Health and Safety Management - PDF

Health and Safety Management 1
DISSERTATION ON HEALTH AND SAFETY MANAGEMENT FOR CONSTRUCTION
PROJECTS IN MYANMAR
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Course
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Institution
Location
Date

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ABSTRACT
The research involves an evaluation of the significance of Health and Safety Management in
construction projects in a construction firm located in Myanmar. The chief purpose of this
research task is to determine whether the implementation of health and safety measures put in
place can help to come up with a successful construction project. It attempts to explain the
variations which can be applied on construction sites to help reduce the risks, hazards and
injuries that are experienced in construction industries. Besides, the research provides
recommendations of how risks that are experienced in construction industries can be reduced
(Tjale, 2016).
Recently, substantial attention has been drawn towards the health and safety environments of
employees in construction industries resulting from increased number of accidents that occur at
construction sites. Hence, this paper presents health and safety management systems that help to
curb and minimize these accidents. Consequently, the present and potential risks have been
identified and critically analysed. Other modern ways of minimizing the risk have also been
suggested (Brandt, 2014).
The results from this paper clearly demonstrate issues that are related to construction industries
and provides a recommendation on how they can be improved.
Key terms
Health, construction industry, safety, accidents.
Chapter summary
This part provides a brief overview of the whole task that the researcher has covered. It explains
what generally is contained in the dissertation and hence acts as a fulfilment that the research has

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been well covered according to the set aims and objectives of the research question (Tryon,
2012).
Contents
ABSTRACT........................................................................................................................2
Key terms.......................................................................................................................2
Chapter summary...........................................................................................................2
Chapter 1.............................................................................................................................4
INTRODUCTION...............................................................................................................4
Study background..........................................................................................................4
Problem statement.........................................................................................................6
Study area......................................................................................................................8
Structure of the Research..............................................................................................8
Research Aim...............................................................................................................10
The Research Question...............................................................................................10
Objectives.....................................................................................................................10
Chapter summary.........................................................................................................10
Chapter 2: LITERATURE REVIEW.................................................................................12
Introduction...................................................................................................................12
Definitions.....................................................................................................................12
Defining health and safety management........................................................................12
What is safety management?.........................................................................................13
Scope of construction industry.....................................................................................15
Problems faced in construction industry......................................................................16
Occupational health and safety....................................................................................17

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Occupational risk factors..............................................................................................17
Occupational risks factors in construction................................................................19
The monitoring of procurement....................................................................................20
Vetting bidders for contracts........................................................................................21
Regulations related to the construction accidents.......................................................22
Strategic decisions construction industry.......................................................................24
Decision-making processes.........................................................................................24
Client and Stakeholder decision making........................................................................24
Construction industry Decision-making....................................................................24
Stakeholder management............................................................................................25
Stakeholder identification.............................................................................................25
Stakeholder interests...................................................................................................25
Stakeholder influence...................................................................................................26
Stakeholder communication.........................................................................................26
Stakeholder and client coordination.............................................................................26
Stakeholder theory.......................................................................................................26
Stakeholder definition...................................................................................................27
Chapter summary.........................................................................................................28
Chapter 3: METHODOLOGY...........................................................................................29
Introduction...................................................................................................................29
Ontology, Epistemology and Axiology.........................................................................29
Ontology....................................................................................................................29
Objectivism...............................................................................................................30
Subjectivism..............................................................................................................30
Justification between Objectivism and Subjectivism....................................................31

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Research Philosophy...................................................................................................31
Positivism..................................................................................................................31
Interpreters’ philosophy............................................................................................32
Critical realism..........................................................................................................32
Postmodernism..........................................................................................................32
Pragmatism...............................................................................................................33
Justification of Research Philosophy...........................................................................33
Research approach......................................................................................................33
Selection and justification of Research Approach......................................................34
Research design..........................................................................................................35
Qualitative research design...........................................................................................35
Quantitative research design.........................................................................................35
Mixed methods research design.....................................................................................36
Selection and justification of Research Design............................................................36
Research Strategy........................................................................................................36
Selection and justification of Research Strategy......................................................37
Time Horizon................................................................................................................37
Cross-sectional studies..................................................................................................38
Longitudinal studies.....................................................................................................38
Justification of Time Horizon selected...........................................................................38
Data collection method.................................................................................................38
Primary data collection method.................................................................................38
Secondary data collection method..............................................................................39
Selection and justification of Data collection methods.................................................39
Targeted Audiences.......................................................................................................40

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Population size..............................................................................................................41
Research ethics............................................................................................................41
Chapter summary.........................................................................................................41
Chapter 4: DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS..........................................................43
Introduction...................................................................................................................43
Survey questionnaire respond rate..............................................................................44
Survey Questions.........................................................................................................45
Interviews.....................................................................................................................61
Discussion and analysis...................................................................................................62
Analysis and discussions.............................................................................................67
Chapter summary............................................................................................................67
Chapter 5: CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS................................................68
Shortcomings of Study.................................................................................................68
Conclusion....................................................................................................................68
Recommendations.......................................................................................................69
Chapter summary.........................................................................................................70
References.......................................................................................................................71

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Chapter 1
INTRODUCTION
Construction industries plays a key role in the development of any country such that the fate of
the country relies on the state of its national construction industries. This is as a result of the
linkages between the construction industry and the state. The linkages maybe forward linkages
which means the utilization of the construction facilities for economic purposes such as business.
Besides, the linkages can also be backward which means the materials that are used in the
construction firms and the economical services from the state (Barrett, 2012).
This chapter clearly elaborates the major risks that normally arise as a result of human factors
and the machinery. Besides, the research paper stipulates the advantages of adopting the
internationally accepted safety and health management standards which will consequently help
in alleviating the accidents, injuries and hazards that are experienced in the construction
industries. Moreover, the research clarifies the great role that construction industries play in the
advancement of the national economy (Tryon, 2010).
Study background
In all workplaces be it small in size or big, there exists presence of accidents that may be human-
related or emanating from other external factors since all tasks in one way or the other expose the
workers to a hazardous situation such as risky machinery, electricity, chemical exposure and also
high construction sites. A research in 2014 revealed that annually a high percentage of accidents
that occur in workplaces are majorly human-caused accidents. Despite putting in the limelight
the modern techniques that helps in curbing the accidents seems difficult to most companies, all
will agree that health and safety are of great significance. (Coble, 2015)

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In many countries, the construction industry plays a vital part of the economy and mostly it is
considered a source of money among the developed nations. Over the past, the construction
business has been deliberated as one of the most unsafe and dangerous productions due to the
increasing rate of occurrence of the number of fatalities and accidents worldwide. In many
situations, the laborers have had the tendency to concentrate more on the work while ignoring
the various safety and health practices (Board, 2013).
Thus safety and health can be view as both a humanitarian and financial concern that requires set
rules and standards that should be adhered to strictly. There have been personnel’s in the
construction industry that has neglected some of the simple and crucial things that are concerned
with health and safety of an industry. For instance, the construction administration at times do
believe that issuance of adequate and appropriate measures in relation to health and safety
management will inflate the cost of construction in a particular site which immensely affects
them (Barrett, 2015)
Contrarily, evidences have demonstrated that the urge for qualitative and quantitative
development in construction health and safety reasonably accumulates the benefits through
means of making the profits and enhancing agent affirmation as well as lessening wearing out.
The employees in construction working environments are usually exposed to pressures of related
injuries, illness, hazards and also accidents that in a vast way results into adverse effects thereby
extending the work time frames (Caiden, 2013).
Besides, machinery and plants or even complex construction equipment’s are accompanied by
great construction risks in the situation that the administrators lack the sufficient skills in
operating them. Thus it is always advisable to ensure that appropriate technicians are availed and