One accident resulting in death or injury is already far too many. Over the last ten years, site safety in the construction industry has been significantly improved. However, there is still room for improvement.
The Government attaches great importance to construction safety and promotes a caring culture within the industry. We have been working closely with the industry to enhance safety and cleanliness of construction sites and to improve workers’ welfare, so as to lower the accident rate. In addition to promoting and educating on “zero accidents” on work sites, we are considering to strengthen the existing safety measures and to conduct more frequent safety audit in major infrastructure works to encourage the industry to paid more attention to site safety.
Over the last two decades we have adopted multi-pronged measures in public works projects to improve and enhance site safety management, including:
(1) Strengthening the safety system and providing guidelines: introducing Safety Score cards and Site Safety Cycle.
(2) Regulating and monitoring: taking regulatory actions against contractors with unsatisfactory safety performances and stepping up control on sub-contractors. Safety consultant teams set up by works departments now provide training for site supervisory and managerial personnel.
(3) Providing incentives: launching the Considerate Contractors Site Award Scheme and the Pay for Safety Scheme, and giving due consideration to safety performance in tender assessment and so on.
Nonetheless, with the passage of time, and when major infrastructural and public works projects reaching a peak construction period in the coming years, our safety management system will face greater pressure and challenges. For example:
Many existing systems and measures are regarded as routine and are not strictly observed, thus they become less effective.
Newly joined construction workers may have a lower degree of safety awareness.
Due to high work mobility, construction workers need to adapt to different construction methods.
Increasing complexity of works projects … and so on.
The Pay for Safety Scheme implemented in public works projects has all along been supported by the industry. The objective of the scheme is to remove the provision of site safety measures by contractors from competitive tendering. Contractors will receive monetary reward from the Government upon implementing the safety related items prescribed in tender documents in which related costs have been independently fixed beforehand. Since the launch of the scheme in 1996, the rate of site accidents in public works projects has dropped by 80 per cent, from 56.6 per thousand workers in 1996 to 9.7 in 2012. The Construction Industry Council released the “Guidelines on the Adoption of the Pay for Safety Scheme” last year to encourage the industry to adopt the scheme in both public and private construction projects.
To strengthen awareness of construction safety among contractors and workers, we have to be more creative and innovative in our promotion work. Furthermore, we have to increase incentives to encourage the industry to put more emphasis on construction site safety. We will enhance the Pay for Safety Scheme in the second half of this year by introducing factors linked with safety performance in our works contracts. Contractors will get an extra cash award up to a maximum of 2 per cent of the cost of the works if they achieve good performance in the following areas: (1) zero accidents at work sites; (2) accident rate lower than a certain level; (3) without any improvement notice or suspension notice issued by the Government or no prosecution for safety issues; (4) good result in the Considerate Contractors Site Award Scheme.
Although construction site safety has been improved over the years, we have to remain vigilant. Site accidents are avoidable. “Zero accidents” is achievable. Work safety should not only be a regular practice, it should be a habit.
Working towards this goal, we introduced a pre-warning mechanism and set up dedicated committees led by senior Government officials last year. When there is an increasing trend of accidents at any individual works project, directorate officers of works departments will meet with contractors’ management staff and demand an improvement report. The committees monitor and review the safety performance of works contracts regularly.
Looking ahead, we have five visions or “CARES”, namely (1) Commitment: management of the construction industry to actively participate and invest in site safety; (2) Accident-free sites: to achieve the target of “zero accidents”; (3) Rethinking the procedures: review existing procedures and details from time to time to make further improvements; (4) Embracing the workers: to be more considerate to our workers and improve communication with them as they are our asset, and (5) Safe working environment: besides safety, to provide a clean and tidy work environment and more welfare facilities for workers.
Regarding welfare facilities, we have been exploring with the industry the provision of a sheltered working environment and rest area for workers during the hot season, and to provide toilets with flushing facilities if possible. We are also exploring the feasibility of introducing a Pay for Welfare Scheme in addition to the Pay for Safety Scheme.
Last year’s Construction Safety Week with its theme “Zero Accidents” gained extensive support. The Development Bureau will launch Construction Safety Week 2013 in conjunction with the Construction Industry Council on May 27. A territory-wide ceremony will be held and we hope to mobilise stakeholders, including construction workers, in fostering a culture of work safety and enhancing safety awareness.
12 May, 2013
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