World record attempt bringing attention to young worker safety.

Richmond, B.C. (August 3, 2010) — On August 27, beginning at 6:00 p.m., injured worker and Paralympic medallist Josh Dueck begins a world record attempt to do the “most High Fives by any individual in 24 hours.” The record attempt will take place at Empire Field and the Pacific National Exhibition. Dueck’s record attempt is part of WorkSafeBC’s Raise Your Hand campaign — an annual initiative to increase young workers’ understanding of their safety rights and how to stay safe at work.

“This is more than a record attempt,” says Dueck, who will be raising his hand to High Five people attending the BC Lions game on August 27 and at the PNE until 5:59 p.m. on August 28. “It’s about making workplaces safer for everyone, but especially young workers. Life is full of choices. So, raise your hand and know your rights.” Since becoming paralyzed from the waist down in a workplace accident at the age of 23, Dueck has become a world champion para-alpine skier. He has won national and international competitions and recently won a silver medal at the 2010 Paralympic Winter Games. As a member of the WorkSafeBC Paralympic Speaker program, Dueck has shared his experiences with youth across B.C. for the past several years.

“Josh makes an incredibly strong and lasting impact on his audiences who learn of the high price he paid for taking risks as a young worker; and of how a renewed focus on his abilities led to his achievements in sport and to new challenges like this world record attempt,” says Scott McCloy, WorkSafeBC director of communications.

“We encourage everyone to come out to the PNE on August 27 and 28 to help us break this world record. Come out and raise a hand for Josh and help raise awareness of young worker safety.” Since 2007, the Raise Your Hand campaign has been raising awareness about workplace safety to the province’s 350,000 young workers. In addition to RaiseYourHand.com and other social media tools, street teams travel to youth-oriented events, high schools, and universities around the province to spread the safety message. Consider these young worker stats:

• Workers between the ages of 15 and 24 are classified as young workers.
• Young males comprise over 70 percent of all young worker injuries.
• More than half of all young worker injuries happen within the first six months of being on the job.
• Sectors with the highest time-loss injuries for young workers are general construction; accommodation, food and leisure service; and retail.
• Young workers experience the greatest number of time-loss claims due to being struck by objects, over exertion, and falls.

The good news is that the injury rate for young workers today is 30 percent lower than it was 10 years ago, but there is still much that employers, co-workers, parents, teachers, and young workers themselves can do to make sure everyone gets home safely at the end of the each work day.

WorkSafeBC is an independent provincial statutory agency governed by a board of directors that serves about 2.3 million workers and more than 200,000 employers. WorkSafeBC was born from the historic compromise between B.C.’s workers and employers in 1917 where workers gave up the right to sue their employers and fellow workers for injuries on the job in return for a no-fault insurance program fully paid for by employers. WorkSafeBC is committed to safe and healthy workplaces and to providing return-to-work rehabilitation and legislated compensation benefits.

For more information, contact:
Heather Young
Manager, Public Affairs, WorkSafeBC
604 214-5441 (office) or 604 818-0020 (cell)

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