse of future jobs. In the US, Take Your Kids to Work Day is on the fourth Thursday in April. In Canada, it's in November. And on both sides of the border, it's an annual safety challenge for supervisors.
The day typically includes one-on-one job shadowing, plant visits and hands-on non-hazardous work experience. Some tours involve young school children and some involve teens in vocational training. Other companies allow the employees to bring their children to the office for the day.
If you find yourself involved in planning for a safe and productive visit to your plant or office, here are a few pointers:
Safety First
No matter what else is on the agenda, safety must be the first consideration. How can you ensure the safety of your young visitors? Make safety the theme of the entire tour. Here's a suggested checklist for planning the day:
* Meet with the school sponsors well in advance of the event to talk about expectations. They need to know about your safety and health policies and the requirements for close supervision.
* Do a safety inspection of your workplace before the event, with an eye to hazards for youth.
* Brief your employees on plans for the day. Some may be dealing directly with the students, but all should be watching out for their safety.
* Start the day by giving your guests a thorough safety and health orientation. Many hazards of the industrial workplace will be unfamiliar to your young visitors, so take nothing for granted.
* Give your visitors a "stay in the yellow lines" tour. Explain where they are permitted to go and where they are not. Make sure they know they are not to operate equipment or vehicles.
* Supply the visitors with identification badges and any required personal protective gear.
* Maintain close supervision throughout the visit with an appropriate ratio of supervisor-to-visitor for the hazardous nature of your workplace.
* Know where visitors are at all times so they can be evacuated in case of an emergency.
* If a young visitor does not follow the rules, have him or her escorted out of the workplace.
* Report to the sponsoring group after the visit and plan improvements for next year.
Make safety a big part of the tour itself. Take the opportunity to point out machine guards, lockout devices, first aid stations and overhead sprinklers. Allow the students to try on Personal Protective Equipment such as fall arrest harnesses and respirators, as well as the more common hardhats and safety glasses. Talk about off-the-job PPE such as helmets and goggles for sports - and the automobile seatbelt.
Conclusion
It's not just the kids who will need safety reminders today. Parents and grandparents may not be as attentive as usual either. When briefing employees on your plans for the day, remind them to pay extra attention to their own safety, too. Do not allow the presence of visitors to distract your employees. On Take Your Kids to Work Day, safety is the name of the game.
TAKE YOUR KIDS TO WORK DAY
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Activities to Keep Them Engaged
When planning for Take Your Kids to Work Day, it's important to keep the day well structured. Tours, product demonstrations, lunch with parents and hands-on activities are always a good idea.
To help you select activities for the day, consider:
- The type of company you are;
- The age group you're dealing with;
- Your message. Will it be the value of education? The value of teamwork? The value of working safely?
Here are a few suggestions for hands-on activities:
- Break the ice by having the children introduce their parents and explaining what their parents do. If age-appropriate, have the kids draw pictures of what they think their parents do at work all day.
- Have children participate in hands-on activities related to the development, marketing and distribution of a typical product. Have them work in teams, take orders for your product, create a prototype and then adapt it to meet specific orders. It's a creative, hands-on activity that demonstrates that teamwork is a vital part of any future career choice.
- Teach kids not only what their parents do to earn money, but how to manage that money. Give them a "salary" to spend as their parents would and have them pay taxes, buy a house, a car, clothes, food, etc.
- If job shadowing is a possibility, have the kids sign up to spend time in departments that interest them.
- Young children can cut out magazine pictures to make a "collage" of what they hope their future will be (nice house, cars, pets, kids, spouse, etc.).
- Bring in the HR department. Discuss the importance of education and preparation for a career in various fields related to your industry. Then have the children conduct mock job interviews.
- Let the children interview some workers, with questions such as: What do you do? What is your favorite part of your job? What is your least favorite?
- Have your young visitors put together your health and safety bulletin boards for the next month. You give them a theme, a stack of magazines and explain what you're looking for. Then let them find it. They can work individually or in groups. You can even make it a contest.
Be sure to take a lot of photos, schedule several breaks and include some time for the kids to spend with their parents.
Above all, remember that this is a learning experience. To be successful, you must commit yourself to what the day is really all about: teaching the next generation how to be good - and safe - workers.
Editor's Note: Do you have any suggestions to add to this list of activities? If so, please send them to catherinej@bongarde.com and let us know if we can use your name/company name.
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