Teens on forklifts

A 16-year-old summer worker at a warehouse was driving a forklift down a loading dock ramp with the forks lifted 10 feet high. The forklift became unstable and tipped over, and the boy was crushed to death.

Of the 613 forklift fatalities in a recent six-year period, six involved minors. The National Consumer League ranks forklift driving as one of the five worst teen jobs, based on government statistics and reports. It notes that teens die driving forklifts, but can also be run over by a forklift they’re not operating, struck by a load that fell from a forklift or die as a passenger in a forklift.

Employers should note the Fair Labor Standards Act and state child labor laws prohibit anyone under 18 from operating forklifts. They are not prohibited from riding on them or working in an environment where they are in operation, so employers should take special precautions to protect teen employees from the dangers of forklifts to passengers and pedestrians.