Jokey apprentices in the final of the “Safety Heroes”

Under the motto “Safety from the start”, the German Social Accident Insurance Institution for the raw materials and chemical industry (BG RCI) regularly organises competitions for apprentices on the subject of occupational safety. The apprentices of Jokey Werke Wipperfürth and Gummersbach successfully took part. The team from Wipperfürth even made it to the final, which will take place on 22 and 23 June.

The apprentice competitions are part of VISION ZERO, the BG RCI prevention strategy for a world of work without accidents or illness. The aim is to teach apprentices in a fun way how to stay fit and healthy in their professional lives.

The 2021/2022 competition started with a record number of participants. 138 companies from the BG RCI member companies had registered around 2,100 apprentices to take part. The apprentices from Jokey Wipperfürth were taking part in the competition for the second time, while those from Gummersbach were taking part for the first time. The Jokey trainees from Wipperfürth successfully prevailed against the other teams in two team challenge rounds and qualified for the final. At the end of June, the six best teams will compete against each other in Willingen in the Sauerland region to determine the winners in a thrilling final. The trainee team from the Jokey plant in Gummersbach will also travel to Willingen to support the finalists from Wipperfürth. A big event with lots of games, exercises and fun awaits the participants.

Thomas Steinacker, occupational safety specialist and fire protection officer at Jokey, believes that the fact that Jokey’s apprentices are doing so well in the competition is due to the quality of their training: “At Jokey, we attach great importance to raising young people’s awareness of occupational health and safety issues at an early stage. On the one hand, this is intended to prevent accidents, both large and small. But the right preventive measures can also avert possible long-term damage caused by work, such as occupational diseases.”