A safety presentation was held at the Estevan Comprehensive School (ECS) on Sept. 17. The presentation was aimed at teaching youths about their rights and responsibilities when it comes to safety in a work environment.
According to school vice-principal Brian Wright, attendance numbers at the event were slightly lower than what were hoped for, but were still quite good, and the students who participated left the event with important information.
“The youth safety presentation came to us through the school division. They were approached and had seen similar presentations in the past, and approached us wondering if we would host the event at the school,” said Wright.
“It was a 90-minute presentation in the morning, and then there were some booths set up over the lunch hour.”
The presenters who were in attendance at the event were speaking towards youth safety in the workplace, predominately in the energy sector, as that is where the majority of the presenters are from, but there was also a focus on the hospitality field, according to Wright.
“We wanted to teach the kids that they have not only the right, but the responsibility in a workplace to say that they won’t do something that they feel is unsafe,” said Wright.
“We want them to know that if they are ever in a position that they do not feel comfortable in, or they see someone else doing something dangerous, that they have an obligation to do something about it because it really could save their, or someone else’s lives.”
According to Wright, the students reacted well to the event, with roughly a few hundred youths attending the event and the booths.
“We don’t have any plans to host the event again next year,” said Wright.
“The reasoning behind that is that this group of students have all had access to the information, and they’ve all seen and heard about safety in the workplace. So a few years from now when we have a new group of students we will probably look at doing this again.”
One of the groups present at the event was Energy Safety Canada, with Arnold Betzema representing the organization.
“We’re here to take part in the Youth Safety Education Day, which was actually on Sept. 10, but it’s closer to a two-week timespan so we can get around the province and reach out to the youth in a variety of areas and ensure safety is being taught at a young age,” said Betzema.
“We like to look at the three pillars of safety. The kids have the right to know what the hazards are on the jobsite, the right to refuse any unsafe work and the right to participate in safety, so things like safety committees at work. Everyone in Saskatchewan at any job has those key rights, and we just want to make sure these kids know that.”
The presentations involved included virtual reality headsets, which showed an active work environment, a safety glasses demonstration, and several other booths.
“We just want to say thank you very much to Energy Safety Canada for helping to organize this event, and to help bring the message of safety to our students,” said Wright.
