Exploring ‘Zero Target’ safety programmes in the UK construction industry

Abstract

Zero Target safety management programmes have become prominent on the UK sites of large construction contractors, who promote ‘Zero Harm’, ‘Mission Zero’ or ‘Target Zero’ on their hoardings and corporate websites. However, while Zero Target programmes may inspire increased commitment to safety from some, they may also cause detachment in others who feel it an unattainable goal for a high-risk industry. Examination of the practical realities of such Zero Target safety programmes has been undertaken, to illuminate and understand their position and potential impact on UK construction site health and safety management. A social constructionist methodology was employed, with discourse analysis of corporate websites, reports and promotional materials from five large contractors currently operating Zero Target safety programmes on their UK sites, supplemented by conversations with site management and operatives working on such sites. Zero was constructed as both a philosophy and a target, the corporate and site voices developing alternative visions of zero in practice. There is incoherence and inconsistency within the understandings of zero, which may affect the practical successes of Zero Target safety programmes, but zero was also found to have a very necessary place within industry safety management, in order to support future improvements in practice.