Illness and injury prevention programs: Special considerations for the construction industry

This presentation is part of the Injury and Illness Prevention Program Session, and will focus on the characteristics of the construction industry that must be taken into account in designing an effective program for the industry.

In general terms, an effective injury and illness prevention program is intended to ensure that employers find and fix the hazards on the site, to minimize the risks their employees face while performing their work. While it there are basic elements of an effective program that cut across industries – e.g., management commitment, employee involvement, hazard identification, hazard control, education and training, and program evaluation – the characteristics of a construction site require different strategies for implementing those elements.

The typical construction worksite is in a constant state of change. Employees of different employers come and go as the project progresses, confronting different risks depending not only on the hazards attendant to their own tasks, but also the stage of construction and the work being performed around them.

Moreover, an effective illness and injury prevention program must take into account the multi-employer nature of the construction worksite. Although contracting and subcontracting work is becoming increasingly common throughout the economy, the fragmentation of work and constantly shifting relationships on the typical construction site pose particular challenges in assuring the necessary coordination and communication among employers. The presentation will explore the challenges these factors pose and suggest ways in which they can be addressed in developing effective illness and injury prevention programs for construction sites.