A new alliance to help students in alternative high schools in Massachusetts reduce and prevent their exposure to on-the-job hazards has been formed by OSHA and the Massachusetts AFL-CIO, along with the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (ESE) and the Division of Occupational Safety and the Department of Industrial Accidents of the Massachusetts Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development.

The alliance partners will work together to provide the students with OSHA's 10-hour construction and general industry outreach courses and other training, develop workplace safety and health curricula for teens, and otherwise address teen workplace safety issues.

"These students will be able to carry this vital information with them on whatever career paths they choose to follow," said Marthe Kent, OSHA's New England regional administrator. "Their employers will also benefit, since a motivated and safety-conscious workforce can lead to reduced injuries and illnesses and their associated human and financial costs, enhance productivity and increase employee morale."