Wellington Didi Thwala

Application of Modified Statistical Triangle of Accident Causation in Construction Health and Safety

The purpose of the paper is to presents a review of literature on safety hazard identification and possible preventive measures in the construction industry. Unidentified hazards in the construction industry are likely to present the most unavoidable risks. Therefore, hazard identification is paramount to construction safety management since risk assessment is the practical means by which hazardous events are managed. Safety hazard identification in the construction industry towards the improvement of employee’s health and safety (H&S). Unidentified hazards in the construction industry are likely to present the most unavoidable risks. Therefore, hazard identification is paramount to construction safety management since risk assessment is the practical means by which hazardous events are managed. The study is mainly literature review with reference to existing theoretical literature, published and unpublished research. The paper presents an overview of hazards and accident causation. The findings from the study have shown that falls at construction sites are the leading cause of death and most of these deaths were attributed to falls from roofs, scaffolds, and ladders. Construction accidents lead to delay in project completion, increase the expenses and ruin the reputation and reliability of constructors. The following were identified as some of the barriers to H&S improvement: lack of information sharing across projects, full-time safety department, subjective nature of hazard identification and risk assessment. The study explores safety hazard identification in the construction industry towards the improvement of employee’s H&S. The study presents a strong background on hazard identification in the construction safety management.

Contractors’ Organisational Culture Towards Health and Safety Compliance in Ghana

Most of the major incidents and personal injuries on construction sites have been attributed to poor safety culture. The purpose of the study was to examine the contractors’ organisational culture towards Health and Safety (H&S) compliance in Ghana. The study adopted Delphi survey method of data collection. Expert (academics and professionals) were asked to rate the impact of other factors in predicting contractors’ contribution that will lead to the overall compliance with H&S regulations. Findings from the study show eleven measurement variables, only one measurement variable (communication of H&S information to workers)was considered by the experts to have reached consensus with IQD cut-off (IQD ≤ 1) score. Four measurement attributes also reached consensus based on the median score of (9–10) and seven other measurement attributes reached consensus based on the median score of (7–8.99). Five out of the eleven variables were ranked by the experts as the most pressing issues on H&S compliance. It can be concluded from the findings that contractors’ organisational culture towards H&S compliance has a high impact to the overall H&S regulations in Ghana.

Contractor’s Health and Safety Practices Model

Small and medium-sized (SME) contractors’ form the bulk of contractors in the in Ghanaian construction industry. SME’s contractors’ health and safety issues have been a major problem to the construction industry. The laid down rules for health and safety (HS with two factors having five variables and five factors have four variables each respectively. One factor has three variables.

Framework for Small and Medium-Sized Contractors Growth

Small and medium sized enterprise (SME) contractors form the bedrock of economic growth in all countries. This study presents a framework for the selection of projects towards the growth of SME contractors in the Cape Coast Metropolis of Ghana. Sixty questionnaires were administered among the SME contractors and forty-seven questionnaires were returned, representing 78.3%. Findings from the study showed that project selection should be done in careful manner for SME’s, resources should not be tied up in less significant activities and the SME management should take decisions that are feasible for the growth and expansion of the company. It was concluded that the development of the final framework work will serve as a guide in predicting the growth of SME contractors in within the study area.

Influential Factors of Unsafe Acts of Contractors in Cape Coast Metropolis

Human factor has been identified as the most prevailing and contributing factor to high rate of accidents in the construction industry. Inappropriate operation and misappropriate use of equipment among employees have also been identified as the major roots causes. The paper identifies acts that lead to accident among contractors’ on construction sites in Cape Coast Metropolis. Data were collected through administrating of questionnaires, and analysed using descriptive statistics and ranking. Findings show that 85% of the respondents had the required knowledge and skills to prevent accidents on construction and likewise towards unsafe acts practices on site. Further findings show that the most outstanding acts that lead to accidents among contractors within the metropolis are: working without presence of a supervisor/authority on the job, with a standard deviation of 1.053, followed by working under the influence of alcohol and other substances, with standard deviation of 0.900 and smoking, creating naked flame or sparks in areas where flammable materials are stored, with a standard deviation of 0.894. The least among the ranking of the acts that lead to accidents are leaving nails or other sharp objects from timber, with a standard deviation of 0.503 and unsafe acts is the most significant factor in the cause of site accident, with a standard deviation of 0.587. The outcome of the research findings will assist safety personnel in the application of appropriate mitigation measures that will minimize unsafe acts of employees within a working environment.

Government Support towards Health and Safety: A Multi-Method Approach Analysis

This study aims to carry out a confirmatory factor analysis on government support features among small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) contractors in Ghana. Data were obtained from 558 SMEs contractors in Ghana through a structural questionnaire survey. Data collected were analyzed using structural equation modelling (SEM). The results obtained were used to confirm the factorial structure of the constructs. The SEM analysis confirmed that the Rio coefficient and the Cronbach’s alpha coefficient on the internal consistency were over 0.70 criteria for acceptability. The influence of government support features on the health and safety (H&S) compliance was found to be statistically significant, hence strong in predicting H&S compliance among SMEs contractors. This paper makes a significant contribution to supporting government features among SMEs contractors, and more importantly, provides a significant insight into how H&S compliance among SMEs contractors could be improved.