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Purpose – Clients of the construction industry, an important segment of the project management (PM) discipline, can make an important contribution to the occupational health and safety (OHS) performance of the construction projects they procure. This practice note aims to describe an initiative of the Office of the Federal Safety Commissioner in Australia. Design/methodology/approach – A model client framework was developed to assist Australian Government agencies to embed OHS into their procurement and PM practices. Findings – The model client framework establishes principles for the management of OHS in construction projects and establishes processes for client involvement in OHS through the planning, design and procurement, construction and completion stages of construction projects. Within each project stage, key management actions are established for Australian Government agencies. Practical implications – The model client framework will enable Australian Government agencies to operate in a consistent framework and on a similar footing, with respect to the management of OHS in their construction projects. This practice note describes the key components of the framework. Originality/value – The model client framework is the first comprehensive set of tools and resources to support construction clients to integrate OHS into their procurement and PM processes. The life-cycle approach ensures that OHS information is transferred throughout the construction supply chain from the client, through the designer, constructor and ultimately to the end-user. The Framework shows how the integration of OHS into all aspects of project decision making (led by the client) can significantly improve the OHS performance of construction projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to describe an innovative information and decision support tool (ToolSHeD™) developed to help construction designers to integrate the management of OHS risk into the design process. The underlying structure of the prototype web-based system and the process of knowledge acquisition and modelling are described. Design/methodology/approach - The ToolSHeD™ research and development project involved the capture of expert reasoning regarding design impacts upon occupational health and safety (OHS) risk. This knowledge was structured using an innovative method well-suited to modelling knowledge in the context of uncertainty and discretionary decision-making. Example "argument trees" are presented, representing the reasoning used by a panel of experts to assess the risk of falling from height during roof maintenance work, The advantage of using this method for modelling OHS knowledge, compared to the use of simplistic rules, is discussed Findings - The ToolSHeD™ prototype'development and testing reveals that argument trees can represent design safety risk knowledge effectively. Practical implications - The translation of argument trees into a web-based decision support tool is described and the potential impact of this tool in providing construction designers (architects and engineers) with easy and inexpensive access to expert OHS knowledge is discussed. Originality/value - The paper describes a new computer application, currently undergoing testing in the Australian building and construction industry. Its originality lies in the fact that ToolSHeD™ deploys argument trees to represent expert OHS reasoning, overcoming inherent limitations in rule-based expert systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Work-life conflict has a damaging effect on job satisfaction, organizational commitment, productivity turnover, and absenteeism. On an individual level, work-life conflict is associated with employee burnout, mental health issues, substance abuse, and diminished family functioning. Thus, work-life balance is an important issue to the construction industry, in terms of both organizational effectiveness and occupational health. Long and inflexible work hours are the most consistent predictor of work-life conflict among construction employees, particularly those working on-site or in a project office. There is considerable resistance to the adoption of new ways of scheduling work within the industry. This paper describes the post hoc evaluation of a compressed work week (reducing the length of the working week, but increasing the length of the working day) in a case study project alliance in Queensland, Australia. Quantitative and qualitative data are presented to demonstrate the beneficial impact of the initiative on employees’ work-life balance. The evaluation provides prima facie evidence that alternative work schedules can improve construction employees’ work-life balance, creating benefits for construction employees and organizations. The paper concludes that project alliances provide an ideal environment in which work-life balance initiatives can help to create high-performance work systems in the construction sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The paper sets out to describe the testing of a model of work and family life among a sample of professional and managerial employees in the Australian construction industry. The model positioned work-family conflict as a variable linking experiences in one domain (i.e. work or family) with outcomes in the other domain. Design/methodology/approach - A survey exploring experiences of work and family life was conducted among employees of one large private and one large public sector construction organization in Queensland, Australia. Regression analyses were performed to test the validity of the work-family interface model. Findings - The model was partially supported in that time and strain-based demands in the work domain were linked to family functioning via work interference with family. However, time and strain-based demands in the family domain were not linked to work role outcomes via family interference with work. Research limitations/implications - The survey was cross-sectional so the causal direction of relationships could not be ascertained. Longitudinal research is needed to establish the causal direction of the work-family relationships supported by the research. Further research is also required to examine the effectiveness of strategies designed to reduce work interference with family life in the construction sector. Practical implications - The asymmetry in the relationship between construction employees' work and family lives indicates that the family life of professional and managerial construction employees in Australia is more susceptible to interference from work than work life is susceptible to interference from family life. Originality/value - Provides evidence that, when construction professionals and managers face obligations in one role that interfere with the enactment of a second role, performance in the second role suffers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the last 20 years, equality legislation and positive action on diversity has increased awareness of the detrimental impact of sex discrimination and has begun to address harassment and inequality in many large organizations. While this may yield positive benefits for underrepresented groups working within the construction industry, it remains to be seen whether this legislative drive has overcome indirect forms of discrimination brought about by the ingrained culture and working practices of the sector. This paper explores the impact of indirect discrimination by systematically combining the results of two research projects which explored perspectives on women’s careers in the industry. The first examined the ways in which women’s careers were affected by the nature of working practices within the U.K. construction industry, while the second explored gendered perspectives on work-life balance within the context of the Australian construction sector. Taken in combination, the findings provide prima facie evidence of how construction companies disadvantage women’s careers through their work practices and cultures. Based on this evidence, this paper develops a grounded proposition that the ingrained structures and work cultures of the sector, combined with women’s restricted occupational choices, stymie attempts to create an equitable workplace environment. Suggestions are made as to how construction companies can encourage the structural and cultural shift necessary to overcome the corrosive effect of indirect discrimination on women’s careers in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A survey of practicing professional civil engineers in the Australian states of New South Wales and Victoria was conducted. The survey explored the engineers’ experience of work and family sources of burnout. Burnout was predicted by a combination of both work and family stressors. Regression analysis revealed that burnout was predicted by different variables among respondents in dual- compared to single-income households and among parents and nonparents. Family variables were more important sources of burnout among participants in dual-income households and parents. The writer concludes that preventive strategies for burnout in the engineering profession must extend beyond the work environment and deal with issues at the work-family interface. Also, sociodemographic characteristics of the workforce must be considered when devising preventive strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Analyzes the effect of first aid training on construction workers' occupational health and safety motivation and risk control behavior in Australia. Reduction in participants' willingness to accept prevailing levels of occupational safety and health risk; Factors in the avoidance of occupational injury and illness.

Examines the meanings of occupational health and safety (OHS) risk control among small businesses in the construction industry in Australia. OHS risks relevant to the industry; Perception of participants on OHS risks; Barriers to the adoption of technological OHS risk controls; Technical approaches and process of risk management.

Looks at Hong Kong's implementation of a behavior-based safety management program in its construction industry. How the safety management program was introduced; Details on how the program was implemented; Indepth look at the construction industry's safety record.

• Factors contributing to construction crane safety incidents were explored using qualitative methods. • Contributing factors were identified at different levels within the construction industry work system. • Immediate factors were linked to issues in the regulatory, industrial and organisational environment. Crane safety incidents in the construction industry are persistent and have serious consequences. The research explored causal and contributing factors to crane safety incidents in the Australian construction industry. Key informants were purposefully selected because of their industry experience and knowledge of crane operations in the Australian construction industry. Informants participated in focus groups or interviews, in which the factors that cause or contribute to crane safety incidents in construction were explored. Data was systematically analysed using the framework method of qualitative data analysis. A total of 77 causal/contributing factors were identified in the analysis, which were found to operate at multiple levels within the work system relating to the use of cranes in the construction industry. The analysis also revealed that these factors interact with each other in complex ways within and between levels in the work system. Understanding these interactions can inform the selection and implementation of 'upstream' prevention measures for crane safety incident in the construction industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fig. 2 of the original article included an incorrect sociogram depicting a workgroup with low supervisor out-centrality. [Extracted from the article]

Purpose: In Australia and elsewhere, suicide rates among construction workers remain high. Construction workplaces are thus an important setting for targeted suicide prevention programs. This study aimed to compare suicide prevention literacy and help-seeking intentions among participants receiving face-to-face suicide prevention training, with those receiving face-to-face training augmented by a smartphone application. Methods: A two-arm randomised controlled trial of a smartphone suicide prevention intervention was conducted among construction workers in four Australian states (trial registration number: ACTRN12619000625178). All participants received face-to-face training and were randomised to the control condition (face-to-face only, n = 575), or MATESmobile condition (face-to-face + smartphone application,n = 509). Surveys administered at baseline and 3-month follow-up measured suicide prevention literacy and help-seeking intentions for personal/emotional problems and suicidal thoughts. A mixed-model repeated measures (MMRM) analysis included all 1084 randomised participants. Results: Outcomes did not differ significantly for suicide prevention literacy, nor help-seeking intentions from formal sources, informal sources outside the workplace, or no one (did not intend to seek help from anyone). However, relative to those in the control condition, those in the MATESmobile group showed greater increase in help-seeking intentions for emotional problems from a MATES worker/Connector (mean difference 0.54, 95% CI 0.22–0.87) and help-seeking intentions for suicidal thoughts from a workmate (mean difference 0.47, 95% CI 0.10–0.83) or MATES worker/Connector (mean difference 0.47, 95% CI 0.09–0.85). Conclusion: Results indicate that the MATESmobile application, together with face-to-face training, is beneficial in enhancing help-seeking intentions from MATES workers/Connectors and workmates to a greater extent than face-to-face training only. While this research provides some evidence that smartphone applications may support suicide prevention training, further research is needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Safety management in construction is an integral effort and its success requires inputs from all stakeholders across design and construction phases. Effective risk mitigation relies on the concordance of all stakeholders’ risk perceptions. Many researchers have noticed the discordance of risk perceptions among critical stakeholders in safe construction work, however few have provided quantifiable evidence describing them. In an effort to fill this perception gap, this research performs an experiment that investigates stakeholder perceptions of risk in construction. Data analysis confirms the existence of such discordance, and indicates a trend in risk likelihood estimation. With risk perceptions from low to high, the stakeholders are architects, contractors/safety professionals, and engineers. Including prior studies, results also suggest that designers have improved their knowledge in building construction safety, but compared to builders they present more difficultly in reaching a consensus of perception. Findings of this research are intended to be used by risk management and decision makers to reassess stakeholders’ varying judgments when considering injury prevention and hazard assessment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Personal protective clothing (PPC) is mandatory in hazardous industrial workplaces, but can increase thermophysiological strain, causing fatigue, reduced productivity, illness and injury. We systematically reviewed the literature on PPC and heat stress, focusing on research relating to working conditions of high temperature and humidity. PPC must protect industrial workers from a wide variety of hazards, including sun damage, abrasion, chemical spills and electrical burns; these competing demands inevitably compromise thermal performance. Fiber type, textile material construction and treatment need to be considered alongside garment fit and construction to design functional PPC providing wearers with adequate protection and comfort. Several approaches to materials and PPC testing-objective benchtop evaluation, mathematical modelling, and physiological testing-can be combined to provide high-quality thermal and vapor performance data. Our review provides a foundation and directions for further research in low-level risk PPC, where current research in fabrics and clothing in this category is very limited, and will help designers and manufacturers create industrial workwear with improved thermal management characteristics.