Citation

Raheem AA, Hinze JW. Safety Sci. 2014; 70: 276-287.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2014, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.ssci.2014.06.012

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Construction workers are often exposed to the inherent risks associated with working conditions on construction sites. Safety standards of various countries prescribe a variety of mechanical safeguards and procedures to ensure that work is performed safely, but it is evident from the available statistical data on construction safety standards that there is no globally-standardized system of regulations nor is there a common definition for the computation of injury/fatality rates. The components that form these statistics vary from country to country in many aspects, including the legal framework for reporting accidents, the economic sectors covered, and the definitions of injuries/fatalities. Thus, the statistics from different countries are not directly comparable and cannot be interpreted with a single approach. The aim of this paper is to compare and contrast the methods for defining and reporting construction safety performance as adopted by selected countries throughout the globe and then to propose suggestions for a well-structured system of construction safety standards that would be workable with limited variations while addressing geographical limitations or economic distinctions.