Why do you need to work on preventing risks in construction projects?

Construction is one of the industries with the most occupational accidents and fatalities, both in relation to the number of people working in the industry and in actual number of injured. Every year, an average of 10 people die during building or civil engineering in the Swedish workforce. This corresponds to a quarter of all those who die at work. In addition to this, on average at least one person who is employed in a foreign construction company dies every year. The numbers of fatalities have remained at this level for a long time.

Anyone who can prevent risks for health and safety in a construction project needs to do so, so that everyone who goes to work on a construction site can come home from work every day and be able to work their whole working life. Several parties have a parallel work environment responsibility:

• the client (the one who commissions building or civil engineering work)
• the designer (architect, designer or other who plan or design)
• the building work environment coordinator (Bas-P or Bas-U)
• the contractor (employer, self-employed or family business).

Everyone has a responsibility for a safe work environment and needs to collaborate so that no one becomes ill, injured or dies as a result of their work. Here you can read more about who is responsible for what in construction projects:

Who is responsible for what in a construction project?

What are the risks in building and civil engineering work?

There are many different health and safety risks in construction projects. Here you can read about the most common and most serious risks and about certain work with high risk that always requires a description of the measures needed.

In addition to the risks of occupational accidents and fatalities, construction workers are exposed to many risk factors that can lead to long-term work-related mortality, such as

• noise
• continuous physically heavy work
• chemical risks such as asbestos, quartz and carcinogenic chemical products.

There are also many who suffer from occupational diseases such as strain problems and vibration injuries due to construction work.

Risks that cause occupational accidents

Reported accidents with sick leave longer than two weeks are usually due to someone

• falling to a lower level
• falling on the same level
• losing control of a hand tool or machine.

The external factors that have most often contributed to more serious accidents are movable ladders, stepladders, slippery surfaces (due to rain, snow or ice) and scaffolding.

Accidents that result in short or long sick leave are usually due to a construction worker losing control of a hand tool, most commonly a knife.

Risks that cause fatal accidents

Fatal accidents are usually caused by someone

• falling to a lower level
• being crushed under a heavy building element
• being crushed by a machine on the construction site
• being hit by another vehicle in public traffic.

When it comes to fatal accidents too, falling to a lower level is the most common cause. One third of all fatal accidents are caused by someone falling. Often, construction workers fall from or through a roof or from scaffolding. After this, it is most common for someone to be crushed under a heavy building element, usually a concrete block or a wall.

Common causes of fatal accidents also include being hit by a machine or vehicle on the construction site or overturning one. Many also die in public traffic in connection with travelling at work, either in a car crash or by being hit by a train or car while working near traffic.

Risks that cause occupational diseases

The most common occupational diseases reported in the industry are muscle and joint problems and problems with the nervous system.

Commonly stated causes of all reported occupational diseases are

• vibrations from machines and tools
• repetitive work
• lifting or movements of loads weighing more than 20 kg.

Work with high risk requires certain measures

In the EU directive for construction sites, there is a list of 13 types of work with high risks for health and safety. These types of work are also regulated in the Swedish Work Environment Authority’s provisions (AFS 2023:3) on design and building work environment coordination – basic obligations.

These types of work have been assessed in the directive and provisions as having such serious risks that the client, Bas-P and Bas-U must draw up a description of the certain measures to prevent accidents and ill health. These measures must be described in the work environment plan.

In addition to the 13 types of work with high risk, there are many more common health and safety risks in construction projects that require coordination, such as risks related to fire, ergonomics, noise and vibration. These can with advantage also be included in the work environment plan, so as to remember that measures are needed to prevent these risks as well.

How can action to the risks be taken?

A common reason why construction workers suffer accidents and ill health is that the risks have not been identified and managed early in the construction project. This is how you can work to prevent health and safety risks at an early stage: