Preface xi
1 The State of Work Health and Safety in Construction 1
1.1 The Construction Safety Problem 1
1.2 The Neglect of Occupational Health 6
1.3 The Evolution of Workplace Safety 7
1.4 An Integrated Approach to WHS in Construction 10
1.4.1 Fragmented Supply Arrangements 10
1.4.2 Flexible Labour Processes and Precarious Employment 12
1.4.3 Cultural Characteristics of the Construction Industry 13
1.5 Structure of the Book 14
Discussion and Review Questions 16
2 The Client’s Role in Improving Workplace Health and Safety 17
Helen Lingard, Nick Blismas, Tiendung Le, David Oswald, and James Harley
2.1 Can Clients Influence Construction Workers’ Health and Safety? 17
2.2 The Role of Governments as Policy Makers and Major Purchasers 19
2.3 The Model Client Framework 20
2.3.1 Principle 1: Develop a Project Culture that Enables WHS 20
2.3.2 Principle 2: Leadership and Commitment 21
2.3.3 Principle 3: Develop Cooperative Relationships 21
2.3.4 Principle 4: Promote WHS in Planning and Design 21
2.3.5 Principle 5: Consult with and Communicate WHS Information to Project Stakeholders 21
2.3.6 Principle 6: Manage WHS Risks and Hazards 22
2.3.7 Principle 7: Maintain Effective WHS Measures Across the Project Lifecycle 22
2.3.8 Principle 8: Monitor and Evaluate WHS Performance 22
2.4 The Model Client Project Process Map 29
2.5 WHS and Price Competition 34
2.6 Project Commercial Frameworks and WHS 36
2.6.1 Choice of Contracting Strategy 37
2.6.2 Financial Incentive Mechanisms 40
2.7 The Potential for Unintended Consequences of Client WHS Activity 42
2.8 The Overriding Importance of Relationships 45
2.9 Conclusions 45
Discussion and Review Questions 46
Acknowledgements 46
3 Designing Safe and Healthy Products and Processes 47
Helen Lingard, Nick Blismas, and Payam Pirzadeh
3.1 Safety in Design 47
3.2 The Case for Safety in Design 47
3.3 How Important Is Design as a Cause of Construction Incidents? 49
3.4 The Policy Response 52
3.5 Challenges Inherent in Safety in Design 54
3.5.1 Sociotechnical Complexity 54
3.5.2 Vertical Segregation 57
3.5.3 Confusion Between Product and Process Design 57
3.5.4 Knowledge Issues 58
3.5.5 Oversimplified Assumptions 59
3.6 The Case for Integration 61
3.6.1 Early and Effective Consideration of Safety in Design 61
3.6.2 Integrating Process and Product Knowledge 64
3.7 Integrating Mechanisms 68
3.7.1 Collaborative Project Delivery Mechanisms 68
3.7.2 Sharing Knowledge 68
3.7.3 Infographics and Visual Communication 69
3.8 Conclusions 71
Discussion and Review Questions 72
Acknowledgement 72
4 Construction Workers’ Health 73
Helen Lingard and Michelle Turner
4.1 Introduction 73
4.1.1 A Neglected Issue 73
4.1.2 An Integrated Approach to Managing Workers’ Health 74
4.2 Work and Health 77
4.3 Organizational Issues and the Design of Work 79
4.4 Workplace Risk Factors 80
4.4.1 Musculoskeletal Disorders 80
4.4.2 Noise 80
4.4.3 Chemicals 80
4.4.4 Airborne Hazards 81
4.4.5 Emerging Hazards 83
4.4.6 Psychosocial Hazards 84
4.5 The Management of Occupational Health 84
4.6 The Health of Construction Workers 86
4.6.1 The Health Profile of Construction Workers 86
4.6.2 Mental Health 89
4.6.3 Resilience 90
4.6.4 Suicide 90
4.7 The Need to Understand Health Behaviour in Context 92
4.7.1 Ecological Approach to Health 92
4.7.2 Interaction Between Work and Family 95
4.7.3 Masculine Work Cultures 96
4.7.4 Work Ability and Work–Life Fit 96
4.7.5 Health and Work Ability 96
4.8 Organizational Responses to Support Health 97
4.9 Conclusions 102
Discussion and Review Questions 102
Acknowledgements 102
5 Cultures that Enable Work Health and Safety 105
Helen Lingard, Rita Peihua Zhang, Nick Blismas, and James Harley
5.1 A Culture of Health and Safety 105
5.2 What Is Culture and Why Is It Important? 106
5.3 Problems Inherent in the Term ‘Safety Culture’ 106
5.4 Organizational Culture as an Enabler of Safety 108
5.5 Different Approaches to Understanding Cultural Influences on Health and Safety 109
5.6 Multiple Layers of Organizational Culture 110
5.7 Understanding Cultural Influences on Health and Safety 112
5.7.1 Rethink the Way Culture Influences Health and Safety 112
5.7.2 Understand Culture as a Layered Phenomenon 112
5.7.3 Adopt a Multimethod Approach 113
5.7.4 Appreciate Culture as a Differentiated Concept 113
5.8 The Australian Constructors Association’s Cultural Maturity Model 113
5.8.1 Component 1: Leadership 114
5.8.2 Component 2: Communication 116
5.8.3 Component 3: Organizational Goals and Values 118
5.8.4 Component 4: Supportive Environment 118
5.8.5 Component 5: Responsibility, Authority, and Accountability 120
5.8.6 Component 6: Learning 121
5.8.7 Component 7: Trust in People and Systems 124
5.8.8 Component 8: Resilience 125
5.8.9 Component 9: Engagement 126
5.9 The Organizational Culture Maturity Continuum 127
5.10 Conclusions 129
Discussion and Review Questions 141
Acknowledgements 141
6 Understanding and Applying Health and Safety Metrics 143
Helen Lingard, Rita Peihua Zhang, Payam Pirzadeh, and Nick Blismas
6.1 The Measurement Problem 143
6.2 Why Measure Work Health and Safety Performance? 144
6.3 Different Types of Performance Indicator 144
6.4 Lag Indicators 145
6.5 Alternative Indicators 147
6.6 What Leads and What Lags? 148
6.7 Safety Climate Measurement 151
6.7.1 Assumptions About Uniformity 152
6.7.2 Assumptions About Stability 154
6.7.3 Safety Climate Types 155
6.7.4 The Need to Understand Safety Climate in the Social Context in Which It Occurs 156
6.8 Safety in Design Metrics 157
6.9 Classifying Health and Safety Risk Controls Based on Their Effectiveness 158
6.9.1 Step 1: Identifying Relevant ‘Features of Work’ 158
6.9.2 Step 2: Identifying Construction Activities and Tasks with Work Health and Safety Implications 158
6.9.3 Step 3: Categorizing Hazards Associated with the Construction Activities 158
6.9.4 Step 4: Identifying Risk Control Options for Each of the Hazards 159
6.9.5 Step 5: Classifying and Scoring the Risk Controls Using the HOC 159
6.10 Using HOC Method for Comparison 166
6.11 Conclusions 169
Discussion and Review Questions 170
Acknowledgements 171
7 Managing Work Health and Safety: Rethinking Rules and Worker Engagement 173
Helen Lingard, and James Harley
7.1 Introduction 173
7.1.1 Managing Work Health and Safety 173
7.1.2 Contrasting Viewpoints About How to Achieve WHS 174
7.2 What Is Human Error? 176
7.3 Human Error Types 177
7.4 Active Errors and Latent Conditions 179
7.5 Human Error – A Cause or Symptom of Failure? 181
7.6 Rules as a Means of Controlling Behaviour 182
7.7 Rule Violations 183
7.8 Why Do People Break the Rules? 184
7.9 The Importance of Rule Management 188
7.10 Conclusions 195
Discussion and Review Questions 196
Acknowledgements 196
8 An Integrated Approach to Reducing the Risk of Work?Related Musculoskeletal Disorders 197
Helen Lingard
8.1 Introduction 197
8.2 The Prevalence of WMSDs in Construction 198
8.3 Risk Factors for WMSDs 199
8.3.1 Steel Reinforcement Fixing 200
8.3.2 Concreting/Screeding 201
8.3.3 Floor Laying 201
8.3.4 Mechanical and Electrical System Installation 202
8.3.5 Plant Operating 202
8.3.6 Masonry 203
8.4 Psychosocial Work Stressors and WMSD 203
8.5 Cultural Influences 206
8.6 Ergonomic Interventions in Construction 207
8.7 Designing for Reduced WMSDs 210
8.8 Measuring the Risk of WMSDs 212
8.9 Participatory Ergonomics 217
8.10 Conclusions 219
Discussion and Review Questions 220
Acknowledgements 220
9 Considerations for the Future of Construction Work Health and Safety 221
9.1 Rethinking Traditional Ways of Working 221
9.2 Dealing with Emerging Issues 224
9.3 Improving the Quality of Construction Jobs 225
9.4 Managing WHS as an Integral Part of Work 227
9.5 Focusing Effort Where It Matters 228
9.6 Fostering Collaboration with Regard to Work Health and Safety 230
9.7 Considering Construction as a Complex Sociotechnical System 232
9.8 Concluding Remarks 236
Discussion and Review Questions 236
References 239
Index 275
