Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #104554

Marion Gillen, RN, MPH, PhD¹, Susan Kools, RN, PhD², Cade McCall, MA¹, and Juliann Sum, JD, MPH³. (1) Dept. of Community Health Systems, UCSF School of Nursing, Box 0608, San Francisco, CA 94143-0608, 415-476-1382, marion.gillen@nursing.ucsf.edu, (2) Department of Family Health Care Nursing, UCSF School of Nursing, Box 0606, San Francisco, CA 94143-0606, (3) Labor Occupational Health Program, University of California, Berkeley, 3333 Fulton St., Berkeley, CA 94720

These studies compare and contrast views regarding construction safety practices from the perspectives of construction managers and of union and nonunion construction workers. Semi-structured interview guides were used to elicit information from participants in a series of focus groups. Twenty-two managers and 64 workers participated. Questions were designed to obtain information on direct safety practices and indirect practices such as communication style, attitude, expectations, and unspoken messages. Data were analyzed using thematic content analysis. Managers identified commitment to safety, worker training, a changing workplace culture, and uniform enforcement as key constructs in maintaining safe worksites. Findings indicate that successful managers need to be involved, principled, flexible, and innovative. Obstacles to consistent safety practice include poor training, production schedules and financial constraints. Workers identified management commitment to safety, concern for workers, congruence between spoken messages and practice, professionalism, and communication skills as key qualities of successful managers. Workers provided examples of excellent and poor management strategies.Construction managers play a pivotal role in the definition and implementation of safety practices in the workplace. To succeed in this role, they require a wide variety of management skills, upper management support, and tools that will help them instill and maintain a positive safety culture. Developing and expanding management skills of construction managers may assist them in dealing with the complexity of the construction work environment. Given the high rates of injury in construction, deeply imbedded protective policies that rely on input from a broad range of stakeholders, including construction workers, should be developed

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