Safety first?

“We have zero tolerance for violent crime. It’s time we set zero tolerance for construction deaths and serious injuries,” demanded construction minister Nigel Griffiths. Addressing an audience of leading industry figures at the Construction Health and Safety Summit 2005, Griffiths challenged the industry: “eliminate all deaths”.

Entitled ‘Ownership, leadership, partnership’, the event on 24 February was held as a review of progress since the last summit in 2001. Then, the number of deaths in construction had hit such high levels that dramatic action was called for by deputy prime minister John Prescott.

A step-change in the industry work culture was demanded and targets for improvement were set (see box, right). But four years later has safety on site really improved and are these targets being met?

The answer seems to be: must try harder. Changes have been made, but they are lacking overall impact. The industry as a whole is perilously close to missing the targets set – 70 construction workers were killed last year despite the initiatives for change.

“Progress is falling short of the challenging targets [the industry] set itself in 2001,” confirmed Jane Kennedy, minister for work at the Department of Work and Pensions. “Some of the initiatives put in place have clearly borne fruit...but it’s still not possible to say with confidence that the industry will meet its ten-year targets.”

Bill Callaghan, chair of the Health and Safety Commission (HSC) concurred: “If the industry is to meet its targets, it needs to commit to further actions and think of entirely new ways to move forward. We are now at a critical stage in the progress towards the construction Revitalising Targets for 2009/10.”

He praised the achievements so far, but reminded delegates that much has yet to be done. “The industry is changing for the better and has achieved the lowest accident rates on record in 2003/04, but we cannot become complacent.

“Most of us are aware of the wide benefits of health and safety, but this message has not permeated the entire industry.”

The way ahead?

So what is the solution to the health and safety crisis? As the summit title suggests, partnership and ownership featured highly in the proposals.

“Partnership is more crucial to success in this sector than in almost any other,” stated Griffiths. “We need to change the way employers and employees work together. We need more productive, committed and adaptable workplaces, where everybody feels involved.”

Integration of construction teams is happening, but often only on large projects. On smaller jobs contractors are still being presented with work where risk is evident and could have been reduced by early consultation at the design stage.

Trevor Hursthouse, chair of the Specialist Engineering Contractors’ (SEC) Group advised contractors: “Refuse to accept or enter unsafe sites.” With the removal of risk a priority, he launched the SEC Group’s Site Access Certificate (see p14). This sets the main contractor the task of declaring risks before the specialists agree to begin work on site.

The certificate was one of many initiatives launched at the summit (see box, right). Many are voluntary, so their success cannot be guaranteed. Peer pressure and financial gain must be such that all would feel compelled to comply.

The success stories

It is important to learn from the success stories over the past four years while planning ahead. Griffiths cited the success of Rethinking Construction Demonstrating Excellence projects as proof that on site risk can be reduced. “These projects have already cut accidents to 50% of the sector average,” he announced.

These case studies also give substantial financial incentives: “The project companies have saved an estimated £363 million. If [the industry] adopted this nationally we would save an estimated £3.63 billion a year,” he added.

The Construction Skills Certification Scheme (CSCS) was also hailed as a success. Since its introduction in 1995 it has become the main way for operatives to prove their competence and its uptake rose sharply after the 2001 summit. However, the target to have all the workforce CSCS-registered by December 2004 failed.

“A key element of the 2001 summit was the commitment of the Major Contractors Group (MCG) to achieve full CSCS card compliance on site,” reported CITB Construction Skills chief executive Peter Lobban. Around 70% of all operatives on MCG sites now hold the card, with this number rising for directly employed labour. The Group will audit use of the card on 7 April. “We have to draw a line in the sand and say you’re not coming on site unless you have the card,” stressed Spanswick, “but we must give help to achieve this.”

Plans are to extend the scheme to include those in the industry who seldom visit sites. The hope is those such as designers will become fully aware of the practicalities of site work and the risks involved.

To encourage take-up, the cost is soon to be halved and 23 mobile test centres have been added, so testing can be carried out at sites. A new “smart card” is also soon to be trialled.

Industry health

With the focus so often falling on deaths, occupational health hasn’t had the deserved attention. Improvement in this area is now key to the Government. “We must not forget that the figures for ill health show that, at best, performance is flat,” reminded Kennedy. She announced that the HSE is to pilot a guide aimed at SMEs to help them manage occupational health, absence and return to work.

While the summit focused primarily on better care and more respect for the existing workforce, Griffiths told delegates that the industry’s future depends on changes in attitudes and safety records. “We talk about skills shortages, but why should people come into an industry when we are not protecting those already in it?” questioned Peter Rogers chair of the Strategic Forum for Construction. Griffiths added: “With a need to recruit 80 000 to this industry every year, our message cannot be: ‘deaths and serious injury are acceptable.’”

“For young people I want to make construction a first choice career. That’s why our message has to be safety, safety, safety.”