Pinpointing Safety Leadership Factors for Safe Construction Sites in Trinidad and Tobago

AbstractConstruction industry safety performance is of grave concern to practitioners and lawmakers. Despite a determined effort to improve, the results are still disappointing. Improving the industry’s track record requires an in-depth understanding of the factors that drive risks to individual safety and of how behavior and attitudes can be improved. Construction managers lack knowledge of the safety leadership characteristics, which specifically reduce risk-taking behavior of subordinates on construction sites. This information is presented in this research. A leadership-based safety model consisting of subordinates’ self-reported accident and near miss records were investigated along with leadership considerations and initiating constructs, the construction manager’s safety behavior and attitude profile, and the safety climate characteristics to determine whether any of these factors contributed significantly to a safer construction site. A stepwise regression model was developed to determine key drivers toward the risk-taking behavior of construction workers. Construction managers were also classified by their effective management of safety. Contrary to the postmodern perspective on safety leadership, construction managers who focused on safety standards on-site, ruled with an iron rod, and needled people working with them for greater efforts were more effective at reducing accidents on-site than those construction managers who did otherwise.