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Effects of safety and health training on work-related injury among construction laborers
Abstract
This study was designed to evaluate the effects of safety and health training on work-related injury in the construction industry.
Union health insurance records, union training records, and workers compensation data for 1993 and 1994 were analyzed for more than 8000 construction laborers in Washington State.
After controlling for demographic factors, laborers who received safety and health training during the study period were 12% (95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.75-1.02) less likely than nontrained laborers to file for workers compensation. Among workers 16 to 24 years old, training was associated with a 42% (95% CI = 0.35-0.95) reduction in claims.
These findings provide evidence of the effectiveness of safety and health training in preventing occupational injuries among construction laborers, particularly among younger workers. However, the results cover only a limited time and the long-term effects remain unclear.
... The focus is on informing workers, rather than addressing organizational issues, and for workers in the dangerous construction industry, safety training may indeed lead to important increases in worker knowledge and attitudes about occupa- tional safety [Sokas et al., 2009;Williams et al., 2010;Forst et al., 2013] as well as self-reported and objective measures of safety behavior [Trabeau et al., 2008;Kaskutas et al., 2013;Ruttenberg, 2013]. Although evidence supporting safety training's prevention of adverse health outcomes (e.g., injuries, illnesses) is limited [Cohen et al., 1998;Robson et al., 2010Robson et al., , 2012Mullan et al., 2015], encouraging examples can be found among plumbers/pipefitters [ Kinn et al., 2000], laborers [Dong et al., 2004;Williams et al., 2010], carpenters/drywall tapers [Johnson and Ruppe, 2002], residential construction workers [Darragh et al., 2004], and railway construction workers [Bena et al., 2009]. ...
... Data suggest OSHA Outreach Training resulted in a 13% reduction in rates of injury overall; this finding was not statistically significant and was attenuated in adjusted analyses. The more pronounced effect of training among carpenters in their apprenticeship years (though not statisti- cally significant) has similarities to patterns observed by Dong et al. [2004] who evaluated the effect of safety training on rates of work-related injury among union laborers in WA State over 2 years in the mid-1990s. The authors saw a 12% reduction in injury rates among trained versus untrained workers, and this effect was greater among younger workers (42% reduction; 95% CI 0.35-0.95)-a ...
... The authors saw a 12% reduction in injury rates among trained versus untrained workers, and this effect was greater among younger workers (42% reduction; 95% CI 0.35-0.95)-a finding the authors attributed to less informal on-the-job training and a greater propensity of younger and less experienced workers to benefit from injury prevention training material [Dong et al., 2004]. Similar findings from the current study suggesting that training may be most effective in carpenters' early years of work is noteworthy, as this is the time these workers were shown to be at greatest risk of injury. ...
Introduction:
Despite the size and breadth of OSHA's Outreach Training program for construction, information on its impact on work-related injury rates is limited.
Methods:
In a 9-year dynamic cohort of 17,106 union carpenters in Washington State, the effectiveness of OSHA Outreach Training on workers' compensation claims rate was explored. Injury rates were calculated by training status overall and by carpenters' demographic and work characteristics using Poisson regression.
Results:
OSHA Outreach Training resulted in a 13% non-significant reduction in injury claims rates overall. The protective effect was more pronounced for carpenters in their apprenticeship years, drywall installers, and with increasing time since training.
Conclusions:
In line with these observed effects and prior research, it is unrealistic to expect OSHA Outreach Training alone to have large effects on union construction workers' injury rates. Standard construction industry practice should include hazard awareness and protection training, coupled with more efficient approaches to injury control. Am. J. Ind. Med. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
... Workers who have not been trained may find it challenging to recognize and subsequently avoid potential hazards associated with the task, which may put them at a greater risk of injuries in hazardous construction environments (Toole 2002). Compelling evidence in the literature supports the effectiveness of training on safety performance: Dong et al. (2004) documented the benefit of effective safety and health training in reducing the incidence of work-related injuries among construction laborers. The outcome of their study suggested that training increased workers' awareness about the importance of their behaviors toward avoiding injury and reduced their willingness to accept the prevailing levels of occupational risks. ...
... While various studies have established the positive influence of work experience, training, and injury exposure on the vigilance of workers in complex surroundings (e.g., Sawach et al. 1999;Dong et al. 2004;Westaby and Lee 2003;Hasanzadeh et al. 2017b;Aroke et al. 2020), previous research has generally overlooked the questions of how worker characteristics (i.e., work experience, safety knowledge, and previous injury exposure) influence their visual search strategies when scanning a scene for hazards, and how differences in attentional allocation and search strategies may impact the hazard-identification performance of workers. Accordingly, by monitoring empirical measures of attention coupled with worker-characteristic data, this study will evaluate how worker characteristics impact the hazard-identification performance of workers. ...
This study investigated the moderating effect of personality traits in the association between worker characteristics (work experience, training, and previous injury exposure) and hazard-identification performance through mechanisms of visual attentional indicators. Through an integrated moderated mediation model, the attentional distribution, search strategy, and hazard-identification performance of participants were examined across 115 fall hazards. Results indicate that individuals with more work experience and safety training were better at hazard identification independent of visual attention and regardless of personality. Furthermore, individual differences in conscientiousness and openness personality dimensions significantly moderated the associations between (1) worker characteristics and visual attention; and (2) visual attention and hazard identification. This study provides empirical evidence for the potentially pivotal role of worker characteristics and dispositional traits with regard to hazard-identification performance on jobsites. These findings can empower safety managers to identify at-risk workers and design personalized intervention strategies to improve the hazard-identification skills of workers.
... In general, researchers are in favour of techniques that stimulate trainee participation being more effective than passive techniques (Burke et al. 2006). Furthermore, methods that are tailored to trainee demographics and provide opportunities for dialogue and feedback seem to be the most efficient in the OSH training context (Komaki et al. 1980, Dong et al. 2004, Burke et al. 2006, Burke et al. 2011. However, the effectiveness of OSH training is still unknown (Hale 1984, Robson et al. 2012, Ricci et al. 2016. ...
... As STPs can also influence the future workforce, another future research challenge involves developing effective OSH training solutions for young people (RC4). Dong et al. (2004) found that young employees with less working experience are usually more responsive to OSH training and they should be offered a selection of training methods tailored to their age group. As described by Fisk et al. (2009) older adults tend to have more usability constraints and problems when utilizing new technologies than younger adults. ...
Studies across trades suggest that occupational accident and injury rates and costs are higher than average in the construction industry. There is a need for innovative and cost-effective occupational safety approaches. The Finnish construction industry and its key stakeholders have introduced a new safety training concept, called the Safety Training Park (STP). The STP consists of full-scale training points that use new training methods to stimulate individual safe behaviour and to improve safety climate within workgroups and companies. The Safety Training Park in Northern Finland (STPNF) was designed, constructed, and financed through a collaborative process that included over 80 organizations. A realistic evaluation approach was applied to document the effectiveness of STPNF training from individual and organizational perspectives. Results indicate that the dialogical STP approach with several information sharing channels fits the target groups. Evidence regarding effectiveness at the organizational level is also discussed. Cost-benefit calculations show that the multi-organizational coalition model enables efficient occupational safety and health training with reasonable costs.
... Among the 18 excluded studies, one study was not about preventive measures (Spangenberg 2005), two studies had no injury outcome but safety features (Kines 2010) or described a protocol of the study (Pedersen 2010); from two studies necessary information of the authors was not retrieved (Halperin 2001;Yassin 2004), two studies did not measure injury rates before and after the intervention (Dong 2004;Kinn 2000), two studies were cross-sectional surveys with no clear intervention time Lipscomb 2010), eight studies were before-after studies without a control group (Altayeb 1992;Darragh 2004;Gerber 2002;HSA 2006;Johnson 2002;Marcucci 2010;Salminen 2008;Williams 2010) and one study was a retrospective cohort study (Nelson 1997). See 'Characteristics of excluded studies' and Table 1 for further information. ...
... experienced accidents or injuries in the last 2 years (at work): non-significant experienced non-serious injuries in last 2 years (at work): non-significant frequency of non-serious injuries in last 2 years: favoured control group experienced injuries requiring up to 3 days off work in last 2 years: favoured control group frequencies of injuries requiring < 3 days off work: non-significant experienced other injuries of > 3 days off work: favoured control group experienced fractures of injuries resulting in hospital stay: non-significant Notes Downs and Black's (Downs 1998) 29.03 (199429.03 ( ), 28.09 (199529.03 ( ), 26.28 (199629.03 ( ), 24.21 (199729.03 ( ), 18.08 (199829.03 ( ), 20.90 (199929.03 ( ), 20.53 (200030.58 (1994), 27.68 (1995), 25.92 (1996), 26.48 (1997), 26.21 (1998), 25.42 (1999), 26.62 (2000 Change; 1. 55 (1994), -0.41 (1995), -0.37 (1996), 2.26 (1997), 7.34 (1998), 4.52 (1999), 6.08 (2000) Notes Enrolment in the study was awarded with 5% discount in workers' compensation premiums for up to 3 years 43% methodological score on internal validity scale of Downs and Black's (Downs 1998) Characteristics of excluded studies Altayeb 1992 Reason for exclusion Before-after study without a control group Darragh 2004 Reason for exclusion Before-after study without a control group Dong 2004 Reason for exclusion Retrospective cohort study, but measurements did not take place before the intervention Preliminary searches were done in PubMed to define useful terms for the search strategy. This revealed that searches could be made sensitive but not specific enough to decrease the total amount of references retrieved to a manageable number, which we set at about 10,000. ...
... Other factors may have been due to non-adherence of workers to work procedures and non-implementation of safety measures that were gained from various training (Kaminski, 2001;Kinn et al., 2000;Zierold & Anderson, 2006). Many studies have also demonstrated that the presence of safety training methods is inversely connected to the number of accidents and injuries that occur on construction sites (Dong et al., 2004, Dong, 2007, Kaminski, 2001, Kinn et al., 2000, Zierold & Anderson, 2006 Recent studies have addressed the application of advancements in training methodologies in industrial safety, (Bęś & Strzałkowski, 2024) and studies on the integration of technology in safety training (Sarkar, 2021). Thus, the effectiveness of safety training methods in oil and gas firms might be one of the best approaches to improve the overall safety performance. ...
This study was carried out to determine the impact of teaching-style safety training on safety performance in selected oil and gas companies in Niger Delta, Nigeria. Safety performance was operationalized using safety compliance, safety participation and accident occurrence. The study adopted inferential research design. Multi-stage sampling technique was used to sample few companies from the population while Taro Yamane sample size formula was used to estimate 400 as sample size. Structured questionnaire, designed based on five-point Likert scale, was used for data collection. Regression and structural equation model were used for the data analyses. The results of regression and structural equation analyses revealed that teaching-based safety training has positive and significant impact on safety compliance (β = 0.263 p-value = 0.000 < 0.05) but positive and insignificant impact on safety participation and accident occurrence (β = 0.054 p-value = 0.534 > 0.05, β = 0.074 p-value = 0.371> 0.05, respectively). The results also revealed that only safety compliance has complete mediating effect in relationship between teaching-based safety training and accident occurrence. It was concluded that teaching-based safety training has partial impact on leading safety performance (safety compliance) but no significant impact on lagging safety performance (accident occurrence) and recommended that management of oil and gas firms should utilize complete safety training package for their workers to ensure sustainable level of safety performance.
... It is well documented that when safety is a high priority in an organization, the accident rates typically decline dramatically. [34][35][36][37] Presenteeism is the reduction in a worker's on-the-job productivity because of acute illness, injury, chronic medical condition or a variety of other factors including caregiving for others. Studies have shown the association between health risks and presenteeism. ...
The role of the Corporate Medical Director (CMD) has received increased attention during the COVID-19 pandemic and has continued to evolve. This updated guidance addresses the role and value of the CMD in: health policy, strategy, and leadership; fostering a culture of health and well-being; supporting worker health and productivity/performance; addressing mental health; collaborating on employer benefits design; developing programs for global health, travel medicine, and remote/ extreme environments; overseeing on-and near-site clinics; incorporating digital technology , artificial intelligence, and telehealth in health programs; supporting critical incident preparedness and business continuity planning; addressing workplace hazards; and overseeing periodic executive health examinations.
... It is well documented that when safety is a high priority in an organization, the accident rates typically decline dramatically. [34][35][36][37] Presenteeism is the reduction in a worker's on-the-job productivity because of acute illness, injury, chronic medical condition or a variety of other factors including caregiving for others. Studies have shown the association between health risks and presenteeism. ...
The role of the Corporate Medical Director (CMD) has received increased at- tention during the COVID-19 pandemic and has continued to evolve. This updated guidance addresses the role and value of the CMD in: health policy, strategy, and leadership; fostering a culture of health and well-being; supporting worker health and productivity/performance; addressing mental health; collaborating on em- ployer benefits design; developing programs for global health, travel medicine, and remote/ extreme environments; overseeing on- and near-site clinics; incorporating digital technol- ogy, artificial intelligence, and telehealth in health programs; supporting critical incident preparedness and business continuity planning; addressing workplace hazards; and overseeing periodic executive health examinations.
... Proactive methods mainly include safety training and planning combined with Behavior-Based Safety (BBS) management (Ismail et al., 2012) and other technologies. The effectiveness of continuous safety training still needs to be improved, especially after long-term application, which indicates that the effectiveness of training has reached a bottleneck (Dong et al., 2004). ...
Intrusion behavior in hazardous areas is one of the major causes of construction safety accidents including falls from height, strikes by objects, etc. Implementing automatic and precise assessment of intrusions to enhance safety performance is of great importance in construction areas. Due to the large area of construction sites and diverse human behaviors, it is difficult to accurately predict worker behavior, resulting in many intrusions detected after the occurrence. Notably, computer vision-based skeleton extraction can provide a promising non-contact solution for assessing intrusions. This paper presents a novel intrusion behavior detection and evaluation approach by defining a safety buffer zone and using two key quantitative elements, i.e. the motion state and orientation posture of intruders. An indoor experiment was conducted by employing skeleton detection technology with safety knowledge to demonstrate the feasibility and effectiveness of the assessment method. The participants' risk levels were evaluated separately and simultaneously based on the motion and posture. The risk level was compared based on various evaluated methods and the ground truth. The results show that a satisfying accuracy of intrusion assessment can be achieved at different risk levels. Appropriate warning and intervention methods can be implemented to mitigate the occurrence or reduce the severity of intrusions and thus reduce safety accidents with the use of the proposed method.
... For example, lecture-based training lacks access to construction sites and limits student engagement and experiential learning. We propose evidence-based experiential learning using high engagement VR, to provide a more effective learning experience than traditional methods for training workers to identify hazards in job sites [11][12][13][14][15]. However, interactivity using VR head-mounted displays (HMD) is often a solitary experience, isolating learners from the social and training context. ...
... Although training programs did not directly abate and control hazards, effective training and worker development was an important aspect of managing safety. Safety-focused training has been associated with enhanced occupational safety outcomes in work organizations (Burke et al., 2006;Robson et al., 2012;Zacharatos et al., 2005) and has been associated with reduced harmful incidents, injuries, and illnesses (Burke et al., 2006;Dong et al., 2004;Gauchard et al., 2006). It should be noted that although safety training was important for all workers, consistent, frequent, and effective training was especially necessary for high-level job skills that were performed infrequently as these skills can quickly deteriorate (Colligan & Cohen, 2004). ...
Background:
Musculoskeletal disorders (MSD) are problematic in many industries, including stone, sand, and gravel mining (SSGM). This research aimed to delineate MSD risk factors and to identify protective safety resources that reduce MSD within these operations.
Methods:
A deductive content analysis of recorded transcripts from a focus group, which included professionals working in SSGM organizations, was completed.
Findings:
Results suggested demographic and personal factors associated with MSD included age, lack of experience, low levels of physical fitness, and attitudes toward risks. Work factors and job demands included excessive lifting, performing additional job duties, production-focused operations, lack of resources, and work related to maintenance and equipment operation. Suggested safety resources included a focus on worker fitness, resource adequacy, pay and benefits, the SLAM (Stop, Look, Analyze, and Manage) process and positive safety culture.
Conclusion:
This qualitative research project utilized mine experts to identify demographic, personal, work, and job demand factors they perceive or know to be associated with MSD. Safety programs suggested by these same experts to reduce MSD were also presented.
Application to practice:
Occupational health and safety practitioners and mine administrators should focus on the identified factors in their work to prevent MSD within SSGM operations. Safety efforts need to include integrated programs that promote health and fitness as well. These efforts should be implemented along with recommended programs such as SLAM and the provision of appropriate safety resources to minimize risks. These efforts should promote the importance of safety and will help with bolstering a positive safety culture.
... It is not surprising when considering there is a direct connection between worker training and accident rates. Worker training is effective in reducing accidents [40][41][42][43][44]. Port workers' dangerous cargo transport general awareness is handled in this study for the first time. ...
The International Maritime Dangerous Goods (IMDG) Code training is mandatory for all shore-side personnel involved in the handling and transport of dangerous cargoes by sea. This study aims to measure and evaluate the port workers’ dangerous cargo transport general awareness level. For this purpose, the “Dangerous Cargo Transport General Awareness Questionnaire” was developed and applied to trained 100 port workers face-to-face. The questionnaire was proven to be valid and reliable by content validity, construct validity, internal consistency reliability, and test-retest reliability analyses. Four factors were determined as a result of Explanatory Factor Analysis. Discriminant analyses were performed using the Student’s t-test and One Way ANOVA test. Pearson correlation analysis was carried out to determine the relationship between factors. Simple linear regression analysis was used for modeling the relationship between factors. SPSS 24.0 was utilized to conduct the analyses. According to analysis results, port workers’ dangerous cargo transport general awareness does not differ depending on age, position, and education. There is a weak positive or a moderate positive correlation between factors. Port workers have an average and above-average level of general awareness. It is highlighted that increasing this level is possible by increasing the frequency of dangerous cargo transport training. Suggestions are offered for more effective training.
... Then, FFH accidents are significantly influenced by inexperience compared to the rest of the occupational accidents. Specific training programs for inexperienced workers could help to fix this problem [48,49]. ...
Fall-from-height accidents are linked to severe and fatal consequences for impacted workers. A better understanding of the related variables is necessary to improve worker safety. This study analyzed all fall-from-height occupational accidents recorded in Spain from 2009 to 2019, selected significant variables, and evaluated the influence concerning the seriousness of the falls from height. Based on a total of 290,583 fall-from-height accidents, the study shows that a male inexperienced worker in a small company working in a non-habitual workplace is more likely to suffer fatal consequences once the accident happens. An improved knowledge of fall-from-height accidents will improve safety conditions. The workers should be trained and informed about their specific risk depending on the variables analyzed. Safety training should consider more risky profiles. Results from the current study can help identify suitable fall prevention and risk mitigation actions in safety programs for companies.
... Moreover, insufficient lift planning can cause reworks leading to project cost overruns and time delays. Thus, sufficient planning and site awareness for the entire lifting crew is crucial to prevent accidents and overexpenditures (Dong et al. 2004). ...
This paper presents a crane simulator system developed in the virtual reality (VR) environment integrated with a database of comprehensive lift studies and a detailed crane path planning system. This interactive system evaluates the lift operation quantitatively in real time in terms of its safety and practicability for the entire operation (entire lift path). The developed system can be employed in practice by crane operators and lift engineers for various objectives, including gaining hands-on experience before the actual operation, enhancing engineered lift planning, increasing workplace awareness, and evaluating and mitigating lift-related risks. The proposed framework is validated through two scenarios in a modular construction project in Alberta, Canada.
... It has a positive effect on the knowledge, attitude, beliefs, behavior, and empowerment of the workforce to actively make changes and promoting safety culture. [48][49][50] Albeit the systematic review of Robson et al. was unable to make a clear conclusion about the effectiveness of safety training on the enhancement of knowledge, attitude, and OHS outcomes. [41] The companies should provide training courses for all personnel by considering their needs and transfer required safety information to workers in different occupations through safety managers and supervisors to decrease the number of unsafe acts. ...
Background: Studies have found that several individual and organizational factors influence the occurrence of accidents. Researchers have also highlighted the need for the development of new accident models. The main aim of this study was to assess the contributing causes of occupational accidents using a questionnaire. Methods: A total of 365 managers and employees participated in the current study from 9 manufacturing companies located in the northwest of Iran. A questionnaire comprising 100 accident causes was used to gather the required data for this study. Results: Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) yielded 14 factors contributing to accidents, and confirmatory factor analysis found satisfactory fit indices for the EFA model. The participants reported unsafe acts as the most important factor for the occurrence of accidents. A t-test revealed that participants who received safety training experienced fewer occupational accidents than other respondents. The one-way analysis of variance showed that the companies significantly differed in the perception of accident causes. Structural equation modeling indicated that organizational-managerial factors had a larger effect on individual factors than external factors. Conclusion: The results indicate that providing safety training is necessary to control the employees' unsafe acts. Managers of the companies should pay special attention to the organizational factors affecting the occurrence of accidents. The findings of this study might help the managers to develop more targeted countermeasures for reducing occupational accidents.
... Similar results were found by previous studies (Lippin et al., 2000;Taghdisi et al., 2005;Hazavehei et al., 2008;Sanaenasab et al., 2008) within which the perceptions of different populations in different occupational settings were investigated. Moreover, in a study on work-related accidents among construction workers, Dong showed that teaching safety principles had an important role in reducing the number of accidents (Dong et al., 2004). Also, lack of awareness and illiteracy can cause a feeling of irresponsibility towards health issues (Clark et al., 2000), and such irresponsibility toward health and safety may in turn result in a higher range of occupational accidents among employers. ...
As the most of work-related accidents results from unsafe behaviors, there is clearly a need for research in this area. The purpose of this study was to assess safety culture among operation personnel of an Oil Refinery Company (ORC) in Tehran and design and implement a Safety Culture Promotion Intervention Program (SCPIP) based on an integration of Geller and HBM models. In this quasi-experimental study, as the first phase, 190 operational employees of an ORC were recruited. The data were analyzed and the SCPIP was designed. In the second phase, 90 employees were elected for the intervention (45 for the experimental group and 45 for the control group). The evaluation of SCPIP was conducted 2 months after intervention. The environmental factors were in a good condition. About 44% of the behavioral factors and about two thirds of the cognitive factors were rated as moderate/weak. Before intervention, there was no significant difference between the two groups by the total cognitive factors and the HBM constructs. After intervention these differences were significant (p 6 0.001). After implementing the intervention in the experimental group, the HBM total score was remarkably improved (Mean Difference = 11.25, t = 10.100, p = 0.001). The integrative application of the Geller and HBM Models was helpful in assessing the cognitive predictors of safety culture among the personnel of the ORC. SCPIP was useful in improving the employees' perceptions on safety culture in the occupational setting. HBM may be utilized to promote the human component of Geller model.
... Following calls from Donaghy (2009), it is crucial to develop our understanding of how accidents and injuries occur, and how they can be prevented through safety training, a primary mechanism for enhancing workplace safety by encouraging behavior change (Burke et al., 2006(Burke et al., , 2011Cunningham et al., 2018;Dong, Entzel, Men, Chowdhury, & Schneider, 2004;Moyce & Schenker, 2018;Robson et al., 2012;Tutt, Dainty, Gibb, & Pink, 2011). In their systematic review of safety management studies in construction, Zhou, Goh, and Li (2015) found safety training to be one of the key safety management processes aimed at reducing accidents. ...
The construction sector is high risk for accidents, injuries, and fatalities, particularly for migrant workers who comprise a large proportion of the workforce. This paper presents a systematic literature review of current safety training provision for migrant construction workers. In the interests of rigor, we draw on the learning, training transfer, and training effectiveness literatures, exploring not only the extent to which training brings about the intended outcomes, in terms of enhanced safety behaviors, and reduced accidents and injuries, but also the factors which influence learning and transfer of training back to the working environment. The literature search revealed only 18 peer-reviewed articles have been published since 2000, which is particularly surprising given the disproportionate accident and fatality rates for migrant workers. Consequently, we propose a research agenda to enhance safety training for low skilled, migrant and native construction workers, drawing on cognitive and social constructivist instructional design models, which view training as a dynamic process involving active participation of trainees. We advocate the importance of attending to the situational context in which workers are embedded, including labor market conditions, social relations, and cultural differences. Finally, we propose the need for further longitudinal, multi-dimensional research to evaluate the impact of safety training on learning, transfer of training, and individual and organizational level outcomes, such as behavior change, and accident and fatality rates.
... Yet, young workers receiving at least one hour of safety and health training were less likely to report a worker's compensation injury claim during the two-year study, long term effects were not measured (Dong, Entzel, Men, Chowdhury, Schneider, 2004). ...
... When examining specific industries such as construction, health and safety training has been effective in preventing injuries [40], with more engaging safety training (i.e., training which requires active participation in the form of hands-on activities or behavioral modelling [41]) increasing knowledge acquisition while reducing rates of accidents and injuries to a greater extent than non-interactive seminars. However, our findings suggest that despite legislatively mandated training in Ontario (Occupational Health and Safety Act), workers may not be receiving such training. ...
Background:
Although work-related injuries are on the decline, rates of work-related traumatic brain injury (wrTBI) continue to rise. As even mild wrTBI can result in cognitive, behavioural, and functional impairments that can last for months and even years, injury prevention is a primary research focus. Administrative claims data have provided valuable insights into the mechanisms that cause wrTBI; however, data from the perspective of injured workers on wrTBI prevention is limited.
Objective:
Our study aimed to better understand the factors that precipitate wrTBI, as perceived by injured workers.
Methods:
We recruited 101 injured workers from a neurology services clinic with a province-wide catchment area in a large, urban teaching hospital and studied perceived preventability of these injuries from the injured workers' perspective.
Results:
Key findings were that nearly 80% of injuries were perceived as preventable, and nearly 25% and 50% of workers reported that they did not receive job and health and safety training, respectively. Less than half of all workers reported being regularly supervised, and of those who were supervised, approximately two-thirds reported that supervision was adequate. Moreover, 84% and 77% reported they were advised to rest and take time-off after the injury, respectively.
Conclusions:
Our study is the first to show that the vast majority of injured workers consider their wrTBI to be preventable. In addition, we found that training and supervision are two areas that can be targeted by wrTBI prevention strategies. Our study provides valuable and unique perspectives to consider when designing wrTBI prevention initiatives.
... Apprenticeship training, safety training, and the accumulation of industry-specific human capital through work experience are channels through which construction worksites become safer (X. Dong, Entzel, Men, Chowdhury, & Schneider, 2004;Sokas, Jorgensen, Nickels, Gao, & Gittleman, 2009). ...
State prevailing wage law repeals have been shown to lower wages and benefits—including benefits providing safety training and associated with worker retention in construction. This study tests whether prevailing wage repeals affect construction injury rates and/or the prevalence of disabilities among construction workers. Controlling for time trends in injuries and disabilities, differences between construction industry subsectors, the business cycle, and time-invariant differences between states, we find that repealing state prevailing wage laws increase construction injury rates across various types of injuries from 11.6% to 13.1% as the seriousness of injuries increases. Disabilities increase by 7.5% to 8.2% depending on the model specification. Conjoining an analysis of the effects of prevailing wage law repeals on injury rates with disability rates in construction provides alternative measures of the effects of prevailing wage laws on construction workplace safety, which addresses a well-known problem of underreporting construction injuries.
... Different forms of training were evaluated in 6 studies: 2 high quality and 4 medium quality, of which 5 came from the US (71-76) and 1 from India (77). Worker protection knowledge among vineyard workers was examined in 1 study (71) and the effect of safety and health training among construction workers in another (73). The study from India examined education and knowledge among pesticide handlers (77), and another study examined the effect of OSHA's outreach training program for carpenters (75). ...
Objectives The aim of this review was to assess the evidence that occupational safety and health (OSH) legislative and regulatory policy could improve the working environment in terms of reduced levels of industrial injuries and fatalities, musculoskeletal disorders, worker complaints, sick leave and adverse occupational exposures. Methods A systematic literature review covering the years 1966‒2017 (February) was undertaken to capture both published and gray literature studies of OSH work environment interventions with quantitative measures of intervention effects. Studies that met specified in- and exclusion criteria went through an assessment of methodological quality. Included studies were grouped into five thematic domains: (i) introduction of OHS legislation, (ii) inspection/enforcement activity, (iii) training, such as improving knowledge, (iv), campaigns, and (v) introduction of technical device, such as mechanical lifting aids. The evidence synthesis was based on meta-analysis and a modified Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) approach. Results The search for peer-reviewed literature identified 14 743 journal articles of which 45 fulfilled the inclusion criteria and were eligible for meta-analysis. We identified 5181 articles and reports in the gray literature, of which 16 were evaluated qualitatively. There was moderately strong evidence for improvement by OHS legislation and inspections with respect to injuries and compliance. Conclusions This review indicates that legislative and regulatory policy may reduce injuries and fatalities and improve compliance with OHS regulation. A major research gap was identified with respect to the effects of OSH regulation targeting psychological and musculoskeletal disorders.
... S. Department of Labor, 2018); conduct risk assessments, audit risk reduction strategies, and control hazards via prevention through design techniques and through safety management system approaches (Burlet-Vienney, Chinniah, & Bahloul, 2014;Burlet-Vienney, Chinniah, Bahloul, & Roberge, 2015a, 2015bManuele, 2014); and, ensure effective training of personnel involved in confined space operations and rescue operations (U.S Department of Labor, 2015). Although the effectiveness of safety training on safety performance has been questioned over the years (Hale, 1984;Mullen, 2004), many safety-focused training programs have been shown to be an essential method for enhancing occupational safety in work organizations (Burke et al., 2006;Zacharatos, Barling, & Iverson, 2005) and has been associated with reducing harmful incidents, injuries and illnesses (Burke et al., 2006;Dong, Entzel, Men, Chowdhury, & Schneider, 2004;Gauchard et al., 2006). Safety training is important for all workers, but consistent, frequent, and effective training is especially necessary for high-level job skills that are only seldom performed as these skills can quickly deteriorate (Colligan & Cohen, 2004;Sitterley, Pietan, & Metaftin, 1974). ...
Introduction:
Fire and emergency service workers, including Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting members, may be called on to perform confined space entry and rescue operations. The purpose of the present study was to develop a comprehensive and valid understanding of the present state of confined space entry and rescue training effectiveness and resultant compliance or use of best practices among trained Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting personnel.
Method:
The study used a convergent, parallel mixed-methods approach. Qualitative data (n = 20) were collected via semi-structured interviews at four locations. Data were coded, analyzed and super-ordinate and sub-ordinate themes were derived. Quantitative data (n = 158) from Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting members were analyzed.
Results:
Interviewees believed there is a lack of standardization in training, but believed training should not be completed in the same format every time. Several participants (50%) desired more realistic training. Other concerns were associated with staffing, personal readiness, and resource adequacy. With regard to survey outcomes, most respondents reported that their organizations completed confined space training (69.8%), but only 55.3% indicated this training was conducted as a full-scale exercise and nearly 40% indicated that rescue practice was not performed despite standards mandating annual rescue practice. Following training, 55.4% indicated training evaluation information was not presented.
Conclusions:
Participants mostly agreed their training effectively addressed OSHA requirements, such as how to test the atmosphere, the need for and use of personal protective equipment, how to identify pertinent permit information and methods to retrieve victims in limited space. Some gaps exist between current training practices and established training requirements and standards.
Practical applications:
Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting organizations need to bolster aspects of their training, particularly with regard to standardizing training efforts, practicing rescues, providing evaluation feedback and written materials and providing adequate resources.
... For this safety hazard, hundreds of workers died and injured every year in Bangladesh because of accident in construction site (SRS, 2010(SRS, , 2011(SRS, , 2012(SRS, , 2013(SRS, , 2014(SRS, , 2015. Construction accident decreases the productivity of workers, brings delays in construction delivery, increases the budgeted cost and affects the quality (Behm, 2005) (Dong, Entzel, Men, Chowdhury, & Schneider, 2004) (Mohamed, 2002). Figure-1 shows the actual current situation on the topic of construction safety among the workers. ...
Construction industry is one of the dominating sources of
economic growth and development of any developing country like
Bangladesh. Skilled worker is the main fuel to run this industry. To enhance
construction management processes worker is a vital factor. A major negative
impact on the construction cost, schedule time and quality of construction
work has been marked for the lack of skilled worker. A skilled worker is who
have a professional training, minimum 2 years working experience, have a
knowledge about construction materials, equipment and safety and physically
up to date. The main objective of this study is to analysis the nine main
criteria of skilled worker. It conducted by questionnaire survey. The
questionnaire was designed by a comprehensive literature review. The data
collected through questionnaire survey among the construction worker in
Bangladesh. The workers in the study area having fully knowledge and
practicing regulation about construction safety, materials, equipment and
tools, labor code and building code are 19.35%, 6.45%, 9.68%, 4.87% and
2.30% respectively. The workers in the area having the professional training,
minimum education and minimum working experience are 6.45%, 46.06%
and 62.50% respectively. The physically up to date is found 62.25% in this
study. Increased numbers of skilled workers boost the construction process
that create a very positive effect in the construction field and enrich the
national economy of Bangladesh.
... It is well documented that when safety is a high priority in an organization, the accident rates typically decline dramatically. [61][62][63][64][65] Presenteeism is the reduction in a worker's on-the-job productivity because of acute illness, injury, chronic medical condition, or a variety of other factors including caregiving for others. Several studies have shown the association between health risks and presenteeism. ...
: The role of the corporate medical director (CMD) has evolved over the last 300 years since Ramazzini first identified diseases of Italian workers in the early 1700 s. Since then, there has been a gradual blurring of the boundaries between private and workplace health concerns. Today's CMD must have intimate knowledge of their corporation's industry and the businesses that they support, particularly the occupational and environmental programs that comply with all local, state and/or national standards and regulations. Leading companies not only measure compliance with such standards but may hold programs to their own internal corporate global standards even if these go beyond local government requirements. This document will explore in greater depth the strength and importance that the CMD brings to the business operations to support a healthy, engaged and high performing workforce. Part 1 describes the role and value of the CMD, while Part 2 provides collective wisdom for the new CMD from current and past highly experienced CMDs.
... Educational programmes are a preventative strategy commonly used to reduce work-related injury. Through practice of injury prevention strategies and by keeping fit and healthy, the risk of injury can be reduced (Dong et al 2004). Research has also shown that those who are involved in heavy manual handling are more likely to be active outside of their job, compared to sedentary workers (Kruger et al 2006). ...
... Training in general is considered to be a factor that influence on safety culture of the organization (Farrington-Darby, Pickup, & Wilson, 2005;Glendon & Stanton, 2000). Additionally, safety training interventions reduce hazards and risks in the working environment and improve safety behaviors of all level staff (Dong, Entzel, Men, Chowdhury, & Schneider, 2004;Kinn, Khunder, Bisesi, & Wholley, 2000). A research also claims that mandatory training has significant influence on the workers' attitude by reducing incidents in their working environment in construction industry (Bahn & Barratt-Pugh, 2012). ...
Risk management practices are applied in the National Health Service (NHS) England hospitals to reduce harm rates and to ensure safety. This study evaluates current risk management practices in the NHS England hospitals through highlighting non-compliance issues within the practice and through explaining board-level risk priorities. All data were collected for selected (N=34) NHS England hospitals. Data were gathered from the NHS Litigation Authority (NHSLA) reports to reveal risk management problems and from Board Assurance Frameworks (BAF) to define top risks. Results from an external authority of the NHSLA show that local induction of staff is a major non-compliance issue for risk management practice with more than half of the hospitals having difficulties. Following that supervision of medical staff in training is the second highly observed deficiency. Results from hospitals’ board level demonstrate that top risks in hospitals were regarding quality and performance issues. Additionally, most of the board level defined top risks were categorized as organizational and clinical-related risks. Within these, workforce issues and non-compliance with requirements are highlighted as top risks for organizational-related risks while Accident and Emergency (A&E) targets and treatment delays are prioritized as part of clinical-related risks. Financial deficit is also frequently defined at board level as a top risk for financial-related risks. Both the NHSLA and hospital board level assessments show that workforce-related issues are still a major concern in hospital risk management practices. It is therefore a slight influence of an external authority (NHSLA) has been recognized on prioritization of board level defined risks.
... However, the contribution of training to the reduction of accidental injury Yu et al rates remains uncertain (5)(6)(7). A few before-and-after comparison studies have reported that training programs could reduce accidental injury incidence rates among construction workers (8)(9)(10). However, the evidence was limited due to the absence of control groups. ...
Objective The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a participatory training program in preventing accidental occupational injuries in factories in Shenzhen, China. Methods We conducted a cluster randomized study with the worker as the unit of analysis, providing 918 workers from 30 factories participatory training. Two control groups received traditional didactic training, including 907 workers from the same 30 factories and 1654 workers in matched control factories. We used generalized estimating equations to compare the before/after person-based injury rate difference in the three groups and binary logistic regression to compare the re-injury rates. Results The person- and event-based incidence rates of accidental injury in the intervention group reduced from 89.3 to 52.1 per 1000 workers (P=0.002) and from 138.3 to 74.5 per 1000 person-years (P<0.001), respectively. The rate reductions in the two control groups were not statistically significant. Compared with the intervention group, the risk of accidental work injury over time was higher in the control groups, with odds ratios (OR) 1.78 (1.04-3.04) and 1.77 (1.13-2.79) for control_1 and control_2 group, respectively. The re-injury rates were 27.1% (13/48) in the intervention group, and 41.7% (15/36) and 52.6% (51/97) in the two control groups respectively, with the latter being significantly higher than the intervention group. Conclusions Our study documented the effectiveness of a participatory approach to occupational health and safety training in reducing accidental work injuries and re-injuries among frontline workers.
... Educational programmes are a preventative strategy commonly used to reduce work-related injury. Through practice of injury prevention strategies and by keeping fit and healthy, the risk of injury can be reduced (Dong et al 2004). Research has also shown that those who are involved in heavy manual handling are more likely to be active outside of their job, compared to sedentary workers (Kruger et al 2006). ...
The levels of physical activity and knowledge about postures and practices in carpentry students have not been extensively investigated. This study will inform occupational health practitioners about carpentry students’ physical activity levels and workplace practices, so that back care and injury prevention education can be included in the curriculum. Data were collected from 51participants using a questionnaire that asked about levels of physical activity and knowledge and practice for injury prevention. On average 6.4 hours of physical activity was performed weekly outside of work and/or study hours by 86% of participants. Most participants identified components of a safe lifting technique (‘bend knees’ 76%; ‘back straight’ 45%). They reported that heavy loads were frequently lifted (51% often/always lifted weights of 20-30kg independently and 69% rarely using the assistance of a co-worker or lifting device). Although participants had a basic knowledge of common lifting strategies for back care and injury prevention, weights lifted independently were frequently over the deemed safe lifting level. The findings indicate that carpentry students have a basic knowledge of injury prevention and lifting techniques but do not necessarily implement their knowledge into practice.
... [18] There is empirical evidence that occupational health and safety training increases worker knowledge, [19] improves safety behaviors, [15,20,21] and decreases workers' compensation claims among construction workers. [22,23] Two recent meta-analyses found that high engagement safety training promotes knowledge and skill acquisition [19] and has a greater impact than low engagement methods [15]. Dialogue between learners and action-focused reflection has been found to help workers develop cognitive, motor, and interpersonal skills needed to handle complex and ambiguous situations. ...
Falls from height remain the leading cause of fatalities in residential construction. We used results from a comprehensive needs assessment to guide changes in fall prevention training in a joint union-contractor carpenter apprenticeship program; including surveys of 1018 apprentice carpenter and observational audits at 197 residential construction sites. The revised training utilized hands-on, participatory training methods preferred by the learners to address the safety gaps in the curriculum; including ladder use, leading edge work, truss setting, and use of scaffolding and personal fall arrest. We compared apprentice surveys (n = 1273) and residential worksite audits (n = 207) 1–2 years post-training with baseline measures. Apprentices working residential construction were more likely to fall from heights (OR = 2.26, 95% CI 1.59–3.21) than those working commercial construction. The revised training resulted in improved fall safety knowledge, self-reported worksite behaviors, risk perceptions, and safety climate, even after adjusting for temporal trends. We also observed significant improvements in fall safety compliance in most domains of the worksite audit, with larger changes observed in areas emphasized in the training, demonstrating specificity of the effect. Greater effects were noted in small and medium-sized contractors, who often have limited resources to devote to safety. Self-reported falls fell from 18.2 to 14.5 per 100 person-years of work. This research supports growing evidence that worksite safety can be improved by training. This curriculum could be readily adapted to other union apprenticeship programs. Fall safety of inexperienced residential construction workers’ should remain a focus of future research.
... Şekil 6'dan da görüldüğü gibi üç meslek grubu iş kazalarının sıklığında ön plana çıkmaktadır. Eğer işçiye yaptığı işle ilgili eğitim verilmezse ve çalışma ortamındaki tehlikeler tanıtılmazsa, işçi işyeri ortamına alışana kadar kaza geçirme olasılığı yüksektir [18]. Bu analizde bu savın gerçek olup olmadığını araştırmak için işçilerin kaza geçirene kadar işte kaç gün geçirdiği incelenmiştir. ...
Z Ölümlü iş kazalarının sık yaşandığı inşaat sektöründe iş sağlığı ve güvenliği bilincini oluşturma yolunda, geçmişteki iş kazası örneklerinin incelenmesi ve istatistiklerin analiz edilmesinin büyük önemi vardır. Ancak, Türkiye'de iş kazalarının bildiriminde ve kayıtlanmasında yaşanan sıkıntılar, özellikle de inşaat sektöründe kaliteli ve gerçeği yansıtan iş kazası verisi bulmayı ve istatistiksel çalışma yapmayı zorlaştırmaktadır. Bu nedenle, çalışmada güvenilirliği tartışılan SGK kayıtlarının yerine müfettiş raporları kullanılarak bağımsız bir veri tabanı oluşturulmuştur. Araştırmada Ege bölgesinde 2009-2010 yıllarında sadece yapı işlerinde meydana gelen iş kazaları ayıklanarak veri madenciliği yapılmış, 185 vaka için tek değişkenli sıklık ve çapraz tablolama analizleri uygulanmıştır. Analizlerin sonucunda iyileştirme çabalarının odaklanabileceği yüksek risk seviyeli değişkenler tespit edilmiştir. Anahtar Kelimeler: İnşaat iş güvenliği, iş kazası istatistikleri, tek değişkenli analiz, çapraz tablolama analizi.
Purpose
Absence of Health and Safety (H&S) induction training can expose workers to construction hazards and risks. To protect workers, construction organisations provide site H&S induction training. This training is used in the construction industry to train workers on organisation, project and client H&S practices and rules. While researchers have recognised its role in creating worker awareness, developing H&S culture and influencing accident rate, but there has been little research. Furthermore, there lacks a review that identifies the research trends, research focus and future research directions on H&S induction training in the construction industry. This study aims to review literature on H&S induction training in the construction industry.
Design/methodology/approach
Scopus, Web of Science, Science Direct and Google Scholar databases were used to identify articles. Initial search produced a total of 278 papers and final analysis resulted in ten articles. Content analysis was applied.
Findings
The identified three contributions to knowledge: (a) identifies specific trajectory or development trends of H&S induction training in the construction industry (three research areas were identified, namely, impact of H&S induction training on H&S culture, impact of H&S induction training on accident rate and barriers affecting supervisor’s skills and ability to conducting H&S induction training), (b) suggestions have been given on the contribution of H&S induction training to H&S culture and (c) future research directions have been proposed. The review provides knowledge that the contribution of H&S induction training to H&S culture is influenced by skills, knowledge and experience of presenter, language used, content covered, mode of delivery, technological tools used, type of assessment and duration.
Research limitations/implications
The review is limited to studies related to H&S induction training in the construction industry. Other safety training studies and industries could have provided different findings. The review is limited to 2012 and 2022 and to ten articles.
Practical implications
Understanding the role of H&S induction training to worker behaviour, H&S culture and outcomes will improve H&S practices and standards within the construction industry. Construction organisations can consider the factors identified in this study to improve the effectiveness of H&S induction training.
Social implications
Understanding the contribution of H&S induction training to H&S culture may help to improve H&S culture.
Originality/value
The study has identified three main research areas and future research directions. It further revealed the factors that researchers, practitioners and policy makers can consider to improve the effectiveness of H&S induction training in the construction industry.
Background
Registered nurses (RNs) represent the largest segment of the health care workforce and have unique job demands and occupational health considerations. The purpose of this study was to describe the incidence, cost, and causes of occupational injuries among RNs in Washington State and to quantify the cumulative cost and burden of each type of injury, relative to all injuries among RNs.
Methods
Annual injury claims data covered under Washington State workers’ compensation (WC) fund were analyzed over a 13-year period (2007–2019). Annual mean incidence and cost of injuries were calculated and stratified by nature, source, and event/exposure. Negative binomial regression models were used to examine trends in injury incidence over time, for injury incidence overall, and by the most common injury classifications.
Results
Between 2007 and 2019, 10,839 WC claims were filed and accepted for Washington State RNs (annual M = 834), totaling more than US$65 million. No significant trend in overall injury incidence was observed (incidence rate ratio [IRR]: 0.99, 95% confidence interval [CI] = [0.94, 1.05]). The most common injury exposures were bodily reaction and exertion, contact with objects and equipment, falls, and assaults and violent acts.
Discussion
To our knowledge, this is the first broad study of the incidence and costs of occupational injuries among RNs across all workplace settings. We identified high-cost, high-frequency incidence rates of musculoskeletal, sharp, and violence-related occupational injury claims, highlighting intervention targets. Implications for Occupational Health Practice: Policy makers, health systems, and occupational health nurse leaders can use this information to identify priority areas where evidence-based occupational health and prevention programs are most needed.
Background
Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs) are the primary providers of prehospital emergency medical services. The operations of EMTs increase their risks of being exposed to occupational injuries. However, there is a paucity of data on the prevalence of occupational injuries among EMTs in sub-Saharan Africa. This study, therefore, sought to estimate the prevalence and determinants of occupational injuries among EMTs in the northern part of Ghana.
Methods
A cross-sectional study was conducted among 154 randomly recruited EMTs in the northern part of Ghana. A pre-tested structured questionnaire was used to collect data on participants’ demographic characteristics, facility-related factors, personal protective equipment use, and occupational injuries. Binary and multivariate logistic regression analyses with a backward stepwise approach were used to examine the determinants of occupational injuries among EMTs.
Results
In the 12 months preceding data collection, the prevalence of occupational injuries among EMTs was 38.6%. Bruises (51.8%), and sprains/strains (14.3%) were the major types of injuries reported among the EMTs. The key determinants of occupational injury among EMTs were male sex (AOR: 3.39, 95%CI: 1.41–8.17), an absence of a health and safety committee at the workplace (AOR: 3.92, 95%CI: 1.63–9.43), absence of health and safety policy at the workplace (AOR: 2.76, 95%CI: 1.26–6.04) and dissatisfaction with health and safety measures at the workplace (AOR: 2.51, 95%CI: 1.10–5.71).
Conclusion
In the twelve months before to the data collection for this study, the prevalence of occupational injuries among EMTs of the Ghana National Ambulance Service was high. The creation of health and safety committees, the creation of health and safety rules, and the strengthening of current health and safety procedures for EMTs are all possible ways to lessen this.
Background:
Despite workplaces having policies on fire evacuation, many employees still fail to evacuate when there is a fire alarm. The Reasoned Action Approach is designed to reveal the beliefs underlying people's behavioral decisions and thus suggests causal determinants to be addressed with interventions designed to facilitate behavior. This study is a uses a Reasoned Action Approach salient belief elicitation to identify university employees' perceived advantages/disadvantages, approvers/disapprovers, and facilitators/barriers toward them leaving the office building immediately the next time they hear a fire alarm at work.
Methods:
Employees at a large public United States Midwestern university completed an online cross-sectional survey. A descriptive analysis of the demographic and background variables was completed, and a six-step inductive content analysis of the open-ended responses was conducted to identify beliefs about leaving during a fire alarm.
Results:
Regarding consequence, participants perceived that immediately leaving during a fire alarm at work had more disadvantages than advantages, such as low risk perception. Regarding referents, supervisors and coworkers were significant approvers with intention to leave immediately. None of the perceived advantages were significant with intention. Participants listed access and risk perception as significant circumstances with the intention to evacuate immediately.
Conclusion:
Norms and risk perceptions are key determinants that may influence employees to evacuate immediately during a fire alarm at work. Normative-based and attitude-based interventions may prove effective in increasing the fire safety practices of employees.
Construction is unique. Unlike other sectors, construction workplaces regularly involve multiple employers with a mix of trades that changes over the life of a project. Construction firms are predominantly small with the overwhelming number having less than 20 employees. Smaller contractors incur a disproportionate percentage of injuries and fatalities, which has led to construction consistently having the highest number of deaths of any sector. Most fatal construction injuries are caused by falls to a lower level, being struck by an object or a vehicle, contact with electric current, or being caught‐in or between objects or equipment. Health hazards are not given the prominence of safety hazards in construction because their effects may not be felt for decades and their causes may be unclear. Safety hazards are easier to identify. Seven percent of all OSHA construction inspections are for health hazards. Industrial hygienists should focus on task‐based personal monitoring, rather than time‐weighted averages, to better protect construction workers. Episodic exposures are more common in construction and can be quite elevated. Bystander exposures from nearby trades must also be considered as part of any hazard assessment. Dermal exposures are significant in construction because of the widespread use of cement, adhesive, solvents, abrasive cleaners, spray insulation, and paints. Engineering controls like local exhaust ventilation and wet methods can clearly reduce exposures to construction workers, if made available and maintained. New technological advances, like drones and nanomaterials, are appearing in construction. Industrial hygienists will be instrumental in navigating the benefits and risks of these technologies.
Off-site construction is one of the most dangerous industrial sectors, which involve many types of safety risks influencing on health and safety of human beings. So far, construction workers’ unsafe behaviours have been recognized as the major cause of accidents in the construction workplaces. However, as there are few studies on safety behaviour in off-site manufacturing plants, the reason why construction workers have involved in unsafe behaviours and accidents is still unknown and workers’ unsafe behaviours still exist in the construction workplaces. Therefore, there’s a need for a better understanding on how construction workers have involved in unsafe behaviours and accidents in the off-site manufacturing plants. The aim of this research is to develop a conceptual framework of off-site construction workers’ safety behaviour, which captures the main factors that play a significant role in workers’ safety behaviour. The model’s value lies in its ability to explain the pathway of safety behaviour and the impacts of the crucial factors on safety behaviour in the off-site manufacturing plants and it will also contribute to the continuing work on the theory of planned behaviour.
The Hong Kong construction industry is notorious for the high number of accidents and fatalities. Risk-taking is one kind of unsafe behavior that can result in accidents and injuries. The study reported here concerns a Construction Worker Risk-Taking Behavior (CoWoRTB) model and an attempt to gain an in-depth understanding of the mechanisms by which personal and organizational factors influence the risk-taking behavior of construction workers. A questionnaire survey was conducted with 536 construction workers employed on Hong Kong government construction projects. Using the data collected, the proposed model was analyzed using structural equation modeling. It was found that the personal factors: outcome expectancy, risk perception – worry and unsafe, and attitude toward risk-taking behavior, significantly influenced risk-taking behavior. The organizational factors that had a significant effect on risk-taking behavior were safety promotion policy, and safety training. Also, the significant indirect effect of safety promotion policy on risk-taking behavior was mediated by outcome expectancy, and significant indirect effects of safety training on risk-taking behavior were mediated by attitude toward risk-taking behavior, and risk perception – worry and unsafe. These findings may be used to develop effective safety policies, interventions and strategies for reducing the risk-taking behavior of construction workers. Some practical recommendations for improving construction safety are discussed.
This paper studies the muscle discomfort among police officers when carrying out their work. The objective of this study is to give a basic introduction of ergonomic problems among police officers and risk controls in relation to minimize the ergonomics risk factors. This paper gives quick review of muscle discomfort problems and prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders (MSD) among police officer. An ergonomic application has been purposed in the literature
to solve the problem related with design of mechanical.
Chief executive officer (CEO) messages are important in communicating with employees. In terms of sustainability management, it is important to study these messages for their finance and safety content; however, previous studies have focused mostly on the financial aspects. Therefore, our approach is to: (1) focus on safety management, (2) use text mining and network analysis to extract the keywords emphasized by the CEOs, (3) analyze safety management characteristics through factor mapping and network analysis, (4) make recommendations. When the results from the CEO communications of 100 global construction companies were reviewed, keywords including “management”, “value”, “employee”, “system”, “project”, “culture”, “new”, “occupational”, “practice”, and “basis” were deduced. The words “management”, “employee”, and “culture” were the common keywords considered important by CEOs and were highlighted in literature reviews as significant words. Both the deduced keywords and the words deemed important by the CEOs have similar connotations. Motivation, Rules and Regulations, and Resources and Equipment were the factors that exhibited the highest centrality, while Culture and Climate had a structurally high connection. Based on our results, we suggest selecting appropriate words to form consensus with the workers, supplementing the factors related to safety investment with low centrality, and using direct “safety” words, and other relevant words.
Work plays an important role in people's lives as most workers spend at least 8 hours a day in the workplace whether it be in a building, office or factory. Occupational health is also a health concern regarding work and work. Occupational health not only protects health but also promotes health, emergency care, a wide range of preventative, therapeutic, rehabilitation services, an all-encompassing concept that can work to promote the health and wellbeing of employees. Construction work is considered a physically demanding task, usually under difficult conditions including hot, cold or wet weather. Construction workers closest to immigrants and members of other low-income groups are dealing with illness and injury resulting from work. Quantitative descriptive survey study approach and non experimental research design was used.Total 50 construction labourers working in construction site Jodhpur were selected by purposive sampling technique.Data collection by structured knowledge questionnaire and analysed by using descriptive and inferential statistics.
Background
Masons have a high rate of musculoskeletal disorders among construction workers and greater than all other industries. Viable solutions to musculoskeletal hazards have been identified by industry stakeholders, yet masons receive minimal ergonomics training. Apprentices, as the next generation of masons, need training and strategies to identify and speak up about ergonomic and safety issues on job sites. To fill this gap, our team developed the Safety Voice for Ergonomics (SAVE) training program.
Methods
The interactive, 7-unit SAVE program was developed specifically for masonry brick and block apprentices. This innovative training contains detailed ergonomics lessons focusing on risk factors and solutions specific to this masonry craft. It also contains lessons that provide communication and problem solving strategies. Evaluation of SAVE employed a randomized control trial designed to assess the effectiveness of SAVE for apprentices over a six-month period.
Results
Our findings demonstrated that compared to controls, SAVE trained apprentices used their safety voice more (P = .049) and had greater safety participation (P = .028). They adopted more ergonomic practices such as adjusting scaffolding (P = .016) and using better body postures (P = 042). Apprentices liked SAVE and indicated that it prompted them to change workplace safety behaviors.
Conclusions
SAVE is an effective program, providing needed ergonomic and safety communication training for workers as they begin their trade. The broad adoption of SAVE training by the masonry industry has the potential to empower apprentices, elevate the trade's safety culture, and ultimately reduce musculoskeletal disorders.
The search for work is one of the largest drivers of migration. Globally there are an estimated 244 million migrants. It is known that occupational accidents are higher in migrant compared with native-born workers; however, there is a lack of information about the reason for these differences. The aim of this study was to use the vulnerability index to identify whether migrant workers were more vulnerable to occupational health and safety risks than native-born workers among a cohort of 306 workers in Spain. Data come from the Spanish Platform of Longitudinal Studies on Immigrant Families (PELFI). For this analysis, we selected current workers with at least one year of work experience in Spain, 18–65 years of age and born in Colombia, Ecuador (n = 217) and a control sample of Spanish-born workers (n = 89). The occupational health and safety vulnerability tool was used. Prevalence and adjusted (by sociodemographic and occupational variables) Odds Ratio (aOR) was calculated to compare migrants with Spanish-born. Latin American workers had a significantly greater prevalence of exposure to occupational hazards (81% than Spanish-born 54%) and to inadequate policies and procedures (38,7% and 22,5% respectively). After adjusting for a range of demographic and occupation-related covariates, the risk of exposure to an overall vulnerability was increased among Latin American workers (aOR: 1,9 (0,9–4,0). Latin American workers were more likely to suffer work-related vulnerability and that may place them at higher risk of work related health problems.
The shortage of labor in the construction industry is quickly becoming a global phenomenon. To encourage more people to begin careers in construction, work patterns that promote both more leisure and accident rate reduction need to be put in place. This study used logistic regression to analyze 7,497 accident cases that have occurred in the Hong Kong construction industry. Principally, it was found that human factor-related accidents and work patterns are interrelated for both millennials and nonmillennials. Therefore, an adjustment in work patterns may lead to a reduction in accident rates, which could encourage more people, both young and old, to choose a career in the construction industry.
Background:
Construction workers are frequently exposed to various types of injury-inducing hazards. There are a number of injury prevention interventions, yet their effectiveness is uncertain.
Objectives:
To assess the effects of interventions for preventing injuries in construction workers.
Search methods:
We searched the Cochrane Injuries Group's specialised register, CENTRAL (issue 3), MEDLINE, Embase and PsycINFO up to April 2017. The searches were not restricted by language or publication status. We also handsearched the reference lists of relevant papers and reviews.
Selection criteria:
Randomised controlled trials, controlled before-after (CBA) studies and interrupted time-series (ITS) of all types of interventions for preventing fatal and non-fatal injuries among workers at construction sites.
Data collection and analysis:
Two review authors independently selected studies, extracted data and assessed their risk of bias. For ITS studies, we re-analysed the studies and used an initial effect, measured as the change in injury rate in the year after the intervention, as well as a sustained effect, measured as the change in time trend before and after the intervention.
Main results:
Seventeen studies (14 ITS and 3 CBA studies) met the inclusion criteria in this updated version of the review. The ITS studies evaluated the effects of: introducing or changing regulations that laid down safety and health requirements for the construction sites (nine studies), a safety campaign (two studies), a drug-free workplace programme (one study), a training programme (one study), and safety inspections (one study) on fatal and non-fatal occupational injuries. One CBA study evaluated the introduction of occupational health services such as risk assessment and health surveillance, one evaluated a training programme and one evaluated the effect of a subsidy for upgrading to safer scaffoldings. The overall risk of bias of most of the included studies was high, as it was uncertain for the ITS studies whether the intervention was independent from other changes and thus could be regarded as the main reason of change in the outcome. Therefore, we rated the quality of the evidence as very low for all comparisons.Compulsory interventionsRegulatory interventions at national or branch level may or may not have an initial effect (effect size (ES) of -0.33; 95% confidence interval (CI) -2.08 to 1.41) and may or may not have a sustained effect (ES -0.03; 95% CI -0.30 to 0.24) on fatal and non-fatal injuries (9 ITS studies) due to highly inconsistent results (I² = 98%). Inspections may or may not have an effect on non-fatal injuries (ES 0.07; 95% CI -2.83 to 2.97; 1 ITS study).Educational interventionsSafety training interventions may result in no significant reduction of non-fatal injuries (1 ITS study and 1 CBA study).Informational interventionsWe found no studies that had evaluated informational interventions alone such as campaigns for risk communication.Persuasive interventionsWe found no studies that had evaluated persuasive interventions alone such as peer feedback on workplace actions to increase acceptance of safe working methods.Facilitative interventionsMonetary subsidies to companies may lead to a greater decrease in non-fatal injuries from falls to a lower level than no subsidies (risk ratio (RR) at follow-up: 0.93; 95% CI 0.30 to 2.91 from RR 3.89 at baseline; 1 CBA study).Multifaceted interventionsA safety campaign intervention may result in an initial (ES -1.82; 95% CI -2.90 to -0.74) and sustained (ES -1.30; 95% CI -1.79 to -0.81) decrease in injuries at the company level (1 ITS study), but not at the regional level (1 ITS study). A multifaceted drug-free workplace programme at the company level may reduce non-fatal injuries in the year following implementation by -7.6 per 100 person-years (95% CI -11.2 to -4.0) and in the years thereafter by -2.0 per 100 person-years (95% CI -3.5 to -0.5) (1 ITS study). Introducing occupational health services may result in no decrease in fatal or non-fatal injuries (one CBA study).
Authors' conclusions:
The vast majority of interventions to adopt safety measures recommended by standard texts on safety, consultants and safety courses have not been adequately evaluated. There is very low-quality evidence that introducing regulations as such may or may not result in a decrease in fatal and non-fatal injuries. There is also very low-quality evidence that regionally oriented safety campaigns, training, inspections or the introduction of occupational health services may not reduce non-fatal injuries in construction companies. There is very low-quality evidence that company-oriented safety interventions such as a multifaceted safety campaign, a multifaceted drug workplace programme and subsidies for replacement of scaffoldings may reduce non-fatal injuries among construction workers. More studies, preferably cluster-randomised controlled trials, are needed to evaluate different strategies to increase the employers' and workers' adherence to the safety measures prescribed by regulation.
Background and aims: Work related accidents occur in the line of duty in the workplace which may lead to fatal or non-fatal injuries. The aim of this study was to investigate the epidemiological accidents recorded in Qom Insurance Agency and provide an appropriate algorithm for accidents recordation. Methods: In this descriptive - analytical study, all the accidents recorded in the Qom Insurance Agency between 2009 and 2012 were investigated. Data were analyzed through SPSS v. 16 and Excel using Fisher and Chi square test. Results: The results of this study revealed that, the most common type of accident was falling from height. Ther was no significant relation between mortality status of all injured workers (death and non-death) and their jobs (unskilled workers and other workers) in two half of years and in two age groups (≤ 40 years and more than 40 years) at the 5% level of error. However, there was significant relation between the morality status of all accidents (death and non-death) with age (≤ 40 years and 40 years) in both groups experience (≤ 3 years and older than 3 years), at the 5% level of error. Conclusion: This study results indicate further investigation for possible change in the existing procedures and necessary reform in record keeping for the prevention of these accidents.
It is crucial to investigate case studies and analyze accident statistics to establish safety and health culture in the construction industry, which exhibits high fatality rates. However, it is difficult to find reliable and accurate construction accidents data in Turkey due to inadequate accident reporting and recordkeeping system, which hinders statistical safety research. Therefore, an independent database was generated by using inspection reports in this research study. Data mining was performed within hundreds of accident reports in Aegean region between 2009 and 2010, and 185 construction accident cases were selected for univariate analysis and cross-tabulation. Results of the analyses showed that several variables demonstrated high risk, where safety improvement efforts could be focused on.
Eighteen new apprentice carpenters received sixteen hours of ergonomics awareness education as a part of their regular apprenticeship training during 1994 and 1995. An equal number of apprentices received no training but served as controls. The training took place in the Southwest Ohio District Council of Carpenter's Joint Apprenticeship and Training School. The curriculum was designed to be "learner-centered." Instruction included short lectures presented by a journeyman carpenter and emphasized participatory activities in the school's carpentry shop. Ongoing program evaluation assessed trainees' reactions to the content and structure of the curriculum and its influence on their behavior. Trainees and controls completed brief quizzes on ergonomic knowledge. Hands-on exercises enabled trainees to apply recently acquired ergonomic knowledge in the school's carpentry shop. Trainees scored significantly higher on one-half of the post-session quizzes and the comprehensive test. Trainees preferred participatory teaching methods, especially those using redesigned tools (93%) and evaluating ergonomic risks (86%); and they supported continued safety and health education during apprentice training. The authors conclude that apprentice-ship programs should provide regular "learner-centered" occupational safety and health education that includes ergonomics, and these programs should be integrated with their shop-based manual arts instruction.
In this project we tested the effectiveness of a theory-based intervention (video, pamphlets, and guided practice session) to increase the use of hearing protection devices (HPDs) among Midwestern construction workers and a national group of plumber/pipefitter trainers. Posttest measures were collected 10-12 months following this intervention. Pender's Health Promotion Model (1987) provided the conceptual basis for development of the training program. A total of 837 high-noise-exposed workers were included in the analysis: 652 regional Midwestern construction workers and 185 national plumber/pipefitter trainers. Effectiveness of the intervention was determined through the sequence of analyses recommended by Braver and Braver (1988) for the Solomon Four-Group Design. Analysis of variance and covariance of postintervention use and intention to use HPDs and a meta-analytic test were done. These analyses indicated that the intervention significantly increased use of HPDs but had no effect on intention to use HPDs in the future. Pretesting had no effect on use. Actual or potential applications of this research include guidance in the development of successful theory-based interventions to increase use of HPDs.
Construction is one of the largest industries in the United States, employing 7.6 million workers, or about 5% of the US work force. More women have taken jobs in the construction industry over the last two decades, as they have in other nontraditional industries. In 1997, there were 8.1 million construction workers, of whom 781,000 (9%) were women. Approximately 2% of those were employed as skilled tradeswomen. There is no disputing that construction work is dangerous. Seventeen percent of all fatal on-the-job injuries occur in construction, which is about three times its 6% share of total employment. In this paper, we review the medical literature on the safety and health hazards for women working in the construction industry. Women have a different pattern of fatal injuries and some differences in patterns of nonfatal injuries than men and report unique problems and concerns related to working in this industry.
The complex, dynamic, and continually changing nature of construction work has been recognized as an important contributor to the high rates of injuries and fatalities in the industry. Cranes are a central component of many construction operations and are associated with a large fraction of construction deaths; in fact, estimates suggest that cranes are involved in up to one-third of all construction and maintenance fatalities. Safety and health professionals serving the construction industry need adequate training and knowledge regarding available crane safety devices and procedures so that they may insure these techniques are effectively utilized during construction operations. This paper reviews available information on crane-related injuries, currently available safety devices, and commonly used crane safety procedures. Recommendations for improved crane injury prevention and future crane safety research are given.
This 4th edition of the text introducing the Precede-Proceed model provides extensive links (via www.lgreen.net) to the research and theory on which it has built since previous editions. A 5th edition is in progress, featuring new published applications of the model in community, school, and healthcare settings.
Background
Residential and commercial painters disturb lead paint on older buildings, exposing workers and potentially building occupants. An intervention strategy was evaluated for improving lead safety in these small businesses.Methods
Twenty-one painting contractors received 32 hr of training, technical assistance, and a safety manual; their employees attended an 8-hr training session. Impact evaluation involved interviewing participants at baseline, immediately post-intervention, and 1 year later, and conducting contractor focus groups post-intervention.ResultsEmployers met 15 of 27 target objectives and workers met 3 of 12; however, even in areas where objectives were not met, both groups made improvements.Conclusions
Motivated contractors and their employees can make moderate improvements in lead-safe practices if provided with extensive training and technical assistance. Changes that are costly, unfamiliar, or perceived as a threat to work quality are more difficult to implement. Am. J. Ind. Med. 41:119–130, 2002. Published 2002 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Problem: Compared to other industries, construction has the third-highest death rate. Many agree, and research has shown, that one way to change these statistics is through effective worker safety and health training. Little is known about the quality and nature of safety and health training available to open-shop (nonunion) construction workers. Method: It was the goal of this preliminary study to provide some initial background information about the nature and quality of safety and training in open-shop construction operations. Results: While the majority of contractors surveyed did provide safety and health training, most did not quantitatively evaluate their training programs in terms of reduction in hazardous behaviors or exposures, or increased job satisfaction or productivity. Impact on Industry: Learning about the major parameters (e.g., methods, policies, barriers, company/worker perceptions, etc.) influencing nonunion construction safety training will help guide future construction safety-related research and intervention strategies on a national basis.
A behavior-based approach to industrial safety management has been advocated by many authors and has been found to effectively improve safety performance in different industrial settings and on different continents. This paper reports on the implementation of a behavior-based safety management program in the Hong Kong construction industry. The behavior-based safety management techniques of performance measurement, participative goal setting, and the provision of performance feedback were introduced in a carefully controlled field experiment on seven public housing construction sites in Hong Kong. The paper describes this experiment and explains how the program was implemented. The results of the experiment were mixed. Behavior-based safety techniques were highly effective in bringing about improved performance in site housekeeping, but significant improvements in access to heights were only observed on two of the seven sites, and there was found to be no significant improvement in the use of bamboo scaffolding during the experimental intervention. The paper presents these results and discusses factors that may have contributed to the limited effectiveness of the techniques in the latter two performance categories.
Thirteen authors from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health contribute to this summary of recent and ongoing national occupational mortality surveillance studies of construction workers, including studies conducted under NIOSH's Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation project, Sentinel Health Events project, National Occupational Mortality Surveillance System, and other projects.
This report presents the results of proportionate mortality ratio (PMR) analyses and proportionate cancer mortality ratio (PCMR) analyses among the 11,685 members of the Laborers' International Union of North America (LIUNA), who died between 1985-1988, using U.S. proportionate mortality rates as the comparison population. Statistically significant elevated mortality risks were observed for all malignant neoplasms (N = 3285, PMR = 1.13, CI = 1.09-1.17), as well as for site-specific neoplasms of the lung (N = 1208, PCMR = 1.06, CI = 1.00-1.12), stomach (N = 170, PCMR = 1.44, CI = 1.23-1.68), and thyroid gland (N = 10, PCMR = 2.24, CI = 1.07-4.12). The PCMRs for these malignant neoplasms were elevated among both white and non-white males, regardless of length of union membership, in most 10-year categories of age at death above 40 and for the three largest LIUNA regions examined. The study also observed 20 mesothelioma deaths, which indicated that some LIUNA members had been previously exposed to asbestos. Statistically significant elevated risks were also observed for deaths from transportation injuries (N = 448, PMR = 1.37, CI = 1.25-1.51), falls (N = 85, PMR = 1.34, CI = 1.07-1.66), and other types of injuries (N = 245, PMR = 1.61, CI = 1.42-1.83). The deaths due to injuries were most often observed among those members who had the shortest amount of time within the union, were younger, and first entered the union after 1955. This is the first study that has examined the general mortality experience limited to construction laborers only (Bureau of Census code 869).
Work in the construction industry involves about a threefold increased risk of fatal injury compared with all industries combined. The purpose of this study was to identify potential risk factors for fatal injury in the construction industry in New Jersey. Multiple data sources including death certificates, medical examiner reports, Occupational Safety and Health fatality files, and Workers' Compensation reports were used to identify 200 construction-related fatalities in New Jersey during the years 1983 to 1989. All deaths were in men. The death rate was 14.5 per 100,000 employed person-years over the study period. Death rates tended to diminish with increasing age after 34 until age 65 when the death rate was the highest (27.7). Death rates were higher for Hispanics (34.8) and African-Americans (24) than whites (10.6). Ironworkers and roofers had highest rates (109.0 and 56.2, respectively) among specific occupational groups within the construction industry. The leading cause of death was falls (46%). These data suggest that intervention efforts directed toward workers at heights is needed. Further research is warranted to elucidate the factors contributing to the elevated fatality rate of workers over age 65, and to Hispanic and African-American workers.
Construction laborers have some of the highest death rates of any occupation in the United States. There has been very little systematic research focused exclusively on "laborers" as opposed to other workers in the construction industry. We reviewed the English language literature and various data bases describing the occupational tasks, exposures, and work-related health risks of construction laborers. The sources of information included 1) occupational mortality surveillance data collected by the states of California and Washington and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH); 2) National Occupational Exposure Survey; 3) national fatality data; 4) cancer registry data; and 5) case reports of specific causes of morbidity. While the literature reported that construction laborers have increased risk for mesothelioma, on-the-job trauma, acute lead poisoning, musculoskeletal injury, and dermatitis, the work relatedness of excess risks for all-cause mortality, cirrhosis, cerebrovascular disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, ischemic heart disease, and leukemia is less clear. Furthermore, while laborers are known to be potentially exposed to asbestos, noise, and lead, and the NIOSH Job Exposure Matrix describes other potential hazardous exposures, little research has characterized other possible exposures and no research has been found that describes the exposures associated with specific job tasks. More advanced study designs are needed that include a better understanding of the job tasks and exposures to construction laborers, in order to evaluate specific exposure-disease relationships and to develop intervention programs aimed at reducing the rate of work-related diseases.
Over 3700 occupational fatalities among all US construction laborers 16 years of age and older during 1980-1992 were analyzed from death certificates to identify differences in mortality rates, higher risk groups, and leading causes of death to be targeted for prevention and monitored over time. Female laborers had an average fatality rate (17.4 deaths/100,000 workers) similar to that for all male construction workers (17.3 deaths/100,000 workers), and ten times higher than for all female construction workers. On average, nonwhite laborers had 27% greater mortality than white laborers. Women were at a higher risk (10.8 deaths/100,000 workers) for motor vehicle injury than were men (6.1 deaths/100,000 workers). The smallest percentage annual decline in cause-specific mortality rates was from motor vehicle for construction laborers (0.1%) and all construction workers (1.4%). Environmental-related fatality rates for laborers rose an average of 0.8% annually. The average years of potential life lost (to age 65) ranged from 27.4 years from explosion to 34.3 years from electrocution. Prevention measures aimed at addressing the highest risk areas, along with research needs, are discussed. With over a quarter of construction fatalities occurring among laborers, occupational injury research on laborers should become a priority.
Analysis of 139 deaths to U.S. female construction workers identified from a death certificate-based surveillance system during 1980-1992 showed that female workers in transportation and material moving had 59 and 85% higher mortality rates than male construction workers in the same occupation from motor vehicles (the leading cause of occupational injury death for women, 43.2%) and machinery (the second leading cause of occupational injury death for women, 15.8%), respectively. Female handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers, and laborers had 73% higher mortality rates than their male counterparts from motor vehicles. Two-thirds of women in construction killed by motor vehicles were pedestrians, compared with an average of 19.2% of women in all industries. Half the female pedestrian decedents in construction were flaggers, compared with 3.4% of construction men killed by motor vehicles. Construction women had higher cause-specific years of potential life lost (to age 65 years) than construction men from motor vehicles (33 vs. 24.8), machinery (29 vs. 24.8), homicide (26.1 vs. 24.6), and falls (31.9 vs, 24.7). Over half (53.2%) the female fatalities occurred before age 35 years, compared with 46% for males. The average fatality rate of 1.80 per 100,000 workers for female construction workers was higher than the rate for women in any other industry. The average rate per 100,000 workers for all industries was 0.77. Further studies are required to explore factors contributing to differences in leading causes of death between female and male construction workers. Development and evaluation of prevention measures, such as effective traffic control in highway construction work zones, fall protection training, and machinery-operation training, could reduce the risks for fatal occupational injuries for construction workers, regardless of gender.
This study evaluated proportionate mortality patterns among all male construction workers in North Carolina who resided and died in North Carolina during the period 1988-1994. Proportionate Mortality Ratios (PMRs) and Proportionate Cancer Mortality Ratios (PCMRs) compared the number of deaths among male construction workers with the number of deaths expected based on the gender, race, and cause-specific mortality experience of the entire North Carolina population by five-year age groups for the same years of study. PMRs based on United States death rates also were calculated. Among all male construction workers, significantly elevated mortality was observed for several causes possibly related to work including malignant neoplasms of buccal cavity (PMR = 143), pharynx (PMR = 134), and lung (PMR = 113), pneumoconiosis (PMR = 111), transportation accidents (PMR = 106), and accidental falls (PMR = 132). Elevated mortality also was observed for causes more related to lifestyle and non-occupational factors including alcoholism (PMR = 145), cirrhosis of the liver (PMR = 129), accidental poisoning (PMR = 136), and homicide (PMR = 141). Patterns of elevated mortality for Whites and Black men were similar and PCMR mortality patterns for Blacks and Whites combined were similar to PMRs. Construction workers were at significantly increased risk for deaths resulting from falls from ladders or scaffolds, falls from or out of buildings or structures, and electrocutions. Construction trades found to have statistically elevated cancer risks include laborers and roofers (buccal cavity), painters (pharynx), laborers (peritoneum), and carpenters, painters, brick masons, and operating engineers (lung). These data are consistent with other reports demonstrating excess mortality from asbestos-related diseases (pneumoconiosis, lung cancer, and mesothelioma) among construction workers. Dry-wall workers and laborers were found to have a statistically elevated risk of death as a result of respiratory tuberculosis.
Construction is one of the largest industries in the United States, employing over 7.5 million people. It accounts for 3 times as many accidents as might be expected on a per capita basis. Laborers represent one of 15 job classifications participating in this industry. They have a higher risk of death or injury from a number of causes than do other construction workers.
Construction workers are at increased risk for fatal and non-fatal injuries. This study examined the effectiveness of employee orientation and training in reducing injuries among plumbers and pipefitters. We searched the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's "recordable" injury data and "documentable" safety and training records for six plumbing and pipefitting employers in northwestern Ohio. During the period 1996 to 1998, 133 injuries were recorded with the duration of 2,541,432 working hours. The most common types of injuries were cuts, lacerations, and abrasions. The majority of injuries resulted from workers being struck by objects. The injury rate was significantly higher for small companies and longer working hours. No difference was found between traveling and local workers. Seventy-five percent of workers received safety orientations on injury prevention. Among workers who received safety orientations, only 3.4% experienced injuries, compared with 11.1% of workers without orientations. Safety orientations were associated with a significant reduction in injuries (odds ratio, 0.23; 95% confidence interval, 0.15 to 0.35). Proper safety orientation and training could reduce the risks for occupational injuries in construction workers.
Occupational injury is a major public health problem and the cause of high rates of fatalities. The construction industry is one of the leading industries for on-the-job fatalities. The North Carolina Medical Examiner's system was used to identify all fatal unintentional injuries that occurred on the job in the state's construction industry between 1978 and 1994. The populations at risk were estimated from the 1980 and 1990 U.S. censuses. There were 525 identified deaths. All except two decedents were male, and the majority were Caucasian (79.2%). The mean age of decedents was 39 years. Death rates were higher among older workers. The crude fatality rate for the overall study period was 15.4 per 100,000 worker-years, with higher rates found among African-Americans (22.9) than among Caucasians (14.5). Occupations within the industry with the highest rates were laborers (49.5), truck drivers (43.2), operating engineers (37.2), roofers (32.8), and electricians (29.0). Falls (26.7%), electrocutions (20.4%), and motor vehicle accidents (18.9%) were found to be the leading causes of death. These findings suggest a need for continued attention to the hazards of heights and electric currents and a need for occupational safety standards for motor vehicles. This study also suggests that the hazards facing construction laborers require further investigation.
This project was conducted with a multicultural construction company in Hawaii, USA. The job duties performed included drywall and carpentry work. The following objectives were selected for this project: (a) fire prevention training and inspection of first aid equipment; (b) blood-borne pathogen training and risk evaluation; (c) ergonomic and risk evaluation intervention program; (d) electrical safety training and inspection program; (e) slips, trips, and falls safety training; (f) stress assessment and Personal Profile System; (g) safety and health program survey; (h) improving employee relations and morale by emphasizing spirituality; and (i) computer-assisted biofeedback stress management training. Results of the project indicated that observed safety hazards, reported injuries, and levels of perceived stress. were reduced for the majority of the population.
A 24-week experiment was conducted to assess how first aid training affects the motivation of small business construction industry employees in avoiding occupational injuries and illnesses and its effect on their occupational health and safety behavior. A simplified multiple baseline design across workplace settings was used to evaluate the effects of first aid training. Participants' motivation to control occupational safety and health risks was explored during in-depth interviews before and after receipt of first aid training. Objective measurement of occupational safety and health behavior was conducted by a researcher directly observing the workplace before and after participants received first aid training.
The observations at participants' worksites suggested that, for the most part, the first aid training had a positive effect on the occupational safety and health behavior of participants. First aid training appeared to reduce participants' "self--other" bias, making them more aware that their own experience of occupational safety and health risks is not beyond their control but that their own behavior is an important factor in the avoidance of occupational injury and illness. First aid training also appeared to reduce participants' willingness to accept prevailing levels of occupational safety and health risk and increase the perceived probability that they would suffer a work-related injury or illness. Participants expressed greater concern about taking risks at work after receiving first aid training.
It appears that first aid training enhances participants' motivation to avoid occupational injuries and illnesses and improves their risk control behavior. The implications of this are that first aid training can have a positive preventive effect and could complement traditional occupational health and safety training programs. As such, there may be benefit in providing first aid training to all employees rather than limiting this training to a small number of designated "first aiders."