Safety Risk Assessment In The Construction Company: Management Perspective

1.0 INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
One of the significant vital factors in a country’s development is the construction industry. This is because the provision of infrastructures and amenities needed for the growth of the country cannot be established without the industry (Yimam, 2011). Despite the benefit of the industry, it is laden with risks when compared to other projects due to the very nature of the activities that are involved in construction projects. Fadun and Saka (2018), posited that a risk is an unforeseen event that prevents the completion of a construction project at the stipulated time and cost.
According to Mahamid, (2013), two significant factors have always attracted attention in the construction industry; these two are time and cost overruns hence projects completed with significant overruns has been linked to the construction industry (Abdul-Rhaman et al., 2015). Abderisak and Lindahl, (2015), reported that the initial budgets of many construction projects had been exceeded with an increase in the cost up to the range of 50 -100% and sometimes beyond 100% in some cases. The inability to achieve the desired objectives of the construction projects is usually the aftermath of the occurrence of risks in construction works. Delays, cost overruns and a shortfall in quality are the most experienced adverse effects of risk in construction projects.
The importance of providing safe workplace has been reiterated by various related studies because of the intrinsic hazard and risk factors that undoubtedly underlie every work situation and their negative impact on a company’s overall performance. While risk is the chance or probability that a person will be harmed or experience an adverse health effect if exposed to a hazard, hazard on the other hand refers to the situation or source (which could be biological, chemical, physical or ergonomic) of potential damage to somebody, property or equipment. It is believed that some industries are more hazardous that some others. The construction industry world over, is however considered as one of the most hazardous industry. The International Training Centre of the International Labour Organisation (2011) claims that one in six fatal accidents at work occur on a construction site. It further stated that no less than 60,000 fatal accidents occur on construction sites around the world every year.
The fact that a construction job or work environment is considered as highly risky and hazardous does not mean that its susceptibility to accident is not controllable – this largely depends on “work situation” which is humanly controllable. Safety records in the same construction industry in most advanced countries have proven this to be true according to Idoro (2018)
The main rationale behind construction risk management is not the total elimination of the risks that occur but having proper control over the whole risks (Dallas, 2016). Risk management in the Nigerian construction industry is still in the infancy phase which is unlike the developed countries (Odusamiet al., 2012). Harmonizing the thoughts of Odeyinkaet al., 2017), the Nigerian construction industry is known for cost overruns, subsequent delays and project abandonment. Consequently, this study seeks to appraise the present level of risk management practice in Nigeria. The findings of Odusamiet al., (2012) & Fadun and Saka (2018) also suggest that it is expedient to assess the factors responsible for the present state of risk management practice in the Nigerian construction industry. Therefore this study aims to evaluate the practice adopted for managing risk in the Nigeria construction industry.

1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
The nature of building projects has exposed workers to multiple dangers and safety risks, potentially leading to a high rate of occupational mishaps, injury, and death on job sites (Abas et al., 2020). Workers on construction sites engage in a wide range of activities, each of which comes with its own set of risks. As a result, they are exposed to dangers such as physical, psychological, biological, and chemical dangers (Mersha et al., 2017). According to the Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI, 2017), a variety of factors can put construction workers at risk for occupational injury due to multiple operatives’ activities on construction sites that can lead to injuries and death, such as constructing, assembling, dismantling, and repairing. Because of the labour-intensive nature of the construction process, it has a significant level of risk. At the same time, occupational accidents cost the construction sector a lot of money. Occupational accidents cause major social and economic problems for workers as a result of bodily injuries and death.
According to the International Labour Organization (ILO, 2012) the construction industry accounts for 25 to 40 percent of all occupational fatalities worldwide. According to the ILO, 60,000 fatal occurrences occur yearly on construction sites worldwide, and a worker dies in an occupational accident every 10 minutes (Park et al., 2020). According to a 2016 report from the Bureau of Labour Statistics (BLS), the construction business had a mortality rate of 10.1 fatalities per 100,000 workers, which was higher than other industries such as forestry (0.91), transportation (0.75), and fishing (0.24 deaths per 100,000 workers). In 2016, the construction industry was responsible for 19 percent of all industrial deaths in the United States, and it was also discovered to have a higher fatality rate than other industries around the world (Chan et al., 2018). According to the Health and Safety Executive (2017), the construction industry in the United Kingdom has a death rate of 1.37 fatalities per 100,000 workers, which is more than three times higher than the national average. The yearly occupational fatality rate in Nigeria, according to Hamalainen et al. (2009), is 24 fatalities per 100,000 employees. The situation in developing countries like Nigeria is much worse than it is in developed countries like the United States. Abubakar et al. (2015) further revealed that work-related fatalities are on the increase in Nigeria.
Work-related injuries pose major public health and development challenges, with serious health, social, and economic consequences for workers and their employers (Tolera, 2016). In the developing nations safety issues receive inadequate attention and provision, this is owing to cost, lack of enforcement of health and safety rules and ignorance of the stakeholders (Idoro, 2011). Windapo (2014) further asserted that the risks associated with construction activities that have the greatest potential for causing injuries on site are being overlooked. This study is proposed to assess the level of safety risk associated with building construction work items in Abuja

1.3 AIMS AND OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
The aim of the study is to assess the safety risk level associated with specific work items in Abuja construction projects.
The objectives of the study are;
i. To determine the most hazardous work items.
ii. To conduct a risk assessment on work items in building construction projects.
iii. To examine the major causes of injury in construction companies.
iv. To examine the relationship between construction workers and work injuries.
v. To make a recommendation on construction safety plans

1.4 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
The study will provide a means of enlightening construction workers on how important is it to work safely and to make them know all the necessary safety measures.
This study will also be of immense benefit to students and scholars who are interested in developing further studies on the subject matter.
Finally, the study shall make a recommendation on construction safety plans which include an acceptable risk assessment technique, with proper risk identification and prioritization being a requirement for effective risk management and control effective risk management and control.

1.5 SCOPE OF THE STUDY
The scope of this work covers assess the level of safety risk associated with building construction work items in Abuja. Purposive sampling technique was adopted for data collection. The mean score method was used to analyse the most hazardous work items in building construction projects.

1.6 LIMITATION OF THE STUDY
Financial constraint- Insufficient fund tends to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature or information and in the process of data collection (internet, questionnaire and interview).
Time constraint- The researcher will simultaneously engage in this study with other academic work. This consequently will cut down on the time devoted for the research work