Construction is one of the most dangerous types of land-based work in the United States. Being involved in the industry could pose serious risks to your health, if not to your life.

Because of this reason, safety compliance during construction projects is fast coming into the limelight as accidents become more publicized. Questions are asked about whether or not we are doing enough to protect our workers, how to comply and keep schedules and profits on track and if the safety rules in place are effective.

There are many hazards you risk in construction. One could fall from a great height, be electrocuted, be hit by falling objects, suffer inury from machinery, or be involved in a heavy motor vehicle accident among other things. Chemicals on site (dangerous solvents), asbestos (a mineral with thin, fibrous crystal strands that are toxic), cement dust and noise can harm one's health. While this may seem ominous, the ground reality is that workers face all of the above, and more, on a day-to-day basis. As the list of potential injuries increases, the face of safety measures and procedures is also changing.

There are a myriad of safety rules developed and implemented by governments and individual construction companies. In the United States, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), sets and enforces workplace health standards. The problem with construction safety is not that the risks are not known, or that there are no rules governing safety, it is just that it is very difficult to control hazards and risks in a constantly changing work environment.

As a construction business owner, you must understand that complete safety is simply not achievable. Every situation can go wrong, no matter how much proofing has been done. Sometimes, things that were not dangerous can immediately turn into hazards. What is acceptable one day may become unacceptable the next. The best we can do is to have a general set of rules applying to any manual labor situation. In addition to that, more extensive rules can also be chalked out depending on the specific sub-sector of construction (road, sky scraper, underground, etc).

The Limitations of Safety Standards

Safety is a thing practiced, but it can also be viewed simply as a result of certain other activities and practices. Whatever the case, we must understand the limitations of safety rules. That is not to say that rules in place should be done away with. Some forego safety with the excuse that lots of rules merely inhibit performance and stunt the efficiency of the construction process. It must be understood that in the end, safety, productivity and quality are not mutually exclusive.  In fact, productivity can be increased by many folds if safety rules are adhered to and workers know that they are best protected. Firms these days have learned that following national safety regulations as well as implementing some of their own actually profits them - when rated, customers will be attracted to hire them because they are not "dangerous".

Having safe standards of work is a two-pronged affair. One must have rules that work preemptively - rules in place to prevent disturbances to the workplace in the form of accidents. The second type of rules should be reactive, or rules or directives that help construction workers know how to act if faced with a calamity. Safety is also a state of mind. Workers, and for that matter anyone at a construction site, should always be on their toes. All rules are worth nothing if anyone thinks they are above them. When safety is departmentalized, most people subconsciously begin to think it's not their job but somebody else's. For example, whether you're the site manager or the carpenter, if you're on site, you must always wear a hardhat. It's not cumbersome, it's just safety.

Construction safety is an issue that constantly needs to be reviewed. Some mistakenly believe site checks help improve safety. But site checks are merely a first step toward improving safety by identifying potential problems and hazards. The critical stage is developing ways to check these problems. Even more important than having an updated, comprehensive system of rules is enforcing these rules as much as humanly possible. Too often, inspections are carried, reports are submitted and filed, but then nothing is done on their basis.

Creating and Adhering to Safety Rules

Workers obviously know when they cut themselves, when they've fallen, etc. But not many workers realize when their health is harmed, not only by immediate physical injuries, but also by slow long-term damaging factors such as noise. Things such as the noise of on site heavy machinery cause no immediate pain or trauma and leave no scars or bruises. Damage done is often recognized at a stage when it may be too late to do anything about it. Industry-wide, threats such as these have become silently prevalent. As many as 60 percent of construction workers may suffer from hearing damage. Workers are reluctant to wear any protective aid as they say it inhibits their ability to communicate with co-workers, hear warning signals, etc. Pneumatic chip hammers, jackhammers, concrete joint cutters, chainsaws, impact wrenches, pile drivers, bulldozers, sandblasters and compressed air blowers are all examples of machines used frequently on construction sites. These machines all produce noise levels that are potentially damaging and require workers to wear protective aid.