A comparative study on adopting human resource practices for safety management on construction projects in the United States and Singapore

Human Resource Management International Digest

ISSN: 0967-0734

Article publication date: 1 June 2012

721

Keywords

Citation

Lai, D.N.C. (2012), "A comparative study on adopting human resource practices for safety management on construction projects in the United States and Singapore", Human Resource Management International Digest, Vol. 20 No. 3. https://doi.org/10.1108/hrmid.2012.04420caa.005

Publisher

:

Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2012, Emerald Group Publishing Limited


A comparative study on adopting human resource practices for safety management on construction projects in the United States and Singapore

Article Type: Abstracts From: Human Resource Management International Digest, Volume 20, Issue 3

Lai D.N.C., Liu M. and, Ling F.Y.Y.International Journal of Project Management, December 2011, Vol. 29 No. 8, Start page: 1018, No. of pages: 15

Aims to undertake a comparative study of HR practices adopted for safety management on construction projects in the United States (US) and Singapore, and to investigate the relationship between HR practices and construction safety management outcomes (severity and frequency of accidents). Includes exploratory interviews and industry surveys of contractors in the US and Singapore by email and post, and collected data using structured questionnaires. Shows that compared to Singapore contractors, US contractors’ project management practices place significantly more emphasis on highlighting organizational safety values to new workers and taking working experience into account during the selection process, while Singapore contractors place more emphasis on providing appropriate rest areas for workers. Finds that many HR practices are significantly correlated with safety management outcomes, including taking age into consideration during selection process, and giving feedback to workers about their unsafe behaviour. Recommends that project managers adopt relevant HR practices that lead to more effective safety management on construction projects.ISSN: 0263-7863Reference: 41AA520

Keywords: Construction safety, HR practices, Safety outcomes

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