Erik Soper, from Shelton, a student at the New Market Skills Center in Tumwater, took first place in a student safety and health video contest sponsored by the Department of Labor & Industries (L&I). Soper’s 60-second video, “The Teen Worker’s Survival Guide,” used computer generated graphics to highlight the hazards, responsibilities, and rights that teen workers have in the workplace. The first-place winner received a $500 gift card.

A second-place $300 gift card was awarded to Megan Bowlen, from Olympia, also from the New Market Skills Center, for her “Twitter Safety” video.  Her entry used social media in both humorous and serious ways to bring attention to workplace safety for young workers.

The video contest is part of L&I’s Injured Young Worker Speakers Program, a young worker safety campaign that reached over 3,000 students and young workers across Washington State this spring with important messages about workplace safety.

The video contest was one element of L&I’s program to raise workplace-safety awareness among young people by using a “peer-to-peer” approach in which young workers who have been seriously injured on the job talk to students and other young workers about their life-changing experiences.  Survey results have indicated that 70 percent of the students said their awareness of workplace safety significantly increased after listening to the presentations.