Health is as important as safety

Construction remains a high risk industry but there have been big improvements in worker safety over recent years.

There are however several factors why construction remains a high risk undertaking from a safety viewpoint.

The same factors mean that it is a high-risk environment from a health perspective as well as from a safety viewpoint.

Construction workers tend to suffer particularly with musculoskeletal disorders, which are around 90 per cent higher than the all-industry average. Dermatitis, hand arm vibration and stress are also significant problems.

Ensuring as far as possible that the work is not having an adverse effect on the worker by controlling the risks and by undertaking health surveillance to monitor their health is vitally important.

Encouraging healthy lifestyles and supporting individuals to manage any existing health problems will minimise the adverse impact of ill-health. It is important to remember that failure to control health risks results in not only a cost to the individual employee but also has a substantial impact both financially and in terms of reputation to the employer.