Page 161 - Urban Construction Project Management

116 Chapter Five
for adequate safety measures in the construction industry. If safety is not a primary
factor on the job site, the viability of making money on the project becomes a
question.

SUMMARY

• The construction industry has the worst safety record of any occupation in the
United States.
• OSHA and local municipal building departments are trying to address the issue of
safety by passing legislation and implementing new safety regulations.
• The construction industry now understands that good safety means good business.
With escalation of premiums for liability and workers’ compensation insurance, the
CM/GC firms can now see that poor safety records affect the bottom line. In addi-
tion, poor safety on the job site creates slow down of projects and, in some cases, a
complete stop until investigations have been completed.
• A valid safety program can only be effective when upper management of CM/GC
firms take a positive interest in their safety initiative.
• When an accident does occur on the job site, the CM/GC must be prepared by hav-
ing an emergency contact sheet and an on-site SWAT team that can react to the
situation.
• The primary objective of all safety programs is to obtain a zero accident project.