Workplace accidents in Quebec | The number of children involved jumps

Accidents at work jumped 36% among children under 16 in 2021, according to the Commission for Standards, Equity, Health and Safety at Work (CNESST), responsible for enforcing the laws. work in Quebec. The CNESST specifies that 203 children were victims of accidents at work last year, compared to 149 the previous year. The youngest was 12 years old.

“Given the massive entry of young people into the labor market, this does not surprise me at all,” says Marie Laberge, associate professor at the School of Rehabilitation at the University of Montreal. “You have probably noticed, like me, the very young workers in the shops. The pandemic has created a labor shortage. »

Since the appearance of COVID-19, companies have been snapping up workers, especially in fast food. The owner of a Tim Hortons who prefers to keep his name quiet because he is not authorized to speak in the media by the brand summarizes the situation: “Before, we took ladies. Today, we no longer have a choice. In his franchise, we hire from the age of 13.

No minimum age in Quebec

In Quebec, contrary to popular belief, there is no minimum age for working after school or on weekends. However, children under 14 must obtain written permission from a parent. The Labor Standards Act further clarifies that an employer cannot ask children to do work that is likely to harm their health.

This, of course, does not prevent them… from hurting themselves. Especially since they are often asked to do riskier things, including handling heavy loads.

No wonder, then, that the number one cause of injury among under-16s is falling equipment, tools or machinery. Among the ‘types of accident’, burns and ‘overexertion’ rank second and third, respectively.

Working at a very young age can have serious consequences, especially for those who do odd jobs and are therefore constantly in a learning situation. As the CNESST reminds us, “the weeks following hiring are those when workers, of all ages, are most at risk of injury”.

These work accidents compensated in good and due form by the CNESST in 2021 would only be the tip of the iceberg. Researchers and lawyers consider that many young people are reluctant to file a complaint with the CNESST, of which they are not always aware of its existence.

It is difficult to know how many children under 16 work during the school year or in the summer. In 2016-2017, even before the pandemic and the labor shortage, a survey of the health of young people in high school showed that more than half were employed.

The most recent statistics from the CNESST suggest that child labor is widespread throughout Quebec, in both urban and rural areas. Apparently, three regions appear to be bad students: Mauricie and Centre-du-Québec, Chaudière-Appalaches and Capitale-Nationale with 27, 25 and 21 injured children, respectively. Montreal and its inner suburbs (Laval and Longueuil) do little better, with 23.

Limits elsewhere in Canada

Quebec is the only Canadian province that does not have a minimum age for child labor. Several provinces also limit the number of hours a child can work each week. In Manitoba, where the minimum age is 13, it is capped at 20. In Alberta, where the minimum age is also 13, the cap is 31.

The CNESST made its data public on April 28, when the Senate adopted a bill on combating forced labor and child labor in supply chains. For the senator who presented it, Julie Miville-Dechêne, the situation is “paradoxical”. In 2016, the Federal Parliament ratified Convention 138 of the International Labor Organization, specifying that the minimum age for work would be 16 years. But Quebec has not set a minimum age since the first government of René Lévesque abolished it.

“We are far from being exemplary,” said the senator. And Quebec should revise its labor standards. Not all child labor is unacceptable, but it should be better regulated. When 12-year-olds get injured on the job, it’s worrying and disturbing. »