The European Construction Sector Observatory (ECSO) aims to inform European policymakers and industry stakeholders on the market conditions and policy developments through regular analysis and comparative assessments. Visit the ECSO website and gain access to a wide range of industry data and analysis. ECSO contains all the information you need to stay up to date with the latest news and practical analyses about the construction sector in Europe.
28 Country Fact Sheets, 140 Policy Fact Sheets, 6 Analytical Reports and 3 Trend Papers are now online.
IN THIS NEWSLETTER YOU WILL FIND:
Occupational Safety and Health in the construction sector Occupational safety and health (OSH) play a key role in the sustainable development of the construction sector. Increasing the use of OSH principles can help to improve working conditions and build a positive image of the sector. To ensure the safety, health and welfare of personnel in the construction sector, policymakers and private construction associations have developed specific policies and measures. This newsletter
touches on some of these OSH initiatives.
OSH Policy Fact Sheets 10 new Policy Fact Sheets (PFS) are now available for you to download, focusing on the OSH policies from the Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Spain, Latvia, Poland, Sweden and the United Kingdom. The PFS provide an analysis of ten national policies influencing the development of the construction sector.
Denmark - Service Bus for the Construction Sector (Bam-Bus)In 2008, the Preventive Occupational Safety and Health Service known as Bam-Bus was established by the business and employers association and the different trade unions in the construction sector. The service is still in operation today,
supporting companies to develop safe and healthy working conditions. The main activities include providing advice on the prevention of serious work accidents, information about appropriate building temperature and lighting, reduction of dust pollution, introducing young and new employees to safer and healthier working practices and etc. With an annual budget of EUR 1.1 million, the service managed to support 11,596 construction sites and companies in Denmark between 2011 and 2018. Read more about the Danish Bam-Bus initiative in the new Policy Fact Sheet.
Germany – Occupational and Health Management System (AMS BAU) The German Social Accident Insurance Institution for the Building Trade (BG BAU) was established in 2003 with the aim of providing
BG BAU members with the necessary information, tools and mechanism to ensure OSH measures are set up and managed effectively. BG BAU developed a free-of-charge 11 step guideline to improve the OSH structures, processes and measures that can be downloaded by BG BAU members. If members fully implement the 11-step guide, they are eligible for a certificate demonstrating compliance to the highest OSH standards. By 2019, BG BAU applications had grown by 750%; having assessed them, more than 1000 companies were certified. Discover more about the AMS BAU System in the new Policy Fact Sheet.
Ireland – Safe Pass Programme In 2000, the Department of Labour, Trade and Consumer Affairs launched the Safe Pass Programme. The Programme is a one-day health and safety awareness programme that is mandatory for all construction workers and administered by the Further Education & Training Authority (SOLAS). All construction personnel are obliged to pass the 13 learning unites focusing on site safety, construction equipment and vehicles, behaviour-based safety and technical related risk assessments. Upon completion of the training course, the participants receive the SOLAS Safe Pass Registration Card. In 2000-2018, the
Safe Pass Programme successfully trained nearly 2 million construction workers. Learn more about the Safe Pass Programme in the new Policy Fact Sheet.
Spain – SME Plan 2018 in Occupational Risk Prevention for companies in the Construction Sector To improve working conditions for SMEs in the construction sector, the government of Aragon together with the Labour Foundation for the Construction Sector developed the SME 10 Occupational Risk Prevention Plan. The programme provides companies with an assessment of types of preventive measures used, health monitoring, security and health plans, available trainings, personal protection equipment, investigation of accidents etc. If a company passes the assessment, an ‘SME 10 Certificate’ is awarded. SME 10 Occupational Risk Prevention Plan has been implemented since 1999 with an annual budget of EUR 21,000. Since the introduction of the plan, over 3,700 occupational risk prevention assessments have been carried out. Read more about the SME 10 Occupational Risk Prevention Plan in the new Policy Fact Sheet.
United Kingdom - No Time to Lose To address the health and safety challenges in the construction sector, the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health introduced the No Time to Lose (NTTL) campaign in 2014. The programme is still operational and is focused on raising awareness on work related carcinogenic exposure issues and supporting business in taking action. The campaign is supporting research into occupational cancers, working with policymakers to reduce workers’ exposure to carcinogens, as well as encouraging organisation to introduce policies and best practices to improve working conditions etc. The NTTL campaign has won the support of 360 industry organisation in 40 countries, as well as 130 companies working to improve the working conditions of more than 500,000 employees. To find out more about the No Time to Lose campaign, consult the new Policy Fact Sheet.
Denmark - Holistic Construction Site Inspection SchemeTo help reduce the number of accidents in the construction sector, the Danish Working Environment Authority launched the Holistic Construction Site Inspection Scheme (Helhedsorienteret bygge) in 2017. The scheme aims to identify OSH problems on construction sites, incentivise improvements and verify implementation and compliance, in close collaboration with the private sector. More specifically, it carries out unannounced site and company inspection visits; incentivises remedial action; and performs follow-up inspections to verify implementation and compliance. As a result, a total of 148 accidents at work were reported per 10,000 employees in 2019, the lowest number recorded since 1983. Read the full Policy Fact Sheet
Sweden - Vision 0 ProgrammeThe OSH challenge has been a priority for Swedish policy-makers over the past few decades. This continued focus has enabled the country to consistently record one of the lowest rates of fatal accidents in the EU over several years. As part of these efforts, the Swedish Construction Federation launched the Vision Zero Programme in 2011. The programme, which adopts a non-coercive approach placing strong emphasis on awareness raising and OSH training, aims to eradicate the occurrence of fatal accidents in the construction sector by improving health and safety on construction sites. While the zero fatal accident target has not been reached yet, public and private stakeholders have expressed satisfaction with the programme, indicating that it is having a positive impact on attitudes and behaviours toward health and safety. Read more about the Vision 0 programme.
Spain - Bonus CampaignTo address the occupational safety and health challenge, the Ministry of Labour and Immigration launched the Bonus Campaign in 2010. The Bonus Campaign is a financial incentive scheme
that enables companies to reduce their social security contributions for professional contingencies if they can demonstrate a significant and verifiable reduction in their accident rate. The aim of the incentive scheme is therefore to encourage employers to invest in occupational safety and health improvements and reduce their accident rate. By 2019, the Bonus Campaign had processed over 250,000 applications, requesting over EUR 650 million in reduced contributions for professional contingencies. Consult the Bonus campaign in the Policy Fact Sheet.
Poland - Construction Safety AgreementTo reduce the accident rate in the Polish construction sector and to work towards a zero-accident goal, the Chief Labour Inspectorate developed the Construction Safety Agreement (‘Porozumienie dla Bezpieczeństwa w
Budownictwie’). It was established to develop and drive the adoption of occupational safety and health (OSH) solutions in the construction sector. To date, the Construction Safety Agreement has not yet achieved the zero-accident end goal; however, it has been largely successful. Key results thus far include the introduction of 18 OSH standards and 200 advanced OSH procedures, the delivery of OSH training to over 7,000 construction employees, and approximately 2,300 fewer
accidents registered since 2010. Read more about the Construction Safety Agreement in the Policy Fact Sheet.
Latvia - Accident Risk CalculatorAlthough Latvia has well-developed legal and regulatory frameworks, compliance with OSH in the workplace poses a serious challenge, especially within the construction industry. To increase awareness across all sectors about occupational risks and the benefits of a safe and healthy working environment, the State Labour Inspectorate launched the Work Healthy (Strādā vesels) website in 2014. One of the features of the website is the Accident Risk Calculator (ARC), which enables employers and employees to self-assess actual and potential risks in the workplace. Over the last six years, the ARC has been used 188 times by construction sector users (13.8% of
its total usage), showing the limited interest of the sector for this type of approach. Read about the Accident Risk calculator in the Policy Fact Sheet.
Construction News and Events The construction sector is constantly evolving, applying new business models, concepts and technologies for adapting to new demands and standards. To keep you updated, please find below a quick summary of news and upcoming events.
Help us develop the next Analytical Report of the European Construction Sector Observatory, on the digitalisation of the construction sector in Europe. This report will aim to: - Provide a state of play of digitalisation in the EU 27 by looking at the adoption rates of several technologies in the sector but also by public sector actors
- Provide a better understanding of the key challenges and drivers affecting the adoption of digital technologies in the sector
- Draw useful lessons-learnt and recommendations for policy-makers and the industry.
Share your knowledge, experiences and insights by filling in the online survey here
The European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA) has launched its 2020-2022 campaign — Healthy Workplaces Lighten the Load — which focuses on work-related musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs). The launch marks the start of a programme of events and actions aimed at raising awareness of this issue — which affects millions of workers across Europe — and how to tackle it. By working together, EU-OSHA and its partners aim to show this by bringing information, tips and tools
to workplaces across Europe, encouraging people in every sector to make tackling MSDs a priority.
The study Development of an EU framework to assess the overall impacts of occupational health and safety (OSH) prevention on the performance of construction enterprises examined the overall impacts of OSH prevention on the economic performance of construction companies, at micro-economic level. As a result, a Financial Tool was developed to calculate the return on investment in OSH for a company, with a number of illustrative case studies from companies across the EU. The Handbook provides detailed guidance on how to use the Tool. The study also provides a list of interesting OSH-related initiatives in the construction sector across the EU with their basic characteristics. The results of the study could support the development of a new OSH culture within the sector, which will associate OSH measures with the positive economic performances of enterprises. In practice, this approach could lead to a better implementation of OSH legislation and contribute to the competitiveness and sustainability of construction companies. The study results are available here.
The ongoing study, aiming to design an EU framework and foster the widespread use of Digital Building Logbooks across Europe, is approaching its end with a second virtual stakeholder meeting. The role and potential of Digital Building Logbooks as common repositories of all building data was recently announced in the Renovation Wave Communication. The purpose of the meeting is to present an overview of the project results to the stakeholders for discussion and validation now that the project is near completion. Dedicated reports on
the definition of digital building logbooks and the state of play of existing initiatives are already available online. To register, click here
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