Prevention through design: The effect of European Directives on construction workplace accidents

Abstract

Workplace accidents still occur with distressing frequency, particularly in construction. Industrialized countries have become increasingly aware of this situation and have adopted policies to attempt to deal with this issue. Such policies have led to the development of new laws and regulations with a view to improving workplace conditions. This paper first analyzes policies regarding accident prevention in the European Union, as initially stipulated in the European Framework Directive 89/391/EEC, and more specifically in Directive 92/57/EEC, on the implementation of minimum safety and health requirements at temporary or mobile construction sites, concentrating on prevention through design. Whilst designers previously had some responsibilities for reducing risk under common law provisions in many countries, this directive was the first explicit legislation to enforce particular duties upon them. The adaptation of the provisions in this directive to the national legislation of EU member countries is also studied. The second section of the paper analyzes the incidence rate of workplace accidents in the construction sector in each country from the year when these regulations came into force until the present time. Based on the evolution of these accident rates, the paper postulates the extent to which European policies have contributed to accident prevention in construction. It is now more than a decade since this legislation has been in force which provides a suitable period for a reflective analysis on it is impact.

Proposed Indicators of Prevention Through Design in Construction Projects

“…of fatal accidents in a sub-group of the population studied / Total no. of fatal accidents in the population studied 60] However, there are significant differences between countries in the format of notifications and the recording of work-related accidents, as occurs in the European Union (Jacinto and Aspinwall, 2004;Martínez, Rubio, & Gibb 2010). The differences include the definition of a workplace, and the inclusion or exclusion of traffic accidents as work-related.…”

Análisis de los costes de prevención en obras de construcción

“…La Comisión Europea y la Oficina de Cooperación EuropeAid, ha clasificado trece herramientas que pueden ser utilizadas para la evaluación de proyectos, programas e intervenciones (17). Para seleccionar la herramienta que mejor optimiza los resultados de esta investigación, tras la revisión bibliográfica realizada y teniendo en cuenta las recomendaciones europeas, se ha desarrollado una metodología para analizar la inversión en PRL, la siniestralidad y sus costes, que consta de dos fases.…”

Integración de la prevención en el diseño de obras de construcción: relación con la siniestralidad laboral, análisis de su regulación normativa, bases conceptuales y desarrollo internacional

“…En cuanto a la trasposición de la Directiva 92/57/CEE a los diferentes estados miembros, se coincide con Martínez Aires et al (12) en que el resultado y la efectividad de tales trasposiciones ha resultado manifiestamente desigual. En lo que se refiere a su desarrollo en España, el proceso de trasposición se vio fuertemente influenciado por el preexistente RD 555/86, optándose por un modelo híbrido entre ambos referentes normativos.…”