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ACCIDENTS AT CONSTRUCTION SITES AND NEAR-MISSES: A CONSTANT

PROBLEM

Article  in  Proceedings of International Structural Engineering and Construction · November 2022

DOI: 10.14455/ISEC.2022.9(2).CSA-03

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 Proceedings of International Structural Engineering and Construction, 9(2), 2022
Achieving Technical Excellence with Data Analytics
in Materials, Structural Engineering and Construction
Edited by Vimonsatit, S., Askarinejad, H., Singh, A., and Yazdani, S.
Copyright © 2022 ISEC Press
ISSN: 2644-108X
www.doi.org/10.14455/ISEC.2022.9(2).CSA-03

ACCIDENTS AT CONSTRUCTION SITES AND

NEAR-MISSES: A CONSTANT PROBLEM
OLATOYESE ONI, ABDULLATEEF OLANREWAJU, and KHOR SOO CHEEN
Dept of Construction Management, Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman, Malaysia

Despite its important role in socioeconomic growth, the construction industry has an
unacceptably high rate of accidents when compared to other industries. On Malaysian
construction projects, overtime accidents have been a big problem. Despite the
government's efforts to mitigate this threat, reports suggest an increase in the incidence
of accidents on building sites. As a result, the goal of this research is to determine the
fundamental causes of construction site accidents and near-misses. A survey was created
and distributed to construction site experts in order to achieve this goal. The analysis
revealed that worker ignorance of safe work procedures, insufficient provision of safety
warnings/signs, working under the influence of drugs/alcohol, working with defective
equipment, and insufficient working platforms were the leading roots of accidents on
building sites. The study concludes that accidents do not just happen on construction
sites but happen as a result of numerous causes. Hence, to reduce the menace of incessant
accidents, there is a need to address these causes before and during construction works.
The study recommends that before the commencement of any construction work, a
comprehensive accident causation analysis must be carried out.
Keywords: Injury, Pain, Fatality, Safety.

1 INTRODUCTION
The Malaysian building sector is critical in driving economic activity and balancing wealth growth
with improved quality of life (Ramli et al. 2015). Indeed, the construction industry has performed
well on both an economic and social level, generating more than 1,000,000 new jobs every year
and making up 9.3% of all the workforce since 2010 (DOSM 2021).
Despite the nation's economic growth and the rising number of workers who depend on them,
several construction catastrophes have been recorded on construction sites over the years
throughout the country, leading to a large fatality rate and injuries (Chong and Low 2014, Keng
and Razak 2014). Working on construction sites is still regarded as a risky, filthy, and challenging
job that exposes workers to several occupational dangers and risks (Chan et al. 2012, Zakaria et al.
2012, Akasah et al. 2016). Construction accidents result in property damage, plant losses, and
material losses, as well as higher expenses, project delivery postponement, and a tarnished image
for contractors (Asanka and Ranasinghe 2015, Winge and Albrechtsen 2018). Construction
employees also face issues for example the inability to work, persistent absences, the chance of
being thrown out of the labour market, and loss of life as a result of illness and injury.
Malaysia's construction sector has the largest fatality rate when compared to other industrial
sectors (Table 1). According to statistics, total fatality rates in the Malaysian construction sector
amounted to an estimate of 50% of all fatality instances affecting Malaysian workers.

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Vimonsatit, S., Askarinejad, H., Singh, A., and Yazdani, S. (eds.)

Table 1. Statics of death resulting from accidents (DOSH 2021).

YEAR/SECTOR 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021

Hotel and Restaurant 3 1 5 2 0
Utilities (Electricity, Gas, Water and Sanitary Service) 10 5 9 3 8
Finance, Insurance, Real Estate and Business Services 16 22 16 8 14
Construction 111 118 84 66 56
Transport, Storage and Communication 16 12 21 11 6
Manufacturing 68 62 73 73 43
Wholesale and Retail Trade 10 1 0 1 0
Public Services and Statutory Authorities 2 9 3 3 4
Mining and Quarrying 8 4 5 3 7
Agriculture, Forestry and Fishery 23 26 43 43 13
TOTAL 267 260 259 213 151

Construction site accidents that lead to damage and death have continued to happen over the
years, and this sector continues to be a dangerous workplace where accidents happen regularly in
spite of several guidelines, laws, and job safety schemes that have been put in place at workplaces
(Asan and Akasah 2014). Accidents on construction sites not only result in worker deaths, but also
have a significant financial impact on construction organisations (DOSH 2021).
In order to develop a comprehensively efficient and feasible proactive improvement plan for
catastrophes on construction sites, the primary causes of accidents must be thoroughly researched
and grasped. Understanding and recognising these core causes is the only way to adopt effective
and suitable accident prevention measures. Establishing a safer, healthier, and more favourable
working environment at construction sites can be facilitated by understanding the factors that
contribute to accidents. The purpose of this study is to identify the underlying factors that
contribute to mishaps and near-misses on Malaysian construction sites.

2 METHODOLOGY
In an attempt to achieve the research 's objective, the study problem was solved using a cross-
sectional survey methodological approach. This method is used to determine the views, ideas,
beliefs, or characteristics of the populace. An investigator may share a survey with a reasonable
percentage of the populace or with the whole population (Bryman 2016). The basic data was
gathered using the snowballing technique. The strategy is suitable when adequate details regarding
the study population and population size are not accessible. The findings may be representative of
a sizable population even though the findings may not be generally applicable. This is in line with
the central limit theorem (CLT). In accordance with the CLT premise, the dispersion of sample
means moves closer to a normal curve as the sample size increases (Olanrewaju and Idrus 2020).
For the CLT principle to be statistically significant, a total sample of at least 30 is needed. To
collect data, a questionnaire was created using Google Form, an open online survey tool. The
questionnaire was divided into two parts. Respondents' backgrounds are discussed in Section A,
while Section B contains the identified causes of accidents and near-misses on construction sites.
Respondents were asked to rate, based on their experience, their level of agreement on the identified
factors causing accidents on construction sites on a five-likert scale, where 5 represents "strongly
agree," 4 represents “agree", 3 represents "partially agree", 2 represents "disagree" and 1 represents
"strongly disagree". Descriptive statistical tools such as means and standard deviation were used
to analyze the collected data. For interpretation purposes a mean score of 1.0≤1.5 is strongly
disagree, 1.5≤2.5 is disagree, 2.5≤3.5 is partially agree, 3.5≤4.5 is agree, 4.5≤5 is strongly agree.

CSA-03-2 © 2022 ISEC Press

 Proceedings of International Structural Engineering and Construction, 9(2), 2022
Achieving Technical Excellence with Data Analytics in Materials, Structural Engineering and Construction

A sample t-test was also performed to investigate the possibility that each of the characteristics
found could contribute to accidents and near-misses on construction sites.

3 ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION

As contained in Table 2, 36.7% of the respondents are site supervisors, while 18.1% of the
respondents are engineers, and 13.4% of the respondents are safety officers. This implies that the
respondents cut across various positions in the company, particularly the key positions in the top
hierarchy who are well informed about the accidents on site. The table also revealed that 81% of
the respondents had more than 5 years of working experience in construction. This also put them
in the best position to answer the questions correctly based on their wealth of experience on
construction sites. Similarly, it can be deduced from the table that more than 70% of the
respondents had obtained a higher educational qualification above diploma level. This also
improved the confidence that they had adequate knowledge to answer the questions correctly.
Finally, the table revealed that all the respondents had their educational background within the built
environment, which also made them qualified to fill out the questionnaire.

Table 2. Respondent profile.

Academic
Position in the company Frequency Percent Frequency Percent
background
Architect 12 9.5 Architecture 14 11.0
Engineer (Civil, Electrical, Construction
23 18.1 32 25.2
Mechanical) management
Engineering (Civil,
Foreman 4 3.2 Electrical, 50 39.4
Mechanical)
Project Manager 12 9.5 Facility management 1 0.78
Quantity surveyor 12 9.5 Quantity survey 30 23.6
Safety officer 17 13.4 Total 127 100
Academic
Site supervisor 47 36.7 Frequency Percent
qualification
Total 127 100 Bsc 71 55.9
Year of experience Frequency Percent Diploma 27 21.3
1-5 years 19 14.9 MSc 27 21.3
11-15 years 36 28.3 PhD 1 0.78
16-20 years 31 24.4 SPM 1 0.78
6-10 years 34 26.8 Total 127 100
Over 20 years 7 5.5
Total 127 100

The result of the descriptive statistics and t test is contained in Table 3. A sample t-test was
also performed to investigate the possibility that each of the characteristics found could contribute
to accidents on a construction site. The null hypothesis is that all the variables can cause accidents
on construction sites (H0: U = U0), while the alternate hypothesis is that all the variables cannot
cause accidents on construction sites (Hr: U U0). U0 is the population mean. The confidence
interval was set at 95%. The null hypothesis was then accepted for all the variables as they all had
a level of significance below 0.05.

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Vimonsatit, S., Askarinejad, H., Singh, A., and Yazdani, S. (eds.)

Table 3. Descriptive statistics.

Factors M Std t Sig

Ignorance of workers on safe work procedures 4.09 0.67 10.05 0.00
Inadequate provision of safety warnings or other
4.01 0.69 8.29 0.00
precautions
Working under influence of drugs and alcohol 4.00 0.63 6.26 0.00
Working with defective equipment or tools 3.98 0.66 7.97 0.00
Inadequate working platform 3.98 0.66 7.91 0.00
Using subpar and ineffective working tools 3.98 0.68 8.20 0.00
Unsafe behavior of the workers 3.98 0.69 8.51 0.00
Improper stacking of materials or components 3.97 0.70 7.15 0.00
Poor risk management 3.97 0.74 7.59 0.00
Inadequate traffic control system 3.96 0.58 8.98 0.00
Migraine 3.95 0.73 7.02 0.00
Disorganized work 3.94 0.64 7.41 0.00
Nonadherence to safety rule and regulation 3.94 0.65 7.41 0.00
Workers' failure to acknowledge possible dangers 3.94 0.67 7.29 0.00
Inadequate control of plant or equipment operation 3.94 0.67 7.35 0.00
The supervisor's unreasonable time estimates for each
3.94 0.68 7.22 0.00
task
Failure to update standard procedure 3.94 0.68 7.76 0.00
Poor construction processes 3.94 0.69 7.35 0.00
Omission: missing something from sequence of steps 3.94 0.69 7.62 0.00
Inadequate working drawings 3.93 0.63 7.04 0.00
Poor safety culture 3.93 0.68 7.71 0.00
Poor method statement 3.93 0.69 7.16 0.00
Inadequate control of chemicals or harmful substances 3.92 0.67 7.10 0.00
Confined workplace 3.91 0.67 6.92 0.00
inadequate lighting 3.91 0.68 6.23 0.00
Overconfident of employees 3.91 0.69 6.63 0.00
Employee ill health (sickness, drug addiction) 3.91 0.69 6.86 0.00
Management and supervisors' inability to recognize
3.91 0.74 6.06 0.00
possible dangers
Improper Site layout/organization 3.91 0.76 6.63 0.00
Poor management of work at height 3.90 0.61 6.56 0.00
Inadequate orientation to new workers before
3.90 0.69 6.46 0.00
commencement of work
Improper maintenance of temporary structure 3.90 0.69 6.56 0.00
Inadequate structural design for temporary support 3.90 0.70 7.34 0.00
Unsuitable worksite conditions and environment 3.89 0.70 5.68 0.00
Lack of workers motivation such as incentives to best
3.89 0.78 6.29 0.00
H&S compliance

The table also shows that all the variables fall within agreed ranges as discussed in the
methodology. The overall mean and standard deviation were 3.94 and 0.68, respectively. This
implies that the respondents agree that all the variables can cause accidents on construction sites,
and the standard deviation shows that all the responses were clustered around the mean.
Because of space constraints, only the first ten variables will be discussed. It is not surprising
that ignorance of workers on safe work procedures was ranked as the number one cause of
accidents. The reason for this is that the nature of construction jobs allows so many temporary
workers who are mostly after their daily needs and totally ignorant of their safety procedures. For

CSA-03-4 © 2022 ISEC Press

 Proceedings of International Structural Engineering and Construction, 9(2), 2022
Achieving Technical Excellence with Data Analytics in Materials, Structural Engineering and Construction

instance, during the casting of a concrete floor slab, the contractor will engage available labour
around the site just for that purpose in order to make the work faster. The provision of insufficient
safety warnings or other precautions is the next cause of accidents. The importance of safety signs
on construction sites cannot be overstated as they prevent injury and warn workers and visitors on
the possibility of danger and hazard ahead in certain environments, but unfortunately, this is not
given due consideration, especially on small construction sites. This is because most small
construction sites do not fully comply with safety regulations. This is also in line with the findings
of Asan and Akasah (2014), who pointed out that one of the reasons accidents happen on building
sites is a lack of proper safety signs or other procedures. Working under the influence of drugs and
alcohol is another vital cause of accidents on construction sites. Construction work is physical in
nature and requires a lot of energy and strength. In most cases, construction workers will have to
work under unfavourable weather conditions for a long period of time, especially during
substructure and superstructure work. During this period, workers like bricklayers, carpenters, iron
benders, and even the supervisor, will have to stand and work under the sun for a long period. This,
in turn, will cause body pain and fatigue. In order to alleviate this pain, they indulge in drugs and
alcohol, which may eventually lead to accidents (Williams et al. 2017). Next is working with
defective equipment and tools. Numerous head and body injuries, particularly those to the head
and face, can result from using improper equipment. For instance, accidents involving
electrocution from defective machine or injuries sustained while using a deficient lift to raise and
lower big objects are also possible. This type of accident is common when workers are trying to
manage defective equipment and tools to finish their jobs. Inadequate working platforms are
another cause of accidents. In most cases, construction workers tend to transfer working platforms
from one point to another due to inadequate platforms. This process often results in accidents. This
type of accident is often common while working on scaffolds. Working platforms are, in most
cases, only provided at the section where the workers are currently working, leaving other parts of
the scaffold void. Use of substandard and incorrect working tools is another cause of accidents.
Using hand tools frequently and for an extended period of time can result in soreness, aches, pains,
and exhaustion, in addition to regular injuries like cuts, puncture wounds, and fractures, which may
result in severe musculoskeletal ailments (Chim et al. 2018). Next is the unsafe behaviour of
workers. Due to overconfidence, construction workers often indulge in some unsafe practises such
as moving from structure to scaffold and back again, climbing scaffold without a ladder, throwing
and catching objects on scaffold, among others. All this unsafe behaviour often leads to an
accident. Improper stacking of materials or components is another cause of accidents. This type
of accident occurs when material that is not properly stacked falls on a worker, for instance, when
working close to or around cement or planks that are not properly stacked. Poor risk management
is another cause of accidents. Risk management helps in planning, monitoring, and controlling all
the measures needed to prevent exposure to risk. Proper risk management helps in identifying
hazards and putting proper measures in place to mitigate them, but when this is poor, there are high
chances of accidents. Inadequate traffic control systems can also cause accidents on construction
sites. For instance, an accident can occur if the number of vehicles coming in and out and also
those working onsite is not properly controlled.

4 CONCLUSION
As death and injury statistics in construction continue to ravage the industry globally, accident
issues on building sites appear to remain mostly unsolved. This study has successfully identified
and analysed the major causes of these accidents. From the study, it can be deduced that accidents
do not just occur but they are triggered by so many reasons, which can be attributed to workers'

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 Vimonsatit, S., Askarinejad, H., Singh, A., and Yazdani, S. (eds.)

negligence, management failure to provide adequate training and safety equipment, and the
inability of the government to adequately enforce safety regulations on construction sites. To
reduce the risk of accidents on building sites, all stakeholders, including the government,
management, and workers, must play their roles diligently. Hence, to reduce the menace of
incessant accidents, there is a need to address these causes before and during construction works.
The study recommends that before the commencement of any construction work, a comprehensive
accident causation analysis must be carried out.

References
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