Investigating Safe Work Environments for Construction Project Workers

This research report examines the development of safe work environments for construction project workers, focusing on ongoing road construction and Andhra Pradesh Industrial Infrastructure Corporation (APIIC) projects in India. The study aims to understand safety philosophies, challenges, and ...Read More

Running head: SAFE WORK ENVIRONMENT FOR CONSTRUCTION WORKERS
INVESTIGATING THE DEVELOPMENTS OF A SAFE WORK ENVIRONMENT FOR
CONSTRUCTION PROJECT WORKERS
Name of the student:
Name of the university:
Name of the Author:

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SAFE WORK ENVIRONMENT FOR CONSTRUCTION WORKERS
Table of Contents
Title and Introduction..........................................................................................................2
Literature Scope...................................................................................................................2
Methodology........................................................................................................................6
Research philosophy........................................................................................................6
Research design...............................................................................................................6
Research limitations.........................................................................................................6
Research ethics................................................................................................................7
Data......................................................................................................................................7
Discussion............................................................................................................................7
Hypothesis.......................................................................................................................7
Research objectives.........................................................................................................8
Making adjustments.........................................................................................................8
Reference List......................................................................................................................9

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Title and Introduction
This research paper is aimed at developing the various process which is used for
developing the security of the workforces in the construction project. For the conduction of this
research an ongoing road construction projects – “Samarlakota–Rajanagaram road section” and
“Andhra Pradesh Industrial Infrastructure Corporation (APIIC) projects” have been selected in
Andhra Pradesh, India. It is essential to take care of the health and safety of the workers in the
construction industry as they work in harsh conditions, and if proper steps are not taken, then
lives can be lost. From the research paper, overall knowledge of risks and the various process to
avoid the risk will be gained. Some of the objectives for the research are:
 To understand the various philosophies circulating around the various safety and
health measured of the construction company workers.
 To critically assess the various challenges which are faced by construction safety
workers.
 To critically understand the various steps which needs to be taken by Construction
Company to take care of the health and safety of the workers.
 To understand the various aspects which needs to be taken by the construction
company in implementing steps for health and safety for workers.
Literature Scope
A lot of research has been conducted in the past regarding the health and safety
environment of the construction workers. In developing countries like India, it is essential to
assess the fact that proper care is not provided to the construction workers. In the non-farming
sector, the construction industry in India comprises the right amount of occupation. The

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construction industry in India is out of hand with the increase in population in the country. The
construction workers of India comprises of 7.5 % of the total labour force of the world (Laskar
and Murty 2004). According to (Sousa, Almeida and Dias 2014), the various performance of the
construction companies in addressing the health and safety environment of the workers is
abysmal. In accordance to (Subramanyan, Sawant and Bhatt 2012), in various developed
countries with the improvement in technology a lot of scopes have been identified in the
construction industry but at the same time have increased the risks for the construction workers.
At some point in time in the construction industry, it has been seen that a worker is unfit. The
unavailability of workers is mainly due to the various accidents which happen to them at regular
intervals. The workers in the construction industry face various health problems while working
under adverse conditions in the workplace (Thomas and Wilson 2013). At present, there are five
construction projects ongoing of Andhra Pradesh Industrial Infrastructure Corporation (APIIC)
and one project relating to the road constructing on Samarlakota–Rajanagaram road section. In
the past, it has been seen that the workers in the construction industry of India have faced a lot of
accidents. The literature review will be conducted focussing on the various problems in the
construction industry and the various process by the aid of which these problems can be avoided
regarding Health and Safety Environment of the construction companies.
The different perspectives which have been selected by previous authors for the
conduction of the research on the fitness and security of the construction workers are towards the
various steps which need to be taken by the company and the various steps which the workers
must follow. A systematic approach needs to be conducted on the topic regarding the needs of
the workers and what suggestions the workers give in reducing their risks of working in the
construction site. According to Guo, Yiu and González (2016), there are many steps which can

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be adapted for protecting the workers of the construction industry from any kind of mishaps. A
process like analysis of the hazard of working in the construction industry, giving proper training
to the employees regarding their safety in the workplace will be protecting them from further
mishaps by a considerable margin. In developing countries as well as the developed country, it is
imperative to address the situation of the health and safety of the people working in the
construction industry. Since the construction industry forms a significant part of the
infrastructure of a country, so the workers must be protected. According to Sousa, Almeida and
Dias (2014), neither technology nor the better design of buildings but the construction workers
are the backbones of the construction industry. It is the optimum duty of a country as well as the
construction industry to take care of the health and safety of the workers in the construction
industry.
As said by Muhammad, Abdulateef and Ladi (2015), with the adoption of a different kind
of preventive approach towards the health and safety of the employee, it will be easier for the
companies to take care of its workers. The various unfavourable safety climates in the
workplace, as well as the gap in the knowledge between the designers and the contractor of a
projects, are the primary reason due to which inevitable accidents pertaining the construction
industry occur. Prospect theory can be used by a construction company to assess the fact whether
the steps which retaken by them are enough to defend the health and safety of the workers or
they need to do more to safeguard that the workers in the construction site are harmless and
secure (Zhang at al. 2015). According to this theory, the workers must ensure that they are aware
of the various precautions which need to be taken for their health and safety in the workplace.
With the implementation of specific steps like covering their mouth with masks to keep
themselves safe from the toxic fumes in the workplace or the dust will be helping them in

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keeping themselves safe (Lingard, Pink, Harley and Edirisinghe 2015). It is both the
responsibility of the worker as well as the construction company to ensure that a better
environment of health and safety is conducted in the workplace. The various intuition for taking
the steps which are safe and unsafe must be conducted by both the workers as well as the
construction company (Mahmoudi, Ghasemi, Mohammadfam and Soleimani 2014). Accident
causation theory can also be used by the construction industry to assess the various factors which
cause harm to the construction workers. With the help of this theory, a relation between the man
and machine are explained, and the various frequencies of the occurrence of the health issues
among the employees in the construction workplace have been explained (Mahmoudi, Ghasemi,
Mohammadfam and Soleimani 2014). The various impacts which safety can provide on the
efficiency of the construction workers have been explained in theory. If the employees are safe in
the workplace, then their efficiency will be increased by a considerable margin. With the
application of better health and safety measures in the workplace, the employees will be
motivated, and they will be working with proper ways and ensure that they meet the mission and
vision of the company (Ganah and John 2015). According to Zhou, Goh and Li (2015), the
various skills of the employees must be utilized in a proper way by the construction company
and also make sure that the employees of the workplace must be taking care of themselves by
looking at the various safety guidelines which are provided by the construction companies
around the world. With the implementation of proper safety guidelines the employees of the
organization will be aware of the various risks which they might face in the workplace.
According to Chen, McCabe and Hyatt (2017), the construction companies around the world
must ensure that proper training has been provided to the employees to ensure that they can
operate safely in the workplace of the construction site. The employees in the construction

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company are mostly unaware of the various steps which might be taken by them to ensure that
they are safe from the various accidents and injuries which might happen to them in the
construction industry. With the application of a better technique and written out guidelines, the
workers in the construction industry will know about the various methods by the aid of which
these mishaps might be avoided.
Methodology
Research philosophy
There are three different kinds of research philosophy which are followed for the
conduction of a research paper, namely the interpretivism, realism and positivism. Among these
there, the option of positivism research will be selected since it gives a broad idea on the topic.
For the conduction of this research paper, it is essential to understand the topic more broadly so
that the various values of health and safety rules in the workplace of the construction companies.
Research design
From the three option of descriptive, exploratory and explanatory research design the
option of explanatory will be selected as it helps in connecting the relationship between the two
variables of the project. The two variables are mainly the role of Construction Company in
taking care of the employee wellbeing and the construction company workers knowing about the
various implications of the health and safety hazards if they do not take proper steps while doing
their work in the workplace.
Research limitations
Since the use of secondary elements like articles and journals will be used for the
completion of the research paper, so there are chances that proper information might not be

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gathered. In secondary research, there are chances that the information which is stated in it might
not be entirely accurate in the current time. This might hamper in understanding the project in a
proper way. The various motives behind the ignorance of health and safety of the construction
company workers might not be addressed in the secondary sources.
Research ethics
The various data which will be collected from the articles must be used genuinely, and no
tampering with the original data of the articles must be done. No plagiarism will be conducted
during the completion of the research paper.
Data
Organizations which are related to the construction industry will be providing optimum
information for the conduction of this report. Construction forms a primary occupation of people
around the world, so there is the presence of countless construction companies around the world
which will be aiding in providing information related to the research paper. Secondary sources
like different articles and journals which have been published recently will be selected for the
conduction of this research paper. The data which will be collected from them regarding the
health and safety of the construction workers will be beneficial in the completion of the research
project.
Ethical barriers of a research paper will be followed to ensure that no ethical issues will
be faced while the conduction of this research paper if any ethical issues arise while the
conduction of research paper then honesty and integrity will be followed throughout the research
paper. The personal views of the different authors will be respected, and their ideas and views
will not be changed. It is essential to understand the various ethical laws during the conduction

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of a research paper so that proper steps might be taken to ensure that in future the research paper
will not be facing any ethical issues in the future.
Discussion
Hypothesis
H0: Health and safety environment of the workplace must be maintained to keep the workers
safe.
H1: Health and safety environment of the workplace must not be maintained to keep the workers
safe.
Research objectives
The paper will be looking at the various process which can be adapted for protecting the
health and safety of the people working in the construction industry.
Some of the research objectives are as followed:
 To understand the various framework for addressing the health and safety of the
construction workers.
 To understand the various steps which need to be followed for protecting the workers in
the construction industry from any kind of harm.
 To understand the various process by the aid of which the construction company must
ensure that its workers are safe in the workplace.
Making adjustments
If any kind of changes is needed during the conduction of the research paper, then the
changed question will be relating to the topic and nothing else. The construction workers face a
lot of challenges during their work in the construction sites, so the various problems which are

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faced by them will be discussed in the research paper. The various literature revolving the
various issues of the construction workers will be discussed in the research paper.

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Reference List
Chen, Y., McCabe, B. and Hyatt, D., 2017. Impact of individual resilience and safety climate on
safety performance and psychological stress of construction workers: A case study of the Ontario
construction industry. Journal of safety research, 61, pp.167-176.
Ganah, A. and John, G.A., 2015. Integrating building information modeling and health and
safety for onsite construction. Safety and health at work, 6(1), pp.39-45.
Guo, B.H., Yiu, T.W. and González, V.A., 2016. Predicting safety behavior in the construction
industry: Development and test of an integrative model. Safety science, 84, pp.1-11.
Laskar, A. and Murty, C.V.R., 2004. Challenges before construction industry in India.
Department of Civil Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur (www. iityk. ac. in).
Lingard, H., Pink, S., Harley, J. and Edirisinghe, R., 2015. Looking and learning: using
participatory video to improve health and safety in the construction industry. Construction
management and economics, 33(9), pp.740-751.
Mahmoudi, S., Ghasemi, F., Mohammadfam, I. and Soleimani, E., 2014. Framework for
continuous assessment and improvement of occupational health and safety issues in construction
companies. Safety and health at work, 5(3), pp.125-130.
Muhammad, B.A., Abdulateef, I. and Ladi, B.D., 2015. Assessment of cost impact in health and
safety on construction projects. American journal of engineering research, 4(3), pp.25-30.
Sousa, V., Almeida, N.M. and Dias, L.A., 2014. Risk-based management of occupational safety
and health in the construction industry–Part 1: Background knowledge. Safety science, 66, pp.75-
86.

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Subramanyan, H., Sawant, P.H. and Bhatt, V., 2012. Construction project risk assessment:
development of model based on investigation of opinion of construction project experts from
India. Journal of construction engineering and management, 138(3), pp.409-421.
Thomas, J. and Wilson, P.M., 2013. Construction waste management in India. American Journal
of Engineering Research (AJER), 2, pp.06-09.
Zhang, P., Lingard, H., Blismas, N., Wakefield, R. and Kleiner, B., 2015. Work-health and
safety-risk perceptions of construction-industry stakeholders using photograph-based Q
methodology. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, 141(5), p.04014093.
Zhou, Z., Goh, Y.M. and Li, Q., 2015. Overview and analysis of safety management studies in
the construction industry. Safety science, 72, pp.337-350.