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Safety should be Top Priority for Construction Industry, Says IOSH

July 6, 2009 on 5:45 am | In Uncategorized | Comments Off

Last year saw the deaths of 53 construction workers at work sites especially on renovation projects, the HSE statistics released this week revealed. This has led to the emergence of serious concerns from different organizations about the health and safety of construction workers.

Institution of Occupational Safety and Health has been particularly critical of the many risks emerging due to the cost-cutting approach by employers in the refurbishment sector.

John Lacey, Chairman of the IOSH Construction Group, speaking on the HSE figures, pointed out that the refurbishment sector is the leading growth area in the construction industry. The recession has largely reduced the number of new building projects. In this grim economic scenario, safety has been compromised for trying to complete the work faster on refurbishment projects. This leaves the workers at a greater risk and they become vulnerable to major health problems like musculoskeletal disorders. Taking safety as a lesser important factor by employers becomes a major cause of death for many construction workers. Employers need to provide appropriate training for their employees to reduce both lost time through work related injuries and/or potential employer’s liability claims. Manual handling training, available from the experts at Workplace Law, enables your organisation to be compliant with the requirement to train persons involved in manual handling activities.

The number of deaths of construction workers has gone down from past years. This is an encouraging trend. However, Lacey argues that it is too early to take credit because workers are still falling victim to the perils on site. Often they fall from heights or are struck by falling objects or vehicles.

While there is a growing consciousness on the risks associated with construction jobs, the challenge lies in converting the awareness into positive results, Lacey said.