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OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH (OSH)

1.
Occupational Safety and Health - OSH, is about the awareness of and responsibilities for
ensuring that the work environment does not contribute to ill health of the persons in that
environment over time, or as events that may cause loss of life or limb.

2.
OSH is not about the safety and health of the end-users of the facility, or the facility itself, on
account of failure of the facility due to design or construction errors when in use. AEC safety is
assured by the approval process of the jurisdiction in which case it is the law that certain
building or design codes of practice are appropriately applied in the design and construction of
the facility. However, it may be the case that due to changes in codes for design and
construction that existing facilities may need to be re-evaluated and suitable adjustments
made.

3.
Hence in the context of civil engineering, OSH is about the safety and health of persons on site
during construction. There are two motives for the introduction of OSH - humanitarian
concerns, and minimization of construction cost. In modern progressive societies a safe and
healthy workplace is regarded as a basic human right. Therefore from this perspective the
development of OSH requirements can be regarded as a result of humanist and egalitarian
attitudes of society as a whole.

3.
There is also an economic reason why OSH legislation and practice has evolved to the mature
stage that now exists in most of the developed and developing world. Some facts regarding
accidents in the construction sector are:

 In the U.S.A construction accidents amount to approximately US$20 billion annually.

Electrical mishaps occupy about 20 percent of the total, faulty scaffolding accounts for
about 15 percent, and persons falling, about 7 percent.
 In the U.K about 5 workers are killed per fortnight, and 1 member of the public is killed
per month. The rate of fatalities in construction in the U.K is about 6 times that of the
manufacturing sector, and about 16 times that of the service sector.
 In Barbados, death from electrical mishaps on site are about 5 per 100,000 persons.
(Published data on other English-speaking Caribbean territories is very scarce).

4.
There are two types of costs due to mishaps - direct and indirect costs. The indirect costs are
estimated to be from 4 to 17 times the direct costs. Examples of direct costs are: higher
insurance rates; losses not covered by insurance; material and equipment replacement costs;
the cost of investigation, etc. Examples of indirect costs are: employee turnover; lost time;
lower morale; lower efficiency; loss of new business, etc.

5.
As with other important social issues, policies become law. Of particular concern for civil
engineers is that in many countries, the civil engineer has sufficient responsibility and
accountability for OSH that accidents can result in the engineer being charged with an offense
that can result in heavy personal fines, or even imprisonment. The following is a description of
the OHS legislative framework in several territories:

 In the U.S.A the OSH Act was passed in 1970 and covers most of the types of workplace
that exist. Regulations 2207 deals specifically with the construction industry. The
administration of the Act is undertaken by the State Department of Labour via OSHA
Compliance Officials.
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 In the U.K the Health and Safety at Work Act was passed in 1974. The Workplace
Regulations were developed in 1992, and the Management of Health and Safety
Regulations in 1999. Specific responsibilities for civil engineering designers and
construction managers are detailed in the Construction (Design and Management)
Regulations 2007.
 In Trinidad and Tobago the OSH Act was developed in 2004 and amended in 2006. It is
based on the U.K system and has 15 parts. The OSH Authority is responsible for its
enforcement.

6.
Regardless of the specific OSH legislation there are certain Basics of Good Safety Practice:

 Agreement between the main and sub-contractors (e.g. as regards toilets; First Aid; fire;
potable water, etc).
 Management of machines and tools including the tagging and removal of unsafe items.
 Management of harmful animals, plants, flammable liquids and gases.
 Facilities for medical attention and supplies including transportation to a physician or
hospital.
 Personal protective equipment such as ear plugs, hardhats, goggles, and suitable
clothing and footware.
 Suitable lighting of work areas
 Suitable ladders and scaffolding
 Proper fire-fighting equipment and alarms

7.
The main methods for achieving workforce safety in the construction workplace are:

 Communication: training; awareness of hazardous areas; protective clothing,

notification of danger via suitable signage, etc.
 Proper use of equipment and their maintenance.
 Least amount of working at a height by use of: sub-assembly; fixing of ladders and
platforms on the ground before lifting into place; the early provision of walkways,
temporary staircases and hoists.
 Fixing of portable equipment (e.g. welding plant; drills; hammers; etc).
 Thoughtful design: lifting cleats and connections for heavy, complex components should
be designed and included in the design drawings. Also, the fixing cleats, brackets, or
holes for working platforms, safety belts, and nets.

8.
The facility being built is itself a source of possible mishaps during its construction. This
requires understanding the structural behaviour of the incomplete facility. A designer must
communicate her/his plan for handing the structure while it is under construction. This
includes consideration of:

 The effective length of columns before it is tied by beams

 Temporary bracing of walls or columns especially if exposed to wind
 The design of all falsework, and temporary supports.

9.
The design engineer and construction supervisor/manager have personal responsibilities and
are accountable for safety and health in the construction workplace. OSH requirements must
be embedded into the engineer's mindset and even become an automatic routine for persons
working or visiting the site. Refer to the checklists provided which are an essential part of the
practice and procedure for all civil engineering students and professionals.