ASSESSING THE IMPACT OF OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY PRACTICE

ON THE LIVES OF CONSTRUCTION WORKERS.A CASE STUDY OF CONSA

LIMITED

FEBRUARY, 2017
 CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of the study

Construction is widely regarded as an accident-prone industry (as explained in a study of 100

individual construction accidents by Haslam et al., 2005 and a textbook on occupational health

and safety in construction project management by Lingard and Rowlinson, 2005). The reasons

construction is risky and prone to health and safety risks are because of the physical environment

of the work, nature of the construction work operations, construction methods, construction

materials, heavy equipment used, and physical properties of the construction project itself. There

are statutory instruments and legislative frameworks in many developed countries to govern

construction operations on site and help in minimizing health and safety hazards, for example,

the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2007 (S.I. 2007/No. 320) Regulations

on Health and Safety in the UK construction industry.

However, the characteristics of construction in developing countries are not the same as

characteristics of construction in developed countries (as explained in characteristics of

construction projects in developing countries by Jaselskis and Talukhaba, 1998). Hence, Health

and Safety policies and procedures may vary and needs to be contextualized. In 2000, the Labour

Department (2000: 22) reported that the construction industry in Ghana accounted for the highest

rate of occupational deaths in comparison to other industrial sectors.

The main health and safety site requirements in construction relate to tidy sites and decent

welfare, falls from height, manual handling, and transport on site. Site operatives are normally
required to plan and organize their operations, ensure that they are trained and competent and

know the special risks of their trade and raise problems with their site supervisor or safety

representative (HSE, 2009).

The main personal protective equipment (PPE) in construction (including clothing affording

protection against the weather) which is intended to be worn or held by a person at work and

which protects him against one or more risks to his health or safety. PPE should be regarded as a

last resort when considering control measures. Other methods should be considered and used

that will reduce or eliminate risk to injury. However, where PPE is the only effective means of

controlling the risks of injury or ill health, then employers must ensure that PPE is available. PPE

should be worn at all construction sites. A typical construction site may require workers to wear

a hard hat, coveralls, safety footwear, gloves, eye protection and high visibility vest. These must

be provided to all employees.

The latest statistics on work-related health and safety show that 2million people are suffering

from an illness they believe was caused or made worse by work, with approximately 30million

days (1.3 days per employee) lost per year due to work related ill health or injury. It is clear

from this figure that work related ill-health, accidents and injury present a significant cost to the

Ghanaian economy and employers, as well as to individual employees and their families who

experience the personal impact of work related health and safety issues - an impact which may

be felt long after the event.

Despite the obvious need to manage health and safety proactively, some organizations do not

give it the priority it deserves. This may be due to lack of knowledge, skills and motivation, or to

limited staff resources. Cost is also an important issue, with companies feeling that they lack the

capital necessary to make proper investment in health and safety and failing to appreciate the
importance of this investment. Likewise, few companies measure or understand how investment

in health and safety may affect the organization in terms of measurable outcomes is partly due to

the challenges inherent in establishing exactly how effective occupational health and safety

management is related to organizational performance.

1.2 Statement of the Problem

The state of health and safety needs on construction sites of CONSA Limited revealed a poor

state of health and safety needs on the sites. The working environment was not tidy and safe for

movement by both vehicles and workers. The main Personal and Protective Equipment (PPE) in

every construction site which is intended to be worn or held by a person at work and which

protects him against one or more risks to his health and safety were absent. A typical

construction site may require workers to wear a helmet, coveralls, safety footwear, gloves, eye

protection and high visibility vest these, workers seldom wear. Interviews with workers

indicated that injuries and accidents were common on sites. However; compensation for injury is

often at the discretion of the site Engineer although collective bargaining agreements between

Labour Unions and employers prescribe obligations for the contractors in the event of injury to a

worker. Specifically, the Labour Act mandates all employers to establish best practice that

promotes among others, positive safety health and environmental outcomes. Safety programmes

deal with the prevention of accidents and with minimizing the resulting loss and damage to

persons and property. They relate more to systems of work than the working environment, but

both health and safety programmes are concerned with protection against hazards and their aims

and methods are clearly interlinked. (Armstrong, M 2007 p829) Work-related accidents or

diseases are very costly and can have many serious direct and indirect effects on the lives of
workers and their families. For workers in CONSA Limited some of the direct costs of an injury

or illness are:

i. the pain and suffering of the injury or illness;

ii. the loss of income;

iii. the possible loss of a job;

iv. health care costs.

It has been estimated that the indirect costs of an accident or illness can be four to ten times

greater than the direct costs, or even more. An occupational illness or accident can have so many

indirect costs to workers that it is often difficult to measure them. One of the most obvious

indirect costs is the human suffering caused to workers' families, which cannot be compensated

with money. Overall, the costs of most work-related accidents or illnesses to workers and their

families and to employers are very high. On a national scale, the estimated costs of occupational

accidents and illnesses can be as high as three to four percent of a country's gross national

product. In reality, no one really knows the total costs of work-related accidents or diseases

because there are a multitude of indirect costs which are difficult to measure besides the more

obvious direct costs. (Neequaye, 2012) CONSA Con.Ltd

1.3 Objectives of the Study

The objectives of this study are to;

i. ascertain whether workers at CONSA Limited wear or use their health and safety gadgets

while at work.

ii. identify some best practices of organizational safety and health issues and how they

impact on business performance.

 iii. investigate employees awareness and attitudes to occupational health issues.

iv. analyse the consequences of poor working environment and the impact on workers.

1.4 Research Questions

1. How does management of CONSA limited ensure that workers wear or use health and

safety equipments provided them?

2. What are some best practices of organizational safety and health needs and how do they

impact on the lives of workers?

3. How well are employees aware of safety and health issues at CONSA Limited?

4. What are some of the possible or likely consequences if workers fail to use health and

safety gadgets?

1.5 Significance of the study

This study will help the management and workers of CONSA limited to have full access to

health and safety needs at their workplace. Workers would be motivated by health and safety

gadgets provided, thereby putting in much effort to achieve organizational goals. Again, the fear

of getting injured while on duty would be erased because workers would have access to adequate

health and safety needs. Other companies would also benefit from the study by providing health

and safety needs to their workers due to the fear of loosing workers to their competitors.

1.6 Methodology

Three (3) construction sites of CONSA limited will be visit to help in answering the research

questions. At each of the sites, a full inspection of the construction site and workers activities

will be carried out. Data will be collected with the help of a field note book containing a set of

Health and Safety indicators derived from the literature on internationally acceptable health and
safety standards and provisions on construction sites. Site personnel will be interviewed for

explanations on the things observed at the various sites visited. Those interviewed will included

site engineers, foremen, artisans and workers. The site engineers and operators will be interview

with open ended questions to ascertain the extent of observations and to find out in greater detail

the reason(s) underlying the observations. In most cases, the site supervisors will be aware of the

theoretical requirements for Health and Safety on site.

1.7 Scope of the study

Provision of health and safety needs for workers by employers vary and this widely depends on

hazards that workers are exposed to. This study is delimited to the assessment of the impact of

health and safety needs of workers of a construction company based in Kumasi. An analysis of

this study would be made solely on one hundred and twenty (120) workers in Kumasi.

1.8 Limitations of the study

The study could have covered the entire company and its branches throughout Ghana because of

the benefit, it will hold for management and workers. However, owing to time and financial

constraints the study will be limited to the Kumasi branch.

1.8 Organization of the study

The research work will be divided into five (5) chapters. Chapter one will concerns itself with

the general introduction grouped under the following headings; Background to the study,

Statement of the problem, Objectives of the study, Significance of the study, Research questions

and Organization of the study. Chapter two will involves the review of various related literatures

on the relevant subject under the study. Chapter three will also include the various methods used

for collecting data for the research work. These methods include administration of
questionnaires, interviews, observation etc. Chapter four however will presents results,

discussions and provides analysis of the data gathered for the study. Finally, the fifth chapter will

provide conclusions and recommendations.