Employers Direct Sponsors Youth Leadership Program To Teach
Importance of Workplace Safety

Agoura Hills, CA - February 5, 2007 - Employers Direct Insurance Company, California’s only specialty direct writer of workers’ compensation insurance, announced its co-sponsorship of The Young Worker Leadership Academy.

The Young Worker Leadership Academy is a collaboration of the Commission on Health and Safety and Workers’ Compensation (CHSWC), the University of California, Berkeley’s Labor Occupational Health Program (LOHP), the University of California Los Angeles’ Labor Occupational Safety and Health Program (LOSH), and the California Center for Civic Participation. It is part of the statewide Worker Occupational Safety and Health Training and Education Program (WOSHTEP) administered by CHSWC. In addition to Employers Direct Insurance Company, other sponsors this year include the Department of Industrial Relations and The California Wellness Foundation.

"As a company whose foundation was built on the importance on workplace safety, Employers Direct is honored to sponsor the Young Workers Leadership Academy. If today’s young people learn how to be safe employees and promote workplace safety as they begin their careers, perhaps, the workplaces of tomorrow will be safer than today. The core of our company is to provide customized loss prevention tools and training for all of our customers, and these objectives are implemented by our talented loss control specialists led by Ken J. Helfrich, our AVP of Loss Control and Customer Service," said James E. Little, Chairman/President & CEO of Employers Direct Insurance Company.
 
In January, the California Partnership for Young Worker Health and Safety presented a three-day Young Worker Leadership Academy to train and educate California young people about workplace health and safety. The workshops encouraged participants to play an active role in spreading the message of workplace safety. The Academy brought together six teams of young people ages 14-17 from several regions of California, and the goals were to:

• Educate participants about worker safety, including how and why young  people are injured at work, their rights on the job, and recommended solutions

• Help participants to develop promotions and activities for workplace health  and safety during "Safe Jobs for Youth Month" during May 2007

• Develop leadership abilities among participants, including the knowledge, confidence, and skills to create positive change regarding workplace safety

Another Academy will take place in February, and information about the Young Worker Leadership Academies can be found online at www.youngworkers.org and
www.dir.ca.gov. 

About EMPLOYERS DIRECT INSURANCE COMPANY
Employers Direct Insurance Company is California's only specialty direct writer of workers’ compensation insurance. Founded in 2002, Employers Direct has been widely accepted by business owners throughout California as a result of providing highly competitive rates, claims services designed to fight fraud and abuse, and loss prevention services that assist employers to create safe work environments. As a newer company, Employers Direct is unburdened by legacy systems and takes advantage of the latest technology to provide its customers with 24/7 access to all policy and claims information via a secure Internet portal. Employers Direct is proud that a growing number of California’s best-run privately-held companies count themselves as policyholders. Niche industries include hotels, restaurants, golf and country clubs, new car dealers, food processors, manufacturing companies, specialty supermarket chains, and retailers. Visit Employers Direct online at www.employersdirect.com.