Occupational health and safety practice in infrastructure projects.

Objectives. This research intends to investigate the responsibilities of the parties engaged in the implementation phase of the infrastructure projects in occupational health and safety, i.e., the consultant and contractor. Methods. A questionnaire was developed through the selection and modification of the responsibilities from the literature review. Results. The statistical analysis results show that the consultants and contractors both ranked the item 'The owner requires the contractor to implement the occupational safety standards within the bid' first in the owner responsibilities, having 0.67 relative importance index (RII). In the responsibilities of the consultant, the first ranked item was 'The consultant has a role in adopting occupational safety plans and contingency plans', having 0.66 RII. In the responsibilities of the contractor, the first ranked item was 'The contractor shall provide the insurance cover for all project crews', having 0.71 RII. In the responsibilities of the workers, the first ranked item was 'Workers know the handling of tools and equipment within the project', having 0.59 RII. Conclusion. Overall, there was general agreement between consultants and contractors to classify and arrange items because both face the same conditions and have the same working environment.

Barriers of Occupational Safety Implementation in Infrastructure Projects: Gaza Strip Case.

Infrastructure projects are the foundation for essential public services and have an influential position in societal development. Although the role of infrastructure projects is substantial, they can involve complexities and safety issues that lead to an unsafe environment, and which impacts the project key stakeholders. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the barriers to implementing occupational safety in infrastructure projects in the Gaza Strip, which cause serious threats and reduce project performance. To evaluate the barriers, 39 items were highlighted and modified as per the construction context and environment, and which later were distributed in the form of a questionnaire, to get feedback from consultants and contractors. The analysis shows that in the safety policy barriers group, consultants and contractors both ranked the item "a contractor committed to an occupational safety program is not rewarded" first. In the management barriers group, consultants and contractors both ranked the item "safety engineer does not have significant powers, such as stopping work when needed" in the first place. In the behavior and culture barriers group, consultants and contractors both ranked the item "workers who are not committed to occupational safety are not excluded" in the first place. Overall, both consultants and contractors shared the same viewpoint in classifying the barriers in the working environment. The outcome of this study is beneficial for Palestinian construction industry policymakers, so they can monitor the highlighted barriers in on-going infrastructure projects and can modify the safety guidelines accordingly.