2003 Young Worker Awareness Campaign Every young worker has the right to a safe workplace. We all share the responsibility of keeping workplaces safe. Last year in Ontario, over 14,000 young workers were injured on the job – these injuries could have been prevented. If you're under 25 and you’re working - part-time or full-time – you need to learn how to work safely and be aware of workplace hazards. Don’t let yourself become another statistic – learn about your workplace health and safety rights. You have the right to: Know about workplace hazards Participate in workplace health and safety Refuse unsafe work James Wright was injured at 18. See the posters I miss him every day I don’t remember hitting the ground Radio Ads Read a transcript of James Wright’s radio ad. Read a transcript of Michael Hickman’s radio ad. No job is worth dying for. Just ask James Wright, Sarah Heyink and Michael Hickman, our 2003 Young Worker Safety Ambassadors. James Wright Seven years ago, when he was eighteen, James Wright had a great opportunity to earn high school credits while working as an apprentice tinsmith. Two weeks into the job, he fell off a ladder and plunged 50 feet. James is now paralyzed from the waist down and will be in a wheelchair for the rest of his life. James never received any proper safety training. If he had, he might not have fallen off that ladder. Sarah Heyink When she was 19, Sarah Heyink was electrocuted while working for a heavy construction company. 12,000 volts and 800 amps went through her body, leaving no outward wounds, but her body was burnt from the inside out. Sarah was lucky, she lived. Six years later she still thinks about it everyday. When you're as young as Sarah, you shouldn't have to worry about dying, especially from a workplace injury that could have been prevented. Michael Hickman Michael Hickman remembers waiting for a call from his brother, Tim. The next day was Tim's twenty-first birthday and they were going out to celebrate. Instead, Michael got a call from the hospital. An ice-resurfacing machine Tim was using at the arena where he worked had exploded - he died ten days later. Michael still misses his brother and he feels cheated of all the time they were supposed to spend together. Tim should not have died so young, especially in an accident that should have been prevented.