A fatal work accident involving a falling tower crane at a Housing Society construction site in Sau Mau Ping led to the deaths of three workers and injuries to six others last September.
The incident has once again raised public concern about industrial safety and occupational health. The Occupational Safety and Occupational Health Legislation (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill 2022 had just been published in the Gazette before the accident, which significantly increases penalties for occupational safety and health offenses. Government officials and legislative councilors with backgrounds in labor affairs have called for speedier deliberation so that the amendment bill can be passed soon.
The current penalties for such offenses were set 10 to 20 years ago and are long overdue a review. Some believe that increased penalties are an effective way to improve occupational safety and protect workers’ well-being. The fact is, preventive measures are far better and more effective than punishment in protecting workers. Life is priceless, no matter how severe the penalty or how large the compensation amount is; they cannot make up for the loss of life and the harm caused to the family of the deceased when a fatal accident happens.
Just before the tower crane incident, I had reminded the chief executive and relevant officials of safety issues during a Policy Address consultation, and had stressed that the government should not just focus on expediting the housing supply by pressing contractors and consultancies to compress their working periods, which might cause them to neglect or even compromise construction safety in order to meet deadlines.
Admittedly, some development and construction projects have progressed rather slowly, with completion periods two to three times longer than those on the Chinese mainland and other places. The problem, in general, is not with the construction periods, but with the lengthy procedures involving preconstruction preparatory works, consultation, assessment, funding, land resumption, tendering, etc. Many preconstruction preparatory works have lasted for 10 years or longer, while the construction period may have only taken three years. The government hopes to use the Modular Integrated Construction (MiC) method and other innovative technologies to shorten the construction period. I favor such innovative methods in principle, but they would only reduce the construction period by a few months and cannot compare with streamlining development-related statutory and/or administrating processes — including vetting and approval procedures for development projects, which could shorten the development period by years.
I hope relevant officials understand that legislation, prosecution and punishment are often the simplest and easiest options but are not the most comprehensive and effective solutions. The authorities should proactively embrace challenges and effectively tackle the difficulties within the industry. They should not assume that industrial safety can be achieved merely by punishing those who transgress
Apart from compressing the construction time, the government procurement and tendering process also has an impact on construction safety. Following the tower crane accident, the construction company involved was suspended from submitting tenders for government projects. When evaluating tenders, the government also considers the track records of construction companies. However, suspension of the right to bid only applies after an accident has already happened, rather than as a preemptive measure to ensure construction safety and prevent accidents.
The Construction Industry Council (CIC) and some relevant sectors have been vigorously promoting Design for Safety over recent years. This is a process for identifying potential hazards at the start of design work to mitigate risks throughout the construction period of a project. It aims at developing a framework within which the design, specification and planning of a project and operational activities are carried out to prevent hazards from emerging — by employing Building Information Modeling and other innovative technologies. The system makes use of real-time monitoring mechanisms to ensure that workers wear safety helmets, belts and other equipment, and that unauthorized workers are prevented from entering or walking close to high-risk zones, among other measures, in order to enhance safety on construction sites.
Nevertheless, bidders do not necessary get additional scores in government tenders for their Design for Safety facilities and other safety measures, which normally incur additional costs; instead, they are punished by the current “lowest bid wins” bidding system. It herefore suggest that the government review and modify the tendering terms and system, with the purpose of assessing bidders equipped with Design for Safety mechanisms independently, and putting their additional costs in a separate category, which would help overcome defects with “lowest bid wins” and encourage safety-related investment and expenditures.
No matter how perfect the relevant systems, technologies and facilities are, the human factor remains one of the most important factors for safety. The manpower shortage and the severe aging problem are commonplace in the construction industry nowadays. The authorities should strive to increase manpower resources in the industry using multipronged measures, including expanding relevant undergraduate places and vocational training places, improving the image of the industry to attract young people, and speeding up the importation of labor without compromising the rights and interests of local workers.
Apart from ensuring there is sufficient staff, the provision of proper training is also essential. I have visited the CIC and some training centers operated by contractors over recent years, and have observed training courses that make use of new media and technologies, such as virtual reality to improve workers’ safety awareness and perceptions. The impact of such courses is far more effective than with traditional training based on books or 2D films. The government should promote these new technologies by offering meaningful subsidies.
Whenever an industrial accident happens, it seems that only the employer concerned is punished. The victim, who may have committed an offense such as negligence, is seldom prosecuted because they have been “punished” by the accident. Therefore, it is crucial to raise safety awareness among workers. The CIC is conducting a study into a points-based system, hoping to help the industry identify workers with good quality and safety records and give them recognition, but we need specific plans, targets and a timetable for implementation.
I hope relevant officials understand that legislation, prosecution and punishment are often the simplest and easiest options but are not the most comprehensive and effective solutions. The authorities should proactively embrace challenges and effectively tackle the difficulties within the industry. They should not assume that industrial safety can be achieved merely by punishing those who transgress.
The author is a member of the Legislative Council representing the Architectural, Surveying, Planning and Landscape Functional Constituency.
The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.
