Culture & Well-being in Construction

In the construction industry, safety and personal well-being must be paramount. In 2018, 23% of construction workers in Australia were injured at work, meaning they took over 1.2 million days off work. Almost 35 people lost their lives on site - an increase of 8 billion every year.

The construction industry must focus on creating a positive psychological environment to create a safe and well-being culture. The company must work on ensuring every builder is rewarded equally for their hard work. In this blog, we look at two ways construction can do this: by providing great health & safety training and preventing job insecurity.

Providing Great Health & Safety Training

Health and safety are paramount to the success of any construction project; it requires that all parties involved act in a certain way, follow specific protocols and report any accidents or concerns at once. If personal safety is not prioritised on-site, serious incidents can occur, resulting in multiple fatalities or serious injuries.

The Government recognises that "there needs to be a cultural shift in attitude towards health and safety at work." The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) statistics show that the cost of all incidents due to issues with people's behaviour was around 6.1 billion dollars. 23% of these behaviours were down to poor communication, while another 15% were down to a lack of basic safety procedures.

Preventing Job Insecurity

There have been many documented tragedies on site due to the negligence of one or more parties involved. For this reason, every worker must have the correct training to understand their roles and responsibilities while on site.

Construction Training Online outlines that there are vital factors that need to be considered when designing a health & safety policy:

1. Manage the risks on-site

2. Implement your management system

3. Provide workers with the relevant information, instruction and guidance

4. Ensure management and supervision is actively carried out

5. Maintain your health and safety management system

6. Review and record the information you hold

7. Communicate (and consult with) your workers, suppliers and clients

8. Ensure everyone knows the relevant policy

9. Provide at least basic training to all new starters - and refresher training as required.

These guidelines provide a comprehensive list of steps that can be taken to ensure the best chance of avoiding injury on site. Employers should ensure that risk assessments are carried out regularly, and every worker is fully aware of their responsibilities to share information about safety concerns or incidents which may have occurred.

Wrapping up

All workers deserve to feel safe at work - this applies to those on permanent contracts and casuals, temporary staff, and sub-contractors. Without the proper training and supervision, people run a risk of injury, which affects their livelihood and personal lives. With construction being such an important sector for the Australian economy, we must prioritise health and safety on-site to keep everyone safe - including clients, visitors and members of the general public.