1

Ramifications of Government Imposed Safety Measures Curb the Spread of the COVID 19 Virus
Affected the Construction and Engineering Projects in the UAE

Abstract

Key Words: Occupational Health, Safety, COVID 19, Corona Virus, Construction, Engineering
Projects, United Arab Emirates, EAU, Middle East, Risk Management

Introduction

Development activities such as construction and engineering projects take place within
the context of human interaction. Each occupation attracts some risks to a certain degree, with
some jobs classified as either high or low risk. As such, the need for safety is an integral part of
occupational management. For instance, the average construction worker operates in an
environment that poses a myriad of health hazards, dangerous situations, and poor working
conditions. Construction and engineering projects are thus affected by the prevailing
environmental and social factors.1 The risk factor in construction is not only limited to the
worker, as dangers may also manifest through other environmental hazards; thus, putting other
people who may not be involved in the construction at risk. Therefore, the occupation attempts to
observe a set of occupational health and safety guidelines to minimize the occurrence and
severity of the risks, hazards, and accidents in the work line.

In general, the construction industry in attracts a huge number of investors due to the
immense potential it holds and the opportunities in both developed and the developing world.
For the developing nations coming into rapid urbanization infrastructure development, the sector
employs a considerable number of workers ranging from project managers, engineers, architects,
laborers, dealers of construction materials. Nonetheless, construction attracts physical risks and
damages due to such hazards can be avoided through proper planning. According to research,
“there are at least five reasons which demonstrate the importance of safety for construction
companies: lack of safety; increase probability of accidents; increase human suffering through
injuries; accidents leading to disabilities; and fatalities.”2 As such, the need for health, safety and
1
Low Sui Pheng and Quek Tai Chuan, "Environmental Factors And Work Performance Of Project Managers In The
Construction Industry", International Journal Of Project Management 24, no. 1 (2006): 24-37,
doi:10.1016/j.ijproman.2005.06.001.
2
Subashini Suresh, Chike Oduoza and Suresh Renukappa, "Leadership Initiatives For Health And Safety Risk
Management Systems In A Small Construction Company: A Case Study", Risk Management Treatise For
Engineering Practitioners, 2018, doi:10.5772/intechopen.80697.
 2

risk management is high for both developed and developing nations alike. Since, the most
developed countries have already formulated recovery strategies for the construction industry,
developing nation have to consider health and safety in construction industry.

Issues that surround occupational health and safety are highly multifaceted. While some
of the factors are internal and are influenced by the activities at the workplace, some external. To
a great extent, the project managers, engineers and workers can control the internal factors such
as the health hazards, dangerous situations, and poor working conditions within the workplace.
However, it is nearly impossible to control the effects of the external factors on construction and
engineering projects. For instance, the prevailing cases of COVID 19 across various nations must
have translated into nationwide lockdowns halted several construction and engineering projects
as any government implemented some safety measures curb the spread of the virus.3 Such
external factors that influence safety within the workplace do not only affect progress of actual
work and development programs but also compromise the delivery of worth. Public health
affects everybody thus making it indispensable part of human development.

Safety in construction and engineering is a total sum of guidelines put together to avoid
preventable accidents and to improve the general working conditions. All the clients may not
have the required to understand the construction business. Thus it us up to the construction
managers to offer some guidance on how to hand safety matters through safety evaluation and
visual risk analysis. Part of safety in construction involves accurate planning of schedules and
communication among all the project members. Physical risks and damages due to such hazards
can be avoided through proper visualization and planning.4 Most developed countries have
reliable recovery strategies for safety in the construction industry. However, most merging
nations lag as far as occupational health and safety are involved. There is a need to improve the
risk management strategies to promote health and safety in the construction industry in
developing nations such as the UAE.

Problem Statement

3
Nicholas Kramer, Aarti Thadani and Clinton Slogrove, "UAE Construction During COVID-19: The Impact Of
Government Measures", Nortonrosefulbright.Com, Last modified 2020, https://www.nortonrosefulbright.com/en-
me/knowledge/publications/0abd48ed/uae-construction-during-covid19-the-impact-of-government-measures.
4
Low Sui Pheng and Quek Tai Chuan, "Environmental Factors And Work Performance Of Project Managers In The
Construction Industry".
 3

As a rapidly growing nation, construction projects and engineering works are the heart of the
UAE’s developmental agenda.5 At the same time, the need for safety in construction and
engineering projects is an integral part of occupational management as construction worker
operates in an environment that poses a myriad of health hazards, dangerous situations, and poor
working conditions. While most developed nations have put in place a number of reliable
recovery strategies for safety in the construction industry, the developing world tends lag as far
as occupational health and safety are involved. As part of promoting occupational health and
safety guidelines in developing nations such as the UAE, assessing the moderating consequence
of government imposed safety measures curb the spread of the COVID 19 virus offers useful
insights for curtailing the occurrence and severity of the risks, hazards, and accidents in the
construction workplace(s).

Aims & Objectives

 Shed light on health and safety in construction industry in general and UAE a model
country
 Evaluate Risk Management strategies and narrow down to issues in risk management in
the UAE
 Assess the impact of COVID-19 as construction and engineering projects in the country
 Analyze how developed countries have already formulated recovery strategies for the
construction industry in comparison to UAE as a developing nation

Research Question(s)

The main researcher question explores how the government imposed safety measures curb the
spread of the COVID 19 virus affected the construction and engineering projects in the country
and to evaluate some of the existing occupational health and safety vis a vis the risk management
strategies in UAE.

Literature Review

Public health affects everybody thus making it indispensable part of human development.
Amidst the robust developmental agenda in most emerging nations such as the UAE, the need for

5
Celine Abi and Habib Kanakri, "COVID-19: The Impact On Construction Industry Projects In The Middle East -
Kennedys", Kennedyslaw.Com, Last modified 2020, https://kennedyslaw.com/thought-leadership/article/covid-19-
the-impact-on-construction-industry-projects-in-the-middle-east/.
 4

occupational health and safety cannot be overlooked.6 There is always a new threat to public
health in a sense of epidemics, new strands of viruses, etc. and always having these factors to
review makes it important. As such, project managers of construction and engineering projects
employ attempt to employ analysis tools that can be used to pinpoint the safety hazards that may
be encountered while conducting construction works at site.7 In construction, physical risks and
damages due to such hazards can be avoided through proper visualizations and planning. Safety
evaluation and visual risk analysis can be done. The inclusion of the provision of safety in the
contracts is very crucial for the success of any procurement route.

The construction sector is a high risk occupational division. The sector experiences risks,
hazards, and accidents. Despite the importance of construction in of in urbanization of UAE the
construction sites have been classified as high risk areas where construction workers are exposed
to a myriad of hazards and teething health problems. Some of the risks emanate from internal
factors while some unforeseen events. Construction project managers are tasked with
responsibility of project planning to construction planning and simulation, as well as
visualization during construction.8 Risk management is part of the project planning and
construction simulation. Therefore, it is important to understand that predicting the possibility of
hazardous process is critical in putting place and implementing effective control measures. As
the most recent pandemic the manifestation COVID 19 exposes how the external health factors
affect construction and engineering projects in EAU. It offers insights on how emerging
countries approach occupational health and safety in construction.

The construction industry in the UAE attracts a huge number of investors due to the
immense potential it holds and the opportunities in the sector. It is a sector that employs a
considerable number of workers ranging from project managers, engineers, architects, laborers,
dealers of construction materials and varied construction professionals.9 Therefore it is highly
likely that the sector was hard it by government implemented some safety measures curb the
6
Nicholas Kramer, Aarti Thadani and Clinton Slogrove, "UAE Construction During COVID-19: The Impact Of
Government Measures"
7
BK Rout and BK Sikdar, "Hazard Identification, Risk Assessment, And Control Measures As An Effective Tool Of
Occupational Health Assessment Of Hazardous Process In An Iron Ore Pelletizing Industry", Indian Journal Of
Occupational And Environmental Medicine 21, no. 2 (2017): 56, doi:10.4103/ijoem.ijoem_19_16.
8
BK Rout and BK Sikdar, "Hazard Identification, Risk Assessment, And Control Measures As An Effective Tool Of
Occupational Health Assessment Of Hazardous Process In An Iron Ore Pelletizing Industry"
9
Celine Abi and Habib Kanakri, "COVID-19: The Impact On Construction Industry Projects In The Middle East -
Kennedys"
 5

spread of the virus. While the preventative measures in order to stop the spread of such
pandemic, they significantly affected the progress of construction projects. According to Elhais,
“along these lines, in a circumstance of default brought about by COVID-19, different cures, for
example, termination of contract, suspension or pacing of works might be considered by
development experts.”10 Some of the construction works had to be halted to adhere to the
imposed safety measures curb the spread of the virus.

The construction sector in UAE had already been experiencing some socio-economic
challenges, before the COVID 19 pandemic. For instance, there have been a number of
complaints ranging from weakening cash flow amidst the falling oil prices.11 The developing
cash flow systems which resulted into slow movement of construction project were further
worsened by the government imposed public health measures aimed measures aimed at curbing
the spreads of the virus.12 According to some experts, the cumulative consequences of the
pandemic on construction outweigh the economic recession of 2008-09. While there are a
number of investors struggled to advance their construction projects, it becomes even more
difficult to observe the elaborate safety measures put in place by the government to cushion
construction sites from becoming a breeding ground for the spread of corona virus.13 Most
constructions had failed to meet the set deadlines and keeping workers on site safely became
more expensive. Most projects slowed down while some where halted all together.

The developing cases of COVID 19 in UAE translated into nationwide lockdowns that
halted or slowed down several construction and engineering projects in the country. For
example, when the first case of the virus was announced in the UAE, the government responded
by issuing a directive for mass sterilization which was accompanied by a nationwide lockdown.14
Construction sites and project managers were equally subjected to same directives. Sites that
remained operational had to implement stringent measures such as social distancing, working
with clinically prescribed protective gear and the vehicles ferrying workers across the country

10
Hassan Elhais, "Covid-19 Impact On Construction Contracts In UAE | Lexology", Lexology.Com, Last modified
2020, https://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=b40fe38e-8e4e-4a72-9c37-f6b53d9e3585.
11
Ammar Kaka, "Impact Of Covid-19 On UAE Construction", Meedmashreqindustryinsight.Com, Last modified
2020, https://www.meedmashreqindustryinsight.com/wp-
content/uploads/2020/08/MashreqConstruction_Report-11_Moving-Beyond-Covid.pdf.
12
Hassan Elhais, "Covid-19 Impact On Construction Contracts In UAE | Lexology",
13
Ammar Kaka, "Impact Of Covid-19 On UAE Construction",
14
Ibid
 6

has to be continuously sterilized and were to be inspected at various stops.15 All the above-
mentioned measures required more time and resources to implement.16 For an industry already
suffering from socio economic challenges stemming a weakening cash flow system amidst the
falling oil prices, observing such measures came with a high operational cost.

The onset and the development of the virus revealed how much the construction industry
in the UAE is ill prepared to tackle health and safety matters presented by the external
environment. Amidst the robust developmental agenda in most emerging nations such as the
UAE, some the nation falls short of robust risks management strategies.17 Amidst the robust
developmental agenda in most emerging nations such as the UAE. Part of safety in construction
involves accurate planning of schedules and communication among all the project members.18 In
addition, transportation was equally affected which translated into the delays of construction
supplies. As part of safety in construction, managers of construction projects were pushed revise
their plans, re schedule some of their activities and communicate new programs. In general, the
construction sector has lost a lot in terms of business capacity.19 Some of the ills that seem to
affect the construction sector in the UAE is the heavy reliance on the oil market which affects the
funds set aside for emergencies and contingencies measures.

The low bidding strategy can also be blamed for the lack of a robust set of occupational
health and safety guidelines to minimize the occurrence and severity of the risks, hazards, and
accidents in the work line. The construction industry in the country is characterized by low
bidding strategies where the lowest bidder is often granted the contract leaves project managers
with little money to run construction projects. Kaka notes that, “contractors now find themselves
struggling to absorb the costs and fulfillment burdens that Covid-19 has introduced for ongoing
projects.”20 Therefore, it can said that some of the ills that seem to affect the construction sector
in the UAE, are not only due to lack of competence of professionals in the constructions sector; it

15
Nicholas Kramer, Aarti Thadani and Clinton Slogrove, "UAE Construction During COVID-19: The Impact Of
Government Measures",
16
Ammar Kaka, "Impact Of Covid-19 On UAE Construction",
17
Joanne Strain and Wood Mallesons, "Impact Of COVID-19 On New Construction Contracts In The UAE | ICLG.Com
Online Updates", International Comparative Legal Guides International Business Reports, Last modified 2020,
https://iclg.com/briefing/13619-impact-of-covid-19-on-new-construction-contracts-in-the-uae.
18
Ammar Kaka, "Impact Of Covid-19 On UAE Construction",
19
Joanne Strain and Wood Mallesons, "Impact Of COVID-19 On New Construction Contracts In The UAE | ICLG.Com
Online Updates",
20
Ammar Kaka, "Impact Of Covid-19 On UAE Construction", p. 6
 7

is also due to the shortage of resources. The low bidding strategy exerts pressure on the supply
chain that sustains the construction sector and caps the funds that could have been set aside for
unforeseen events.

The low bidding strategy plus the public measures put in place that several construction
projects are experiencing a reduction in cash flow and are not able to sustain a sizable workforce
in the wake of economic uncertainty.21 Most developed countries have already formulated
recovery strategies for the construction industry since they resources that can sustain their
development projects amidst the prevailing environmental and social factors.22 With several
years of running construction projects, developed nations understand that the risk factor in
construction is not only limited to the worker, as dangers may also manifest through other
environmental hazards. Hence the reason they have formulated recovery strategies for the
construction industry that incorporate unforeseen eventualities.23 As a developing nation, the
industry also relies on skills and material from abroad, yet there have been travels bans that have
crippled the movement across the supply chain.

The collective dynamics involved in the construction sector in UAE reveal some of the
issues that surround occupational health and safety are highly multifaceted. For instance, the
issues that influence risk management strategies include a myriad of factors ranging from
financial factors, time, resource and competence.24 In the EAU the already existing challenges
such as the dwindling cash flow, low price biding strategies and heavy reliance on the oil market
for construction projects were further worsened by the government imposed public health
measures aimed measures aimed at curbing the spreads of the virus. Kaka notes that, “the low-
price strategy being seen across the market is placing pressure on key parts of the supply chain,
causing instability and unreliability, particularly financial, on resources and overseas
procurement.”25 Therefore, factors that affect the construction sector in the UAE, are not only
due to lack of competence of professionals in the constructions sector; it is also due to the
shortage of resources.

21
Ibid
22
Joanne Strain and Wood Mallesons, "Impact Of COVID-19 On New Construction Contracts In The UAE | ICLG.Com
Online Updates",
23
Subashini Suresh, Chike Oduoza and Suresh Renukappa, "Leadership Initiatives For Health And Safety Risk
Management Systems In A Small Construction Company: A Case Study",
24
Hassan Elhais, "Covid-19 Impact On Construction Contracts In UAE | Lexology",
25
Ammar Kaka, "Impact Of Covid-19 On UAE Construction", p. 7
 8

It is also important to note that the construction sector in the UAE is highly dependent on
migrant labor which makes up for a considerable number of construction personnel. The
construction industry employs expatriates and laborers from abroad. As such the international
travel bans halted the flow of skills. According to Jenkins and Risbridger, “many workers
travelled to China to celebrate Chinese New Year which coincided with the outbreak.
Subsequent travel restrictions on travel to/from China, impacted on the ability of workers to
return to the region to work.”26 It means a considerable number of workers were out of the
construction projects and site when the pandemic hit the country. Some of the project managers
took an offsite approach where they consulted engineers from abroad via electronic
communication. Also, as a result there many contractors had to pay the workers remaining in the
country overtime to fill the void, or pay workers instead of leave.

Since the pandemic has revealed some of the shortcoming in risk management, health and
safety involved that hail the construction industry in UAE, is it essential to review some of the
policies that compromise occupational health and risk management. While the country has been
keen on observing some measures that guide occupational safety against environmental issues
and hazards, the country has a long way top in terms of external factor and unforeseen safety
issues.27 For instance, the country did not foresee a situation where construction workers would
be expected to work within elaborate health and safety measures such as wearing masks,
frequently sanitizations and observing social distance. Jenkins and Risbridger note that it is
advisable for contractors to learn from some of the faults that were experienced in the pandemic
and create a foundation for future improvement.28 Part of precaution would entail set aside some
resources for such eventualities.

Contractors, project managers and employers have had to carry the responsibility of the
effects of the government-imposed safety measures curb the spread of the COVID 19 virus. In
the UAE juts like many other countries the employer has the duty to provide a safe working
environment in compliance with the existing labor laws.29 Amidst the need to adjust to the new
26
Harriet Jenkins and David Risbridger, "COVID-19: Impact On Construction Projects In The Middle East", Simmons-
Simmons.Com, Last modified 2020, https://www.simmons-
simmons.com/en/publications/ck7yjeifa0r1m0951yvoqlc49/covid-19-impact-on-construction-projects-in-the-
middle-east. Par. 5
27
Celine Abi and Habib Kanakri, "COVID-19: The Impact On Construction Industry Projects In The Middle East -
Kennedys",
28
Harriet Jenkins and David Risbridger, "COVID-19: Impact On Construction Projects In The Middle East",
29
Ibid
 9

government directives, they had to contend with the prevailing economic factors that diminished
cash flow across the construction sector.it has already been reported that several businesses were
grappling with dwindling cash flow and had a hard time sustaining a sizable team of workers in
the wake of the looming economic uncertainty cause by the pandemic.30 It meant more skills,
time and resources had to be sought by contractors and employers to keep contractions safe in
line with the safety precaution and risk management strategies put in place by the government.

Employers are now required to make adjustments in line with the new safety precautions
in construction while keeping the construction projects running. As a national that heavily relies
on constructions, shutting down construction sites would spell more doom for the ongoing
construction projects and the economy at large. According to Jenkins and Risbridger, some of the
recommended measures include putting business travel on hold, offering remote working
amenities for office staff, providing workers with clinically prescribed protective gear, providing
signage and offering more information about the spread of the disease.31 Medical screening has
become a top priority for construction workers. Nonetheless with such measures the progress of
constructions projects is still expected to slow down to an extent since the new measures will
compromise the speed of doing work.32 The rest of the construction supply chain is will equally
have to adjust to the measures of safety and risk management.

Methodology

Owing to the ongoing government-imposed safety measures curb the spread of the
COVID 19 virus; the proposed methodology for this study is alternative methodology.
Alternative of methodology is flexible and versatile as it adjusts to the prevailing situational
factors involved in study. The approach serves as an intersection method that incorporates a
combination of information from a wide spectrum of sources. In this case it explores, classifies
and condenses data from preceding studies on the same subject, information from focus groups
and opinions of practitioners from the construction sector in UAE. The construction sector being
a key economic driver in the UAE emirates, a lot has been documented and discussed about
effects of government-imposed safety measures curb the spread of the COVID 19 virus on
construction and engineering projects in the UAE. As such, the option of alternative
30
Ammar Kaka, "Impact Of Covid-19 On UAE Construction",
31
Harriet Jenkins and David Risbridger, "COVID-19: Impact On Construction Projects In The Middle East",
32
Nicholas Kramer, Aarti Thadani and Clinton Slogrove, "UAE Construction During COVID-19: The Impact Of
Government Measures",
 10

methodologies for this study enables the researcher(s) to acquire relevant information that allows
for in-depth interpretation and exploration.

In this case, the study the alternative method is highly applicable since there are already
existing studies about the effects of government-imposed safety measures curb the spread of the
COVID 19 virus. In line with core research objectives, the researcher aims to methodically
explore existing literature on the subject, engage in content analysis and synthesize documented
information from a wide spectrum of legitimate sources.33 The alternative method is guided by
the research questions leading to realization of research objectives. The core advantage of
alternative methodology is the flexibility it offers the researcher and the versatility of data
sources. Observation is an integral part of the alternative methodology. The researcher can make
meaningful deductions from the immediate environment. Based on consistency of the
information derived from various sources, the researcher is able to discuss the need to improve
the risk management strategies to promote health and safety in the construction industry in
developing nations.

Justification

The alternative method explores a wide range of highly heterogeneous information (both
qualitative and quantitative) that has been documented about the subject. The content analysis
incorporates information from multiple and legitimate sources and enables the researcher to
condense information by looking out for consistencies and relevance. As such the researcher is
able to present hard facts and figures such as ratios, percentages and fractions while explaining
the observed patterns using qualitative date derived from preceding studies on the same subject,
information from focus groups and opinions of practitioners from the construction sector in
UAE. For example, hard facts such as the cost of acquiring protective gear, salary of workers
and escalating of hiring experienced constructors are present using facts and figures, while the
qualitative data is used to explain the trends and the patterns in the presented facts. As such,
attributes of alternative research methodology present the researcher with the best-of-two-worlds
(both qualitative and quantitative data).

Measurements

33
Kassu Jilcha Sileyew, "Research Design And Methodology", Cyberspace 6, no. 2 (2019),
doi:10.5772/intechopen.85731.
 11

 Variable 1: Unforeseen occupation health risks presented by the escalating cases of

COVID 19

 Variable 2: Government imposed safety measures to curb the spread of the virus in the
country

 Dependent Variable: The progress of ongoing construction and engineering projects in

the UAE

In this case, the study attempts to measure unforeseen occupation health risks presented
by the escalating cases of COVID 19 virus has attracted government-imposed safety measures to
curb the spread of the virus in the country prompting contractors, employers and construction
project managers to observe the enacted measures as a way of sustaining the progress of ongoing
construction and engineering projects in the UAE

Control: A control experiment would entail observing progress of work in some of the
industries that were not significantly affected by the government-imposed measures as they
continue to offer basic/essential services – (sectors that had not been subjected to the nationwide
lockdowns). The control serves a representative scale that validates or invalidates the reliability
of the main sample.
 12

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Projects In The Middle East - Kennedys". Kennedyslaw.Com.
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industry-projects-in-the-middle-east/.

Elhais, Hassan. 2020. "Covid-19 Impact On Construction Contracts In UAE | Lexology".

Lexology.Com. https://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=b40fe38e-8e4e-4a72-
9c37-f6b53d9e3585.

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Pheng, Low Sui, and Quek Tai Chuan. 2006. "Environmental Factors And Work Performance Of
Project Managers In The Construction Industry". International Journal Of Project
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Rout, BK, and BK Sikdar. 2017. "Hazard Identification, Risk Assessment, And Control
Measures As An Effective Tool Of Occupational Health Assessment Of Hazardous
Process In An Iron Ore Pelletizing Industry". Indian Journal Of Occupational And
Environmental Medicine 21 (2): 56. doi:10.4103/ijoem.ijoem_19_16.

Sileyew, Kassu Jilcha. 2019. "Research Design And Methodology". Cyberspace 6 (2).
doi:10.5772/intechopen.85731.
 13

Strain, Joanne, and Wood Mallesons. 2020. "Impact Of COVID-19 On New Construction
Contracts In The UAE | ICLG.Com Online Updates". International Comparative Legal
Guides International Business Reports. https://iclg.com/briefing/13619-impact-of-covid-
19-on-new-construction-contracts-in-the-uae.

Suresh, Subashini, Chike Oduoza, and Suresh Renukappa. 2018. "Leadership Initiatives For
Health And Safety Risk Management Systems In A Small Construction Company: A
Case Study". Risk Management Treatise For Engineering Practitioners.
doi:10.5772/intechopen.80697.