SafeYouth@Work Congress

Young people from Indonesia, with the support of the International Labour Organization (ILO) made significant contributions to the 21st World Congress on Safety and Health at Work (XXI WCSH) that took place in Singapore in September 2017.

During the SafeYouth@Work Congress, the young Indonesians participated in international design thinking teams to develop their own prototype solutions to Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) challenges facing youth in the world of work. Ms. Dini Anggun Lestari, a young worker from Semarang, Indonesia participated in a team with other youth champions from Singapore, Cambodia and Switzerland to develop a prototype solution called “Learning Journey”.

The proposed service prototype would support schools and universities to find suitable employers to partner with for safety awareness site-visits and would provide a platform for advice and material for educators to support the organization of such site-visits.

“I am very proud to have been selected as one of the Youth Champions for OSH to participate in the XXI WCSH. During the XXI WCSH, I worked together with other youth from many different countries to brainstorm on how we can bring OSH challenges for young people to popular attention, including raising awareness of youth themselves. I think it was very appropriate that ILO involved youth directly in the XXI WCSH, because youth are agents of change”, said Ms. Lestari.

Mr. Deni Dwi Yuniko, from Bekasi, Indonesia who is employed as a safety officer at PT SMC, a garment factory that participates in ILO’s Better Work programme, worked with a team of youth champions for OSH from Canada, Australia, the Philippines, Singapore and Cambodia to develop their own prototype solution to OSH challenges entitled “Worker’s Eye”.

This prototype App would enable workers to report OSH related issues in their work environment and would be directly linked to the local labor inspectorate and would also provide data on OSH violations per company, and allow for data visualization at the sectoral, regional, and national level, with the aim of lowering barriers and stimulating prompt reporting and subsequent corrective action that would complement regular periodic labour inspections.

“As a Youth Champion for OSH from Indonesia, I am very proud to have been given the opportunity to take responsibility for promoting OSH for youth”, said Mr. Yuniko. Both the “Worker’s Eye” and “Learning Journey” prototypes were highlighted by a panel of expert XXI WCSH delegates for their innovation, interactivity and potential as a starting point for further discovery.

SafeYouth@Work Media Competition

ILO, in collaboration with the International Media Festival for Prevention (IMFP) and the XXI WCSH, organized the global SafeYouth@Work Media Competition, inviting young people from around the world to submit songs, stories, posters, drawings, photos, and films about the importance of safe and health work for youth. A total of 131 submissions from 20 countries were received, including three submissions from Indonesia, all three of which were shortlisted by the judges.

Lalu Renaldi Dwi Pradanas Lalu from Indonesia created an Infographic entitled “Protection Benefit and Unprotect Loss” to vividly illustrate how correct use of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) can protect workers can protect workers from key OSH risks and hazards.

Ms. Nur Chariroh Siswoyo Iskandar from Indonesia was so enthusiastic about the SafeYouth@Work Media competition that she submitted not one, but two creations, in different categories of the completion. Ms. Siswoyo’s video submission, which is entitled “Never Trade Your Safety” is now available on YouTube. “Today it’s important for young people to have safe jobs because their safety is an asset an investment not only for their work in the future, but also for their lives”, narrates Ms. Iskandar during her video. Ms. Iskandar’s second submission was a writing piece entitled “Story of My Neighbour” tells the story of her 24 year-old neighbour was killed on the job after falling from height with no safety harness.

SafeYouth@Work Action Plan

Upon their return to Indonesia, the Indonesian Youth Champions for OSH participated in a workshop with Government officials, trade union representatives, representatives of the Indonesian employers’ organization APINDO, and OSH organizations such as LION to develop concrete follow-up actions to raise awareness on OSH and youth issues in Indonesia as part of the forthcoming SafeYouth@Work Action Plan.

Amongst the ideas created were an Employer Declaration to implement OSH principles, and national Youth Ambassador for OSH programme, a national annual Youth4OSH Congress, and Youth4OSH Roadshow (‘OSH Goes to Campus’), a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Award on Youth and OSH, an online video and picture exhibition, social media campaign and a series of ‘Coffee Talks’ on OSH and youth. ILO will be working with the young Indonesian champions for OSH and youth together with government agencies, trade unions, and employers’ organizations in the coming months to further select and develop these proposals for implementation as part of Indonesia’s National OSH Month in January – February 2018, and to commemorate World Day for Safety and Health at Work on 28 April 2018.
 
The SafeYouth@Work Congress was organized by the ILO Youth4OSH and SafeYouth@Work projects, which aim to promote the occupational safety and health (OSH) of young workers, with a focus on those aged 15 to 24.