Occupational Health and Safety in Tanzanian Construction Sector: Incompliance, Informality, and Power Relations
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Published:
Feb 28, 2022
Keywords:
Construction, Informal Construction Workers, Occupational Health and Safety
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Abstract
The management of Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) on construction sites continues to be an area of concern. Workers have continued to be blamed for unsafe behavior, contributing to the increase in the number of accidents on construction sites. Although various legislative acts enforcing Health and Safety (HS) exist, incompliance with such legislation is evident. This study sets out to understand why construction managers and workers do not comply with OHS legislation. Interviews, focus group discussions, and observations were carried out with the construction site managers and informal construction workers on selected construction sites. Content and thematic analyses were adopted to analyze the data using Nvivo version 12, qualitative analysis software. The study confirmed poor OHS practices and concluded that the precarious nature of the workers’ jobs in the construction sector limits their power to demand the enforcement of OHS, resulting in them accepting the risks as wage-for-labor precariat. Site managers have limited power since they are employees of the main contractor, and their focus is on the completion of the construction projects. This study recommends the need to establish an inclusive safety management system that accommodates the main contractors, managers, and workers. Moreover, a review of the current OHS (building and construction) rules is recommended to recognize the precariat-informal construction workers, who are the main players on construction sites.
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Aloyce Gervas, Godbertha Kinyondo, Nina Torm, & Mackfallen G. Anasel. (2022). Occupational Health and Safety in Tanzanian Construction Sector: Incompliance, Informality, and Power Relations. PanAfrican Journal of Governance and Development (PJGD), 3(1), 186-215. https://doi.org/10.46404/panjogov.v3i1.3581
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References
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Chang, J. H., Han, S., AbouRizk, S. M., & Kanerva, J. (2019). Stratified statistical analysis for
effectiveness evaluation of frontline worker safety intervention: A case study of construction steel fabrication. Safety Science, 115, 89–102.
Chen, M. (2012). The Informal Economy: Definitions, Theories and Policies. WIEGO Working
Paper, Vol 1. https://doi.org/10.1016/0305-750X (94) 90141-4
Chiaburu, D. S., & Harrison, D. A. (2008). Do peers make the place? Conceptual synthesis and
meta-analysis of co-worker effects on perceptions, attitudes OCBs and performance. Journal of Applied Psychology, 93, 1082–1103.
Chileshe, N., & Dzisi, E. (2012). Benefits and barriers of construction health and safety
management (HSM). Journal of Engineering, Design and Technology, 10(2), 276–298.
Choudhry, R. M., & Fang, D. (2008). Why operatives engage in unsafe work behavior.
Investigating factors on construction sites. Safety Science, 46, 566–584.
Flor, A. (2021). Theories of power and social change: Power contestations and their implications
for research on social change and innovation. In Journal of Political Power. https://doi.org/10.1080/2158379X.2021.1875307
Gervais, A. (2021). Social Protection and informal construction worker organizations in
Tanzania: How informal worker organizations strive to provide social insurance to their members. Social Protection and Informal Workers in Sub-Saharan Africa: Lived Realities and Associational Experiences from Kenya and Tanzania (1st Ed.), 1(25). https://doi.org/doi.org/10.4324/9781003173694
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Safety Science, 55, 207–2021.
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medium-sized construction businesses in Ghana: Unpublished Ph.D. Thesis, Longborough University. UK.
Kheni, N. A., & Braimah, C. (2014). Institutional and Regulatory Frameworks for health and
safety administration: Study of the Construction Industry of Ghana. International Journal of Engineering and Sciences, Vol. 3(2), 24–34.
LaDou, J., London, L., & Watterson, A. (2018). Occupational health: A world of false promises.
Environmental Health, 17(81). https://doi.org/doi.org/10.1186/s12940-018-0422-x
Lander, F., Nielsen, K. J., & Lauristsen. (2016). Work injury trends during the last three decades
in the construction industry. Safety Science, 85, 60–66.
Lars, P., Sonderbo, A., & Regine, G. (2021). Different ways of perceiving risk and safety on
construction sites and implications for safety cooperation. Construction Management and Economics, 39(5), 419–431. https://doi.org/10.1080/01446193.2021.1904516
Liang, Q., Leang, M. Y., & Ahmed, K. (2021). How adoption of coping behaviors determines
construction workers’ safety: A quantitative and qualitative investigation. Safety Science, 133.
Lingard, H. (2013). Occupational health and safety in the construction industry. Construction
Management and Economics, 31(6), 505–514.
Lingard, H., & Rowlinson, S. M. (2005). Occupational health and safety in construction project
management. Taylor & Francis.
Lombardi, D. A., Verma, S. K., Brennan, M. J., & Perry, M. J. (2009). Factors influencing
worker use of personal protective eyewear. Accident Analysis & Prevention, 41, 755–762.
Mitullah, W., & Wachira, I. N. (2003). Informal Labour in the Construction Industry in Kenya:
A case study of Nairobi. Sectoral Activities Programme Working Paper,. ILO, Geneva.
Mneymneh, B. E., Abbas, M., & Khoury, H. (2017). Automated hardhat detection for
construction Safety Applications. Procedia Engineering, 196, 895–902.
Mohammadi, A., Mehdi, T., & Yahya, K. (n.d.). Factors influencing safety performance on
construction projects: A review. Safety Science, 109(2018), 382–397.
Mrema, E. J., Ngowi, A. V., & Mamuya, S. H. D. (2015). Status of Health and Safety related
challenges in expanding economy of Tanzania: Annals of Global Health. 81(4), 538–547.
Muhammad, Bima Abubakar Ismaila, A., & Baba, D. L. (2015). Assessment of cost impact in
health and safety on construction projects. American Journal of Engineering Research, 4(3), 25–30.
National Audit Office of Tanzania (NAOT). (2013). A Performance Audit Report on The
Management of Occupational Health and Safety in Tanzania.
Oliveira, P., & Pais, R. (2018). Study of the Influence of Training in Occupational Safety and
Health in the Human Factors of the Construction Sector. In: Arezes P. (eds) Advances in Safety Management and Human Factors. AHFE 2017. Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing, vol 604.
Patel, D. A., & Jha, K. N. (2016). Structural equation modeling for relationship-based
determinants of safety performance in construction projects. Journal of Management in Engineering, 32(6).
Peiyao, Z., Nan, L., Zhongming, J., Dongping, F., & Anumba, C. J. (2019). An agent-based
modeling approach for understanding the effect of worker-management interactions on construction workers’ safety-related behaviors, Automation in Construction. Volume 97, Pages 29-43. https://doi.org/doi.org/10.1016/j.autcon.2018.10.015.
Phoya, S., & Kikwasi, G. (2017). Health and Safety Skill supply on construction sites in
Tanzania. Journal of Scientific and Engineering Research, 4(12), 477–485.
Riisgaard, L., Mitullah, W., & Torm, N. (Eds.). (2021). Social Protection and Informal Workers
in Sub-Saharan Africa: Lived Realities and Associational Experiences from Kenya and Tanzania (1st ed.). https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003173694
Rowlinson, S. (2000). Human Factors in Construction Safety - Management Issues,’ In Hinze, J.,
Coble, R., and Haupt, T. (eds), Construction Safety and Health Management,. Prentice-Hall.
Schmalz, S., Ludwig, C., & Webster, E. (2018). The power resources approach: Developments
challenges. Global Labour Journal, 9(2), 113–134.
Silver, B. J. (2003). Forces of labor: Workers’ movements and globalization since 1870.
Cambridge University Press.
Smallwood, J., Haupt, T., & Shakantu. (2009). Construction health and safety in South Africa:
Status and recommendations. CIBD Report, 1–42.
Standing, G. (2011). The Precariat: The New Dangerous Class. Archives Européennes de
Sociologie, 52(3), 466.
Styhre, A. (2012). Leadership as muddling through: Site managers in the construction industry.
The Work of Managers: Towards a Practice Theory of Management, pp 131-145.
Swuste, P., Frijters, A., & Guldenmund, F. (2012). Is it possible to influence safety in the
building sector? A literature review extending from 1980 until present. Safety Science, 50(5), 1333–1343.
United Republic of Tanzania (URT). (2003). Occupational Health and Safety Act: Legislation
No5. Ministry of Labour, Employment and Youth Development.
United Republic of Tanzania (URT). (2010). The national occupational health and safety
Policy. Ministry of Labour, Employment and Youth Development.
United Republic of Tanzania (URT). (2015). Occupational health and safety (Building and
Construction Industry) Rules.
Wachter, K., & Yorio, L. (2014). A system of safety management practices and workers
engagement for reducing and prevention accidents: An empirical and theoretical investigation. Accident Analysis and Prevention, 68, 117–130.
Wells, J., & Jason, A. (2010). Employment Relationships and organizing strategies in the
informal construction sector. African Studies Quarterly, Volume 11(Issues 2 & 3).
Wright, E. O. (2000). Working-class power, capitalist-class interests, and class compromise.
American Journal of Sociology, 105, 957–1002.
perception in a Middle Eastern developing country: An interactive graphical approach. Safety Science, 103, 183–196. https://doi.org/doi.org/10.1016/j.ssci.2017.10.026.
Aikaeli, J., & Mkenda, B. K. (2014). Informal Construction Employment, Earnings and
Activities: A Boon or Bane for Tanzania? Social Science Research Network: Working Paper.
Aikaeli, J., & Mkenda, B. K. (2015). Determinants of Informal Employment: A Case of
Tanzania Construction Industry. Botswana Journal of Economics, 12(2).
Boadue, E., Wang, C., & Sunindijo, R. (2020). Characteristics of construction Industry in
developing countries and its implications for health and safety: An exploratory study in Ghana. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(11), 1–21.
Chamara, H., Waidyasekara, K., & Mallawaarachchi, H. (2015). Evaluating Subcontractor
Performance in Construction Industry. International Conference on Structural Engineering and Construction Management, Kandy, Sri Lanka. (6th edition).
Chang, J. H., Han, S., AbouRizk, S. M., & Kanerva, J. (2019). Stratified statistical analysis for
effectiveness evaluation of frontline worker safety intervention: A case study of construction steel fabrication. Safety Science, 115, 89–102.
Chen, M. (2012). The Informal Economy: Definitions, Theories and Policies. WIEGO Working
Paper, Vol 1. https://doi.org/10.1016/0305-750X (94) 90141-4
Chiaburu, D. S., & Harrison, D. A. (2008). Do peers make the place? Conceptual synthesis and
meta-analysis of co-worker effects on perceptions, attitudes OCBs and performance. Journal of Applied Psychology, 93, 1082–1103.
Chileshe, N., & Dzisi, E. (2012). Benefits and barriers of construction health and safety
management (HSM). Journal of Engineering, Design and Technology, 10(2), 276–298.
Choudhry, R. M., & Fang, D. (2008). Why operatives engage in unsafe work behavior.
Investigating factors on construction sites. Safety Science, 46, 566–584.
Flor, A. (2021). Theories of power and social change: Power contestations and their implications
for research on social change and innovation. In Journal of Political Power. https://doi.org/10.1080/2158379X.2021.1875307
Gervais, A. (2021). Social Protection and informal construction worker organizations in
Tanzania: How informal worker organizations strive to provide social insurance to their members. Social Protection and Informal Workers in Sub-Saharan Africa: Lived Realities and Associational Experiences from Kenya and Tanzania (1st Ed.), 1(25). https://doi.org/doi.org/10.4324/9781003173694
Grill, M., & Nielsen, K. (2019). Promoting and impeding safety: A qualitative study into direct
and indirect safety leadership practices of construction site managers. Safety Science, 114, 148–159.
Gui, Y., Hongzhe, Y., Jingjing, Y., Hongyang, L., Qingting, X., Yuan, F., & Can, C. (2020).
Understanding the sociocognitive process of construction workers’ unsafe behaviors: An agent-based modeling approach. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(1588). https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17051588
Guo, B. H., & Yiu, T. W. (2015). Developing leading indicators to monitor the safety conditions
of construction projects. Journal of Management in Engineering, 32(1).
Hale, A., & Borys, D. (2013). Working to rule, or working safely? Part 1: State of the art review.
Safety Science, 55, 207–2021.
Hamid, A. R., Majid, M. Z., & Sighn, B. (2008). Causes of accidents at construction sites.
Malaysian Journal of Civil Engineering, 20(2), 257–258.
Heerden. (2018). Health and Safety implementation motivators in the South African construction
industry. Cogent Engineering, 5:1446253.
International Labour Organization (ILO). (2005). Global estimates of fatal work-related diseases
and occupational accidents, World Bank Regions. International Labour Organization.
International Labour Organization (ILO). (2009). International Labour Conference 98th Session,
Report III (Part I B), ILO standards on Occupational Safety and Health, promoting a safe and healthy working environment, Geneva Switzerland. https://doi.org/ilo.org/global/standards/occupational-safety-health/lang…index, HTML
International Labour Organization (ILO). (2017). World Social Protection Report 2017–19:
Universal social protection to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. International Labour Office.
Jason, A. (2007). Informal Construction Workers in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania”, WP.226,
Sectoral Activities Programme, International Labour Office, Geneva.
Jeschke, K. N., Waldorff, S. B., Dyreborg, J., Kines, P., & Ajslev, J. Z. N. (2021). Complaining
about occupational safety and health: a barrier for collaboration between managers and workers on construction sites. Construction Management and Economics, 396, 459–474.
Kaskutas, V., Dale., A. M., Lipscomb, H., & Evanoff, B. (2013). Fall prevention and safety
communication training for foremen: Report of a pilot project designed to improve residential construction safety. Journal of Science, 115(89–102).
Kheni, N. A. (2008). Impact of health and safety management performance of small and
medium-sized construction businesses in Ghana: Unpublished Ph.D. Thesis, Longborough University. UK.
Kheni, N. A., & Braimah, C. (2014). Institutional and Regulatory Frameworks for health and
safety administration: Study of the Construction Industry of Ghana. International Journal of Engineering and Sciences, Vol. 3(2), 24–34.
LaDou, J., London, L., & Watterson, A. (2018). Occupational health: A world of false promises.
Environmental Health, 17(81). https://doi.org/doi.org/10.1186/s12940-018-0422-x
Lander, F., Nielsen, K. J., & Lauristsen. (2016). Work injury trends during the last three decades
in the construction industry. Safety Science, 85, 60–66.
Lars, P., Sonderbo, A., & Regine, G. (2021). Different ways of perceiving risk and safety on
construction sites and implications for safety cooperation. Construction Management and Economics, 39(5), 419–431. https://doi.org/10.1080/01446193.2021.1904516
Liang, Q., Leang, M. Y., & Ahmed, K. (2021). How adoption of coping behaviors determines
construction workers’ safety: A quantitative and qualitative investigation. Safety Science, 133.
Lingard, H. (2013). Occupational health and safety in the construction industry. Construction
Management and Economics, 31(6), 505–514.
Lingard, H., & Rowlinson, S. M. (2005). Occupational health and safety in construction project
management. Taylor & Francis.
Lombardi, D. A., Verma, S. K., Brennan, M. J., & Perry, M. J. (2009). Factors influencing
worker use of personal protective eyewear. Accident Analysis & Prevention, 41, 755–762.
Mitullah, W., & Wachira, I. N. (2003). Informal Labour in the Construction Industry in Kenya:
A case study of Nairobi. Sectoral Activities Programme Working Paper,. ILO, Geneva.
Mneymneh, B. E., Abbas, M., & Khoury, H. (2017). Automated hardhat detection for
construction Safety Applications. Procedia Engineering, 196, 895–902.
Mohammadi, A., Mehdi, T., & Yahya, K. (n.d.). Factors influencing safety performance on
construction projects: A review. Safety Science, 109(2018), 382–397.
Mrema, E. J., Ngowi, A. V., & Mamuya, S. H. D. (2015). Status of Health and Safety related
challenges in expanding economy of Tanzania: Annals of Global Health. 81(4), 538–547.
Muhammad, Bima Abubakar Ismaila, A., & Baba, D. L. (2015). Assessment of cost impact in
health and safety on construction projects. American Journal of Engineering Research, 4(3), 25–30.
National Audit Office of Tanzania (NAOT). (2013). A Performance Audit Report on The
Management of Occupational Health and Safety in Tanzania.
Oliveira, P., & Pais, R. (2018). Study of the Influence of Training in Occupational Safety and
Health in the Human Factors of the Construction Sector. In: Arezes P. (eds) Advances in Safety Management and Human Factors. AHFE 2017. Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing, vol 604.
Patel, D. A., & Jha, K. N. (2016). Structural equation modeling for relationship-based
determinants of safety performance in construction projects. Journal of Management in Engineering, 32(6).
Peiyao, Z., Nan, L., Zhongming, J., Dongping, F., & Anumba, C. J. (2019). An agent-based
modeling approach for understanding the effect of worker-management interactions on construction workers’ safety-related behaviors, Automation in Construction. Volume 97, Pages 29-43. https://doi.org/doi.org/10.1016/j.autcon.2018.10.015.
Phoya, S., & Kikwasi, G. (2017). Health and Safety Skill supply on construction sites in
Tanzania. Journal of Scientific and Engineering Research, 4(12), 477–485.
Riisgaard, L., Mitullah, W., & Torm, N. (Eds.). (2021). Social Protection and Informal Workers
in Sub-Saharan Africa: Lived Realities and Associational Experiences from Kenya and Tanzania (1st ed.). https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003173694
Rowlinson, S. (2000). Human Factors in Construction Safety - Management Issues,’ In Hinze, J.,
Coble, R., and Haupt, T. (eds), Construction Safety and Health Management,. Prentice-Hall.
Schmalz, S., Ludwig, C., & Webster, E. (2018). The power resources approach: Developments
challenges. Global Labour Journal, 9(2), 113–134.
Silver, B. J. (2003). Forces of labor: Workers’ movements and globalization since 1870.
Cambridge University Press.
Smallwood, J., Haupt, T., & Shakantu. (2009). Construction health and safety in South Africa:
Status and recommendations. CIBD Report, 1–42.
Standing, G. (2011). The Precariat: The New Dangerous Class. Archives Européennes de
Sociologie, 52(3), 466.
Styhre, A. (2012). Leadership as muddling through: Site managers in the construction industry.
The Work of Managers: Towards a Practice Theory of Management, pp 131-145.
Swuste, P., Frijters, A., & Guldenmund, F. (2012). Is it possible to influence safety in the
building sector? A literature review extending from 1980 until present. Safety Science, 50(5), 1333–1343.
United Republic of Tanzania (URT). (2003). Occupational Health and Safety Act: Legislation
No5. Ministry of Labour, Employment and Youth Development.
United Republic of Tanzania (URT). (2010). The national occupational health and safety
Policy. Ministry of Labour, Employment and Youth Development.
United Republic of Tanzania (URT). (2015). Occupational health and safety (Building and
Construction Industry) Rules.
Wachter, K., & Yorio, L. (2014). A system of safety management practices and workers
engagement for reducing and prevention accidents: An empirical and theoretical investigation. Accident Analysis and Prevention, 68, 117–130.
Wells, J., & Jason, A. (2010). Employment Relationships and organizing strategies in the
informal construction sector. African Studies Quarterly, Volume 11(Issues 2 & 3).
Wright, E. O. (2000). Working-class power, capitalist-class interests, and class compromise.
American Journal of Sociology, 105, 957–1002.