Over the past seven years I have conducted research into the consequences of deregulating child labour in B.C. I have crunched the numbers on work-related injuries suffered by children. And since 2003, when the law changed allowing children as young as 12 to work just about anywhere with the permission of only one parent, I have cautioned about the heightened dangers facing children in the workplace.

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As a researcher, I read about workplace hazards and use my imagination to project a mental picture of dangerous situations. This past weekend I had the unfortunate opportunity to watch the following scenario unfold.

'Just don’t fall'

After dropping my daughter off at the soccer field for her pre-game warm-up, I stopped at a nearby fast food restaurant to grab a coffee. It was shortly before noon and the place was hopping. At least six people were waiting for food while another eight or nine stood in line to order. As I waited, a young male employee (perhaps 13-15 years old) began the strangely timed task of cleaning the shelves and surfaces above the deep fryer and French fry station. He set up a high step stool and proceeded to use a spray cleaner. He joked with fellow workers as he stepped back and forth and on and off the step stool. Like many growing teenagers, he appeared uncoordinated and clumsy -- unsure of his body and the length of his arms.

The youngster was clearly unskilled at cleaning (as many are!) and after spraying on far too much, the cleaning solution dripped off a shelf and into the fries -- no one appeared to notice. A few seconds later he dropped the cleaning rag into the same fries. A female colleague, filling a bag of fries beneath his reach, quickly grabbed it, handed it back and said jokingly, "Hey just don’t fall -- ok?"

Next, after spraying the cleaner directly upwards, it dripped back into his face. Still standing at the top of the step-ladder, he did what any teenager might do around the family dinner table. He used the front of his shirt to wipe the cleaning solution out of his eyes.

Coming back down the step ladderm he disappeared for a minute and came back having rinsed (I assume) the cleaning rag. Then, using the top step of the ladder on which he had just stood proceeded to first lay out the rag and then fold it into a smaller square. With this, he continued to wipe the surfaces around and above the food preparation area.

Throughout all of this, his teenage colleagues darted back and forth around him and the step-ladder, emptying the hot French fry basket, salting fries and filling orders.

I was riveted, was anyone else watching this? The manager -- clearly marked by his name tag and uniform -- was also dodging around this worker filling hot beverage orders and greeting customers.

'That's his job'

The teenager continued to teeter precariously above and adjacent to the deep fryer. I imagined we were seconds away from witnessing an avoidable tragedy. One wrong move in this chaos and he would fall. Reaching out for something to brace his fall, he might burn his hand on the overhead heater warming the fries or hit the floor knocking his colleagues over with whatever they were carrying, or worse, land in the hot oil.

Who on earth instructed this teenager to do this task (never mind how to do it) at the height of a fast food lunch hour with food production and equipment in full swing?

It was finally my turn at the counter and the manager greeted me. "What that young man is doing is very dangerous," I started. The manager looked surprised. "He’s cleaning, that's his job."

"Is there another point in the day when that task could be done?" I replied.

"No, this happens all day long -- the kitchen has to be cleaned," he replied.

At this point I realized the conversation was not going to be productive. I pointed out some of the things I had just witnessed and emphasized that standing on a step-ladder above a hot deep fryer is a very dangerous thing to do. The manager restated his position that cleaning was this worker's job and it was okay as long as he was not wiping food preparation surfaces.

Diminished protections

Contemplating my next point, I realized that other than obvious health code violations, there was nothing offside in this picture, considering the very few regulations that apply to child workers in B.C. The teenager was working under the direct supervision of someone who was clearly over the age of 19; was not working on a school day; might not be exceeding a 20-hour work week (I'm extending the benefit of the doubt here); and if under the age of 15 as he appeared, likely had the permission of one parent. Since 2003 in B.C., there are almost no tasks this youngster is prohibited from carrying out.

Had I already had that cup of coffee, I might have yelled out for all to hear that every worker has the right to refuse unsafe work; but would the teenage employees see the danger and if so would they say something and risk reprisal?

As the manager filled my coffee cup, he reprimanded the teenager and pointed at me. I shook my head. I am still shaking my head.