Construction needs to do more to reduce deaths

The call from the International Construction Safety Conference, InterConstruct 06, is that more needs to be done to protect lives in the construction industries around the world.

The call from the International Construction Safety Conference, InterConstruct 06, which commenced in Dublin today, is that more needs to be done to protect lives in the construction industries around the world.

"The UK construction industry has moved forward in leaps and bounds over the last 10-15 years but we are still killing and injuring far too many people," said John Lacey, past president of the conference hosts, the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH).

Tony Killeen, Irish Minister for Labour Affairs, in giving a welcome address on the first day of the conference, said: "If we are to put an end to death and injury in the Construction Sector it is incumbent on all those operating in the Sector to create a Culture of Safety where preventive action is the cornerstone of working practices.

The message of workplace health and safety must come from the highest level; it must be a priority for those planning and designing construction projects.

Workers must also have access to the appropriate training and equipment.

For their part, workers must also embrace changing work practices and factor safety into routine operations.

There is a challenge in this endeavour for all in the industry, with clear rewards for success".

John Lacey continued: "In the words of Stephen Williams, the UK Health and Safety Executive's chief inspector of construction, the plateau of around 70 people being killed in the industry in the UK each year is not acceptable.

We must try to reduce that to at least less than one death per week, although zero is still the ideal but not easily achievable.

"InterConstruct 06 will identify how we can achieve this by showing how we can learn from past mistakes and the tools we can use to reduce the unacceptable level of injuries and fatalities.

This conference aims to bring people's attention to this.

It's about winning hearts and minds, and getting people in the industry to truly understand the industry".

The two-day conference, which is being staged by IOSH in conjunction with its American, Canadian and Australian counterparts, brings together construction safety professionals from around the world to share knowledge and debate the safety issues faced by construction.

Notable speakers include the Irish Minister for Labour Affairs, the chief executive of the HSA, the chief inspector of construction from the HSE, the director of health and safety for Constructing Excellence, and representatives from BAA and Heathrow Terminal 5, McInerney Homes and Black and Veatch.

Back to top