Unintended Consequences of Productivity Improvement Strategies on Safety Behaviour of Construction Labourers; A Step toward the Integration of Safety and Productivity

Nariman Ghodrati,Saeed Talebi,Tak Wing Yiu,Mani Poshdar,Samad M E Sepasgozar,Faris Elghaish,Suzanne Wilkinson

doi:10.3390/buildings12030317

Abstract

The construction industry is facing constant pressure to improve its poor safety record and low productivity rate. A significant amount of research has been undertaken to identify the best practices to enhance productivity and safety. Nevertheless, the mainstream research in the field of construction focuses on one of these issues rather than implementing a holistic approach to resolve them. Consequently, the interactions between productivity and safety cannot be fully understood. Recent studies have demonstrated that management strategies and practices for improving labour productivity can trigger a series of unintended consequences that affect safety performance in construction projects. However, the behavioural aspects of these unintended consequences have yet to be investigated. This research addresses the gap by measuring the impacts of seven management strategies for improving labour productivity on the safety behaviour of construction labourers. A total of 191 construction labourers participated in a survey designed based on the Management Strategy Assessment Index (MSAI). The results show that the implemented management strategies for improving labour productivity have a greater impact on shaping safety compliance (SC) behaviours than safety participation (SP) behaviours of labourers. This study took a further step by breaking down the management strategies to their constitutive practices and measuring their impacts on SC and SP, and labour productivity. This paper provides further insight into the complex relationship between the productivity and safety behaviour of construction labourers. The findings can help project managers to improve labour productivity without harming their safety unintentionally.

Highlights

The construction industry is a labour-intensive sector, where most of its activities are highly dependent on its workforce
This study delved into the complex relationship between safety and labour productivity in the construction industry by investigating the impacts of management strategies for improving labour productivity and the practice on the safety behaviour of labourers
In a complex and dynamic working environment such as a construction site, management strategies and practices for improving labour productivity can trigger a series of unintended consequences that affect individuals who work on the site

Summary

Introduction

The construction industry is a labour-intensive sector, where most of its activities are highly dependent on its workforce. This situation puts labour productivity and its improvement into the spotlight for the project managers [1–3]. Most fatal accidents are caused or at least influenced by upstream decisions [6,26,27] These upstream decisions and management practices shape the working conditions on construction sites [28]. The effectiveness of safety management interventions to prevent accidents are significantly affected by upstream decisions and managerial factors [29]. Hare et al [30] suggest that management practices can have a greater impact on safety than safety policies do This demonstrates the importance of integrating safety into project management to achieve productive and safe projects

Objectives

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion