As we head into school holidays, many young people will be working a summer job. One key union is worried teenagers aren't getting adequate workplace protection. Secretary of the SDA Union, Gerard Dwyer, says employees under the age of 18 are some of the nations most vulnerable.
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00:00I think most Australians would be surprised to learn that you actually don't need a working
00:06with children check to work with children.
00:09So that those working with children checks that we're familiar with in terms of those
00:13who coach our footy teams, our netball teams, those same coaches could work with those children
00:20down at a fast food outlet and there's no requirement.
00:23What we want to see is some real changes to ensure that our kids are getting the protection
00:29that they deserve at work.
00:30The Human Rights Commission, their latest research shows that almost 50% of 15-17 year
00:37olds have been sexually harassed at work in the past five years and it's simply not good
00:42enough.
00:43We're launching a report today called Safety Not Guaranteed and that's carrying four key
00:49recommendations.
00:51We want to see bail laws tightened, we want to see attention to sex offender registers
00:57to ensure that, for example, if a person is on bail for such a charge, they should
01:02not be able to work alongside children.
01:05It's hardly remarkable for people to be stood down when those sort of charges are pending
01:11in any jurisdiction, in any workplace, in any sort of sports situation.
01:16So what we're asking for is we need to reform our laws to ensure our kids are safe at work.