Safety leadership at construction sites: the importance of rule-oriented and participative leadership

Abstract

Objectives The construction industry accounted for >20% of all fatal occupational accidents in Europe in 2014. Leadership is an essential antecedent to occupational safety. The aim of the present study was to assess the influence of transformational, active transactional, rule-oriented, participative, and laissez-faire leadership on safety climate, safety behavior, and accidents in the Swedish and Danish construction industry. Sweden and Denmark are similar countries but have a large difference in occupational accidents rates. Methods A questionnaire study was conducted among a random sample of construction workers in both countries: 811 construction workers from 85 sites responded, resulting in site and individual response rates of 73% and 64%, respectively. Results The results indicated that transformational, active transactional, rule-oriented and participative leadership predict positive safety outcomes, and laissez-faire leadership predict negative safety outcomes. For example, rule-oriented leadership predicts a superior safety climate (β=0.40, P<0.001), enhanced safety behavior (β=0.15, P<0.001), and fewer accidents [odds ratio (OR) 0.78, 95% confidence interval (95% CI) 0.62-0.98]. The effect of rule-oriented leadership on workers' safety behavior was moderated by the level of participative leadership (β=0.10, P<0.001), suggesting that when rules and plans are established in a collaborative manner, workers' motivation to comply with safety regulations and participate in proactive safety activities is elevated. The influence of leadership behaviors on safety outcomes were largely similar in Sweden and Denmark. Rule-oriented and participative leadership were more common in the Swedish than Danish construction industry, which may partly explain the difference in occupational accident rates. Conclusions Applying less laissez-faire leadership and more transformational, active transactional, participative and rule-oriented leadership appears to be an effective way for construction site managers to improve occupational safety in the industry.

Developing safety cooperation in construction: between facilitating independence and tightening the grip

“…Construction has a disproportionately high rate of recorded accidents (Eurostat 2010), and the Danish construction sector is no exception (Grill et al 2017(Grill et al , T omasson et al 2011. In addition to fatal accidents, the need to address less severe injuries or more latent occupational ill health represents a moral as well as economic challenge.…”

“…This has led to standardization of safety through measurement procedures, viz., audits and risk evaluations (Daudigeos et al 2017, Provan et al 2019. It is actively debated whether the application of standards and rules to ensure safety has any positive effect in construction (Grote et al 2009, Zalk et al 2011, Swuste et al 2012, Bourrier and Bieder 2013, Hale and Borys 2013a,b, Kines et al 2013, Dekker 2014, Hasle et al 2014, Busby and Iszatt-White 2016, Grill et al 2017, Jeschke et al 2017. Given the changing and uncertain conditions in construction, Grote and colleagues point to the need to enable each member of the organization to handle uncertainties locally, supported by planning through "lateral, task induced coordination" (Grote et al 2009, p. 19).…”

“…Thus, safety becomes decoupled from the daily meaningful handling of tasks and challenges (Gherardi et al 1998, Gherardi and Nicolini 2002, Ozmec et al 2015, Jia et al 2017. This can seem paradoxical, as the involvement of workers in organizational learning processes is generally acknowledged as central when it comes to improving safety performance (Lund and Aarø 2004, DeJoy 2005, Kines et al 2013, Grill et al 2017, Bell 2018. However, Bell (2018) has found that even though the terms "worker involvement" and "worker engagement" are often used, it is unclear what these terms refer to; whether they aim to establish adherence to safety management procedures, or if they aim towards creating commitment to working safely onsite.…”

The leadership practices of construction site managers and their influence on occupational safety: an observational study of transformational and passive/avoidant leadership

“…Recent research into occupational safety indicate that the way leadership is executed may be imperative for how occupational risks are managed and occupational safety advanced, across economic sectors (Zohar 2002, 2010, Conchie 2013, Pilbeam et al 2016. Transformational leadership has been identified as a promising component of effective safety leadership (Mullen and Kelloway 2009, Clarke 2013, Grill et al 2017. Transformational leadership involves individualized consideration, intellectual stimulation, inspirational motivation and idealized influence; it is understood to engage employees without the use of power and to emphasize developing the mutual interests of managers and employees (Bass and Bass 2008).…”

Effects of a Participatory Ergonomics Intervention With Wearable Technical Measurements of Physical Workload in the Construction Industry: Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial (Preprint)

“…Accordingly, other studies suggest that support from the management is critical for providing changes in the construction industry [45,46]. In the present study the management was often not willing to support the suggestions if they involved increased costs [47].…”