13.05.2019
From 13 to 19 May, the 6th Safety Week will be held at several hundred construction sites in Poland, carried out by the signatories of the Agreement for Safety in the Construction Industry. This is the largest initiative in Poland to improve safety on construction sites in our country. The campaign was held under the patronage of the Chief Labour Inspector.
The Agreement for Safety in Construction, established by the largest general construction contractors operating in Poland, has been organizing the “Safety Week” for the sixth year in a row. Every year, the scale of the project is huge – last year alone, the campaign covered almost 40,000 employees in several hundred different locations.
The number of accidents in the construction industry is decreasing
Construction is on the 2nd floor. among the industries in which workplace accidents occur most often. According to the National Labour Inspectorate, in 2018 540 people were injured in accidents at work, including 70 who lost their lives. And this means that at least one person dies on the construction site every week. In accidents investigated by labour inspectors, 171 people suffered serious injuries (in 2017 there were 215).
For several years, the number of accidents in the construction industry has been regularly decreasing. According to the latest data from the Central Statistical Office, compared to last year, the number of people injured in accidents at work decreased by 3 percent.
The overarching and unchanging goal of the Agreement is to achieve zero fatal accidents among the members of the Agreement in the coming years.
Never cut corners
“Safety Week is an important project for the construction industry. The slogan of this year’s edition is “Never take shortcuts”. Despite our strenuous efforts and the hard work of all of us, unfortunately, in 2018 11 employees from our companies – signatories of the Agreement – died. We refer to each of the employees. Together we create a team, we work for common success. Everyone has an impact on their own and others’ safety. Our working conditions are dynamic, often unpredictable and changeable. Someone may not take care of something, but someone else may notice the danger. The most important thing is not to take shortcuts and not to make your work easier at the expense of your own safety and the safety of others – says Leszek Gołąbiecki, President of the Agreement for Security.
This year’s Safety Week will include, m.in, first aid training on construction sites, workshops and presentations of health and safety practices on construction sites, safety demonstrations, lectures by PIP inspectors. – We have also prepared new guides for construction site managers to increase the level of safety on the construction site. The OHS Ideas Book 2019 suggests over 30 activities with construction site workers – adds Gołąbiecki.
New ideas, new activities
One of the tips included in the manual includes the installation of boards on construction sites with photos of close employees. The “Who do I work safely for?” board aims to make employees aware that they are working safely not only for themselves, but also for their family and friends. The board is to remind them that their loved ones are waiting for them and that they should also take care of their safety for their sake – so that they can return home safe and sound after work every day. This is an additional motivation and incentive to work safely – adds Gołąbiecki.
For the first time in the history of the Agreement for Safety in Construction, professional First Aid Championships will be held as part of the Safety Week. They will take place on May 14-15, and the arena of the participants’ struggles will be the complex in Sierpc. 12 three-person teams, consisting of representatives of PBB signatories, will fight for the championship title. The teams will not only compete for the title of the best team, but above all they will improve their first aid skills. Competitions based on simulated scenes will allow you to test yourself in conditions as close to real as possible. The competition will include providing assistance to traumatic victims, anaphylactic, septic, cardio- and neurogenic shock, and burned victims. Participants will face an emergency, the need for resuscitation for adults and children, and automatic external defibrillation. The skills and rescue talent of the competitors will be assessed by judges who work as paramedics on a daily basis.
Cooperation and support
For years, during the Safety Week, the organizers of the campaign have been cooperating with many institutions
and companies that work to raise health and safety standards on Polish construction sites.
The nationwide campaign was held under the patronage of the Chief Labour Inspector. “Every action that shows how important safety on construction sites is is close to my heart. Especially one that is professionally prepared and in which tens of thousands of construction industry workers participate,” says Wiesław Łyszczek, Chief Labour Inspector. “At the same time, we must remember that the Construction Safety Week should last… all year round. Because every day we should remember to follow the rules of safe work and cooperation in this area at every stage of the construction process.
Agreement for Safety in Construction
The Agreement for Safety in Construction has been in existence for nine years. It was established in 2010. on the initiative of the Chief Labour Inspector. Initially, the signatories of the Agreement were seven general contractors. Due to the open nature of the organization, new members soon joined the Agreement.
Currently, the Agreement is made up of 15 of the largest general construction contractors in the country, the signatories of the Agreement: Budimex, Erbud, Hochtief Polska, Karmar, Mostostal Warszawa, Mota-Engil, Polimex Mostostal, Porr, Skanska, Strabag, Unibep and Warbud, as well as three associated members MCKB, REMBOR General and NDI.
The alliance was established with the aim of eliminating accidents on construction sites by promoting safe behaviour, improving safety standards and working conditions, and developing a culture of health and safety.
The strength of the Agreement lies in the knowledge and experience gained during the implementation of both large and small construction projects, including joint analysis of accidents. As part of the cooperation, the member companies have set up a platform for the exchange of knowledge in the field of security. This is achieved, for example, by sending alerts about fatal accidents and regular meetings of OHS managers, during which m.in are discussed. causes and circumstances of fatal events. Such actions allow you to draw conclusions for the future, avoid mistakes made earlier,
and prevent similar accidents from occurring.
The agreement is open to others – it invites responsible contractors, subcontractors, and construction industry environment organizations to cooperate.