Health Hazards in Construction - Research Paper Example

 Health Hazards in Construction Abstract Construction work is by nature labor intensive, undertaken in risky sites and involves unskilled labor. It is this nature coupled with the work environment that exposes the involved workers to numerous unique health hazards, usually brief, varied, intermittent and likely repetitive by nature. Borrowing from various credible secondary sources, this paper evaluates the chemical, biological, physical and social health hazards that construction workers are exposed to, giving recommendations on effective prevention strategies. Therefore, appreciating the costly nature of these hazards, it would be critical that employers and workers in the construction industries adopt appropriate measures to reduce or eliminate the health hazards in their workplaces with the government fostering the adherence to proper safety standards. Introduction Outdoor workers face a myriad of hazards depending on the type of occupations, season, geographic location and the duration of exposure. A hazard refers to a potential for harm as documented by Occupational Safety and Health Administration, OSHA (2012). Practically, it would be an activity or condition which, if left uncontrolled could cause illness or injury. Therefore, identifying such hazards and controlling, even eliminating them in good time would be beneficial in preventing illnesses, injuries and even deaths. To do so, a technique that focuses on the tasks related to a job so as to identify and potential hazards before their occurrence, referred by Weeks (2011) as job hazard analysis, would be undertaken. This technique evaluates the relationship between the work environment and the worker, tasks and tools employed. Ideally, identification of uncontrolled hazards triggers the adoption of strategies that would reduce them to acceptable risks levels or completely eliminate them. Construction is one of the outdoor industry sectors where job hazard analysis serves a significant role. Felperin (2013) categorizes the construction industry as either governmental or private involved with the erection of buildings for commercial or habitation purposes and public works that include roads, tunnels, bridges, airports and dams among others. Thus, the construction job entails building, repairing, maintaining, modifying, renovating or demolishing of such facilities. In industrialized countries, construction workers constitute between 5% and 10% of the total workforce and globally, 90% of these workers are male. A majority of these are unskilled laborers. The nature of construction works and the use of unskilled laborers make occupational injuries and illnesses related to such works very costly, Weeks (2011) estimating them to cost the US government between $10 billion and $40 billion per year, with $3,500 spent on each construction worker who falls victim per year. Therefore, it is the nature of their jobs and their skills that exposes construction workers to numerous chemical, biological, physical and social health hazards. Chemical Health Hazards In the construction industry, chemical hazards would often be airborne, appearing as mists, vapors, fumes or gases. For this reason, exposure would be through inhalation, though Felperin (2013) observes that some of these airborne hazards could settle on the skin and gradually get absorbed into the body, giving examples of organic solvents and pesticides. Furthermore, these chemical hazards could occur in liquid, semi-liquid or powder substances, for example adhesives, tar and dry cement. In such a case, exposure to the hazard could involve both skin contact and inhalation of vapor causing contact dermatitis or systemic poisoning. Chemicals could also be inhaled through smoking or ingested with water or food. Chemical hazards in the construction industry have been linked to several illnesses. According to Hughes and Ferret (2011), masons and workers in the cement industries have been noted to suffer from skin allergies. Silicosis mostly affects sand blasters, rock drill operators and tunnel builders. Asbestos insulation workers, workers in building and demolition and steam pipe fitters mostly suffer from asbestosis. Other diseases include bronchitis among welders and neurologic disorders common among painters and other workers exposed to lead and organic solvents. Consequently, these construction workers, especially roofers, welders, asbestos insulation workers and some woodworkers, die from respiratory tree and lung cancers. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, CDC (2014) also cites higher rates of alcoholism among construction workers than workers in other industries, perhaps due to the stress related to heavy work demands, limited control over job prospects and social isolation as a result of unstable working relationships. Biological Health Hazards The second form of hazards that construction workers are exposed to is categorized as biological. A worker could get exposed to such hazards through exposure to animal attacks, biological toxic substances and infectious microorganisms (OSHA, 2012). Soil fungus has been cited by Weeks (2011) as the cause of histoplasmosis among excavation workers, an infection that affects the lungs. Moreover, the nature of construction work by itself propagates the risk of exposure to biological health hazards. Construction involves a constant shift in the labor force composition with regards to any particular project, with the individual workers coming into contact with many different workers, consequently promoting infection with contagious diseases such as tuberculosis and influenza. These workers also risk contracting Lyme disease, malaria and yellow fever if they work in environments prevalent with the causative insect vectors. Toxic substances with their origin from plants could result from nettles, poison sumac, poison oak and poison ivy. These have been mostly associated with skin eruptions. CDC (2014) further document the risk involved in burning some of these plants as the inhalation of the resultant smoke and other airborne substances could cause serious health problems. To support this argument, the agency gives the examples of construction workers in forestry, together with firefighters, in California, Washington and Oregon, a third of whom develop lung irritations and rashes as a result of inhaling fumes from or coming into contact with some of the poisonous trees in the region like poison oak. Some wood dusts could be carcinogenic while others like that from the western red cedar could be allergenic. Additionally, Hughes and Ferret (2011) observe that attacks from animals could be a cause for biological health hazards but these are rare and could only occur when a construction project encroaches on their habitat or disturbs them. Some of these include fire ants, hornets, snakes and wasps among others. Construction work under water also risks attacks from sharks or from other dangerous fish. Physical Hazards Perhaps, construction workers are most exposed to physical hazards than any other form of hazards due to the labor intensive nature of their duties. These could be attributed to the noise, radiation, vibration, heat and cold and barometric pressure to which construction workers are exposed. The use of heavy machinery which Felprin (2013) argues have caused construction to be increasingly mechanized have made construction work increasingly noisy. These noises could emanate from all manner of engines, such as those on vehicles, cranes and air compressors, rivet guns, winches, nail guns, power saws, pneumatic hammers, explosives, routers and many more. Noise affects, not only those involved construction work, but all those around, resulting in noise-induced hearing loss. CDC (2014) also cites the risk of temporary ringing in the ears of the victims, referred to as tinnitus. Additionally, such noise masks other important sounds for communication and safety. Exposure to the weather results in the cold or heat hazards. Roofers, mostly with no protection, would be exposed to the sun in additional to their regular heating of pots of tar making them receive convective and heavy radiant heat loads on top of the metabolic heat experienced as a result of their physical labor (Weeks, 2011). Operators of heavy equipment and machinery could be working beside hot engines in an enclosed cab without ventilation. If the cab has no roof, they further get exposed to the heat from the sun. Hughes and Ferret (2011) also argue that workers in protective gear like those needed when removing waste could generate heat due to hard physical labor, getting minimal relief from their air-tight suits. Working in the cold among construction workers as is the case during winter exposes such workers to dangers of hypothermia and frostbite in addition to risking slipping on ice. In the same regard, CDC (2014) observes that hundreds of construction workers die every year in the US due to being stricken by lightning in their workplaces. Therefore, the exposure of construction workers to varied weather conditions poses health risks, including the risk of death. There are also other critical physical health hazards that construction workers could be exposed to. Electric welding arc and the sun have been cited by OSHA (2012) as the main sources of the non-ionizing ultraviolet radiation. This less common form of exposure could occur when using instruments like flow meters using radioactive isotopes and inspecting welds using x-rays. Interception of laser beams, an increasingly common technology in construction, could damage the eyes. CDC (2014) also documents that those construction workers whose duties are confined to pressurized tunnels or under water risk exposure to barometric pressure resulting in conditions linked to high pressure like inert gas narcosis, decompression sickness and aseptic bone necrosis among others. Finally, sprains and strains, common among construction workers, could result in traumatic injuries or overexertion leading to chronically disabling musculoskeletal disorders like low-back pain, carpal tunnel syndrome and tendinitis. Such result commonly from slip off scaffolding, unguarded holes and unstable footing. Social Health Hazards Finally, construction workers face numerous risks from social hazards stemming from the industry’s social organization. As observed by OSHA (2012), construction employment is intermittent and also entails constant changes. This is also coupled by the fact that construction workers have limited control, if any, on construction activity as this is majorly driven by factors such as the state of the economy and weather. With such factors in play, these workers could be put under pressure to become productive during a given period of time. With the constantly changing workforce, together with long working hours and the fact that a majority of such works could require living far from family, Weeks (2011) argues that these workers could lack the much needed dependable and stable social support networks. The features of construction tasks like limited social support, limited control and heavy workload are the ones that propagate stress in the industry, just as in other industries. Controlling Construction Occupational Health Hazards Having appreciated that construction work exposes the involved workers to critical health hazards, appropriate measures should be undertaken to minimize the intensity of risk or eliminate such hazards. Of primary importance, as recommended by OSHA (2012), would be to evaluate the primary or bystander exposure where knowledge of construction tasks would be paramount. Such knowledge could be acquired from material safety data sheets. The unique nature of usually brief, varied, intermittent and likely repetitive construction work hazards should be considered. Thus, unlike the traditional approach to evaluating occupational hazards by shifts, construction work hazards should be evaluated by tasks which vary in frequency and duration. Controls should be as close as possible to the source of the hazard. The first approach to protecting construction workers from hazards would be through engineering control involving engineering change (OSHA, 2012). For instance, hazardous substances could be substituted with those found to be less hazardous. It could also involve changing a process or adopting technological improvements aimed at making the work environment safer. Secondly, environmental controls could be adopted as recommended by Weeks (2011), involving the removal of substances considered to be hazardous from the environment, mostly by using appropriate shielding materials or mechanisms. For example, local exhaust ventilation, LEV could be used to capture dust, fumes and vapors and plywood sheets could be used to shield workers from ultraviolet and infrared radiation. Finally, workers need to observe personal protection. This involves use of personal protective equipment, PPE and access and proper use of eating and sanitary facilities. This should also involve protecting those in the vicinity from exposure to health hazards by either being protected or restricted from entering construction sites. For effectiveness, workers should be trained on hazards and their controls. In support of this, CDC (2014) argues that a majority of workers in the construction industry are not even aware of the health hazards that face them. It would therefore be important to train them on the identification and control of construction workplace hazards. Indeed, OSHA (2012) observes that construction workers are mandated by the federal law to undergo training on some hazardous substances before working with them. Together with this, the government together with the employers in the construction industry should undertake constant inspection and maintenance of safety measures and gear. This would ensure that safety measures are adhered to at construction sites and that the provided safety gear effectively serves the intended purpose. Furthermore, keeping record of injuries, accidents and illnesses resulting from construction works would be useful in determining the involved trend and therefore adopt appropriate preventive measures. Conclusion Indeed, the construction sector plays an important role with the government and the private sector in the industry involved in the building, repairing, maintaining, modifying, renovating or demolishing of residential, commercial or public buildings and facilities. The nature of construction workplace, tasks and unskilled labor involved expose workers to a myriad of chemical, biological, physical and social health hazards. The resultant costs have been noted to be quite significant, hence the importance of preventing or even totally eliminating such hazards in construction workplaces. Therefore, workers and employers in the construction industry should collaboratively adopt engineering controls, environmental controls and personal protection measures to realize safer work environments, with the government undertaking a supervisory role o ensure that safety standards are adhered to the latter. This would save construction workers from illnesses, accidents and deaths and also save on the economic costs associated with such eventualities. References Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2014). Hazards to outdoor workers. Retrieved 15 April 2014 from http://www.cdc.gov/ Felperin, D. J. (2013). The construction safety guide. Cobb, CA: FRESH Training Concepts. Hughes, P. & Ferret, E. (2011). Introduction to health and safety in construction (4th ed.). New York, NY: Routledge. Occupational Safety and Health Administration. (2012). Health hazards in construction. Hillside, IL: Construction Safety Council. Weeks, J. L. (2011). Health and safety hazards in the construction industry. In J. M. Stellman (Ed.) Encyclopedia of occupational health and safety. Geneva: International Labor Organization. Retrieved 15 April 2014 from http://www.ilo.org/ Read More