IMPLEMENTATION OF SAFETY REQUIREMENTS BY THE CONTRACTORS IN THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY

The safety and health record for the Malaysian workforce has improved since 1997 but is still far behind the good marks achieved by advanced countries. Developments in the occupational safety and health landscape have very much been lead and shaped by legislation, notably the Occupational Safety and Health Act 1994 (OSHA). There are now mandatory requirements for certain industries to set up safety and health committees, safety audits and safety management systems. There is still much more education and enforcement to be done in Malaysia to reach the status of advanced countries. The industrial accident rate in Malaysia has leveled due to a combination of stricter enforcement and higher level of awareness.

In Malaysia, the statutes that relevant to the safety, health and welfare of the employees in the construction industry are: Occupational Health and Safety Act 1994 (“OSHA”), Factories and Machinery Act 1967, Workmen’s Compensation Act 1952, Employees’ Social Security Act 1969, and Employment Act 1955.

The importance of safety at workplace has been investigated by numerous researchers, including construction industry. They have generally concluded that safety is vital to the people at a workplace. Many companies have prioritized safety as such to ensure that their employees come to work safely and go home safety. This applied to the construction companies as well.

According to Lin and Mills (2001), their research found that larger contractors tend to perform better compared to smaller companies generally because they have greater resources to do so. Large firms are associated with larger projects containing more risks and so are typically required to implement occupational health and safety procedures. Small contractors tend not to include Occupational Health and Safety costs in their tenders, reducing their ability to deal with potential problems. In their research also shown that small firms do not seems to have the ability or motivation to achieve high levels of Occupational Health and Safety when benchmarked against larger firms. Holmes (1999) conducted research from a sample of Australian companies and found that small construction firms may not manage Occupational Health and Safety risks as effectively as larger firms. Wilson (2000) found that safety attitudes varied by the size of the company. He suggested that there is some doubt whether smaller companies can benefit from higher standards of Occupational Health and Safety practice, due to the implementation costs involved. According to Kartam (1997), in order to achieve safe site operations, construction practitioners need an effective means by which to monitor and control safety during construction and to assess safety plans as a criterion for selecting contractors. Contractors also need a system by which to actively monitor their site operations and implement measures to eliminate unsafe acts and practice. Stephenson and Conheeney (1999) summarized that the requirements for development a multimedia system have been illustrated and the important factors considered for successful implementation. Such a system for site use and assist in the design process would enable the integration of text, graphics, sound and narration plus animation of practical situations demonstrating best method and safe practice. The system should be easily accessible to both designers and site management providing the opportunity for effective communications of health and safety issues. In summary, there are various altitudes towards safety by companies of various sizes. Larger companies tend to be more safety conscious compared to smaller companies in general. However, regardless of the size of the companies and the value of the projects, safety should be prioritized and enforced at construction sites at any times.  

This is part of a paper, Abdul Aziz Hussin, Abdelnaser Omran, Choot Teck Aun and Abdullah Mahmood. 2006. Implementation of Safety Requirements by the Contractors in the Construction Industry, International Proceedings Paper presented at International Conference on Sustainable Housing (ICSH) 2006, Conference Hall, Universiti Sains Malaysia, 18-19^th September, Pulau Pinang, Malaysia.