Contractors are reporting business benefits from instituting strong safety programs, according to a new report by McGraw Hill Construction on safety management in the construction industry. In particular, construction companies report a number of benefits due to the implementation of safety management practices.
“Safety programs are not only creating safer places for their workers, but they are also improving firms’ bottom lines,” said Michele A. Russo, director of research communications, McGraw Hill Construction. “Overall, construction companies—large and small—are reporting positive financial impacts from safety programs—and the size of those benefits increase as the depth of the program increases. In an industry that operates on low margins, this is a powerful finding.”
The study also found that 92 percent of large contractors (firms with over 500 employees) and 48 percent of smaller firms have instituted fully-inclusive and widely-observed safety programs, meaning that larger firms are capitalizing more on these business benefits as compared to smaller contractors and subcontractors.
On Wednesday, McGraw Hill Construction will present its key findings at the American Society of Safety Engineers Safety 2013 Expo at the Las Vegas Convention Center.
