Investigating the Management of Health and Safety by Road Contractors in Ghana
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Date
2015-02-20
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Abstract
Health and safety havebecome a key component in the construction industry over the years. Appalling situation of health and safety on construction sites has left many incapacitated and resulted in loss of livelihood. Deteriorating health and safety situation caused the delay of many construction projects which have dire consequences for the national economy (chartered institute of building report 2009 and environmental protection agency report 2008). The road construction sector is one such area of operation in the construction industry that has witnessed numerous accidents and debilitating injuries to employees and third parties during operations. The phenomenon in the road construction sector does not auger well for the economy of Ghana as a result of the key roles of road networks in the development of Ghana. To help in addressing this trend, this study is designed to investigate the management of health and safety by road contractors in Ghana. To achieve the aim just advanced, a quantitative method was adopted using survey questionnaire as the main instrument for data collection. Survey questionnaires were administered to 50 respondents using purposive sampling which yielded a response rate of 92 per cent. The data collected wereanalysed basically with descriptive statistics. Key findings of the study include high rate of accidents in the road construction sector with the major cause being exposure to noise; and poor manual handling. Proposed criteria for curbing accidents include effective monitoring of road construction firms in the area of health and safety promotion. It is envisaged that when this study is adapted by stakeholders in the road construction sector, it will inure to the benefits of all by way of numerous benefits notably the improvement in health and safety of construction workers among others.
Description
A Thesis Submitted to the Department of Building Technology, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the award of a degree of Master of Science in Construction Management, 2014