Road testing a health and safety worker engagement tool‐kit in the construction industry

Abstract

PurposeWorker engagement in health and safety (H & S) is a means to reduce risks in construction projects. A measure for worker engagement in H & S is a first step in ensuring improvement and maintenance of worker engagement in the construction industry. The purpose of this paper is to explore the nature of worker engagement in construction by testing a management instrument (WISH) developed to measure it during a construction project.Design/methodology/approachA stratified sample of workers in a construction project organisation was studied to test the effectiveness of a site‐wide engagement programme (IIF) run by the main contractor. The measurement was repeated 13 months after the first phase to check engagement at that stage of the project and to reduce bias in scoring.FindingsFour key factors emerged as the independent variables on which worker engagement depends. These are: knowledge and capability to engage, perceptions, attitudes and behaviours and actual involvement in H & S risk management. The IIF gave a check on the validity (face, construct and content) of the instrument as a measure of worker engagement. Reliability of the measure was tested by peer scoring at the second measurement phase. The Spearman‐Brown R showed a high degree of inter‐rater reliability in scores, supporting the reliability of the WISH measure.Originality/valueThe study provides a valid and reliable measure of worker engagement in H & S management for construction. The use of this instrument within the construction industry should help managements to improve the effectiveness of their worker engagement programmes.

Factors associated with the severity of construction accidents: The case of South Australia

“…According to Cheng et al (2012) falls are very common in private projects compared to public projects. Other researchers also stressed that falling from a height is the major cause of fatalities (Jackson & Loomis, 2002;Kartam & Bouz, 1998;Haslam et al 2005;Navon & Kolton, 2007;Meldrum et al 2009;Wong et al 2009;Larsson & Field 2002). Arquillos (2012) found that loss of machine control and falls were higher in serious, very serious and fatal construction accidents in Spain.…”

UK construction site safety: discourses of enforcement and engagement

“…Since the government's safety summit of 2001 there has been a change among larger contractors, and the concept of a 'safety culture' has been adopted on a significant scale by those seeking to improve safety on their construction sites (Dingsdag et al, 2008;Ridley and Channing, 2008). Seen by industry as a natural progression after the implementation of SMSs within an organization, safety management develops to focus on the 'safety culture' (Hudson, 2007;Meldrum et al, 2009). Such development is supported by the Health and Safety Executive, which actively encourages the development of a proactive 'safety culture' on sites, and sees it as essential for the improvement of the safety record of the construction industry (Health and Safety Executive, 2000).…”

Does the built-environment industry attract risk-taking individuals?

“…Sherratt, 2014;Hu et al, 2011;Donaghy, 2009). Considerable research has been geared to understanding the workplace safety climate of the builtenvironment industry (Edwards et al, 2013;Lingard et al, 2010;Hudson, 2007;Siu et al, 2004;Cooper, 2000;Dedobbeleer and Beland, 1991), and several studies have been oriented towards mitigating workplace physical risk through the development of safety standards, and through the systematic derivation of health and safety procedures that professional-level managers are ultimately responsible for designing, instituting, monitoring and enforcing (Kaskutas et al, 2013;Aires et al, 2010;Meldrum et al, 2009;Hopkins, 2009). However, there does not yet appear to have been any scholarly consideration of whether or not the builtenvironment industry might attract professional-level managers who are themselves physical risk-takers who, in consequence, may perhaps have suboptimal approaches to the work-place safety climate they are ultimately responsible for engendering to ensure site workers' physical wellbeing.…”