DETERMINANTS OF COMPLIANCE WITH HEALTH AND SAFETY REGULATIONS IN NIGERIA’S CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY

The accident rate of the construction industry is disproportionate to the number of its workers compared with other industries. Despite this, the Nigerian construction industry lags behind in tackling the health and safety (H&S) challenges posed by the hazardous activities of the industry and c...

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Main Authors: Nnedinma UMEOKAFOR, oniface UMEADI, David ISAAC
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: UJ Press 2014-06-01
Series:Journal of Construction Project Management and Innovation
Subjects:
Online Access:https://journals.uj.ac.za/index.php/JCPMI/article/view/72
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author Nnedinma UMEOKAFOR
oniface UMEADI
David ISAAC
author_facet Nnedinma UMEOKAFOR
oniface UMEADI
David ISAAC
author_sort Nnedinma UMEOKAFOR
collection DOAJ
description The accident rate of the construction industry is disproportionate to the number of its workers compared with other industries. Despite this, the Nigerian construction industry lags behind in tackling the health and safety (H&S) challenges posed by the hazardous activities of the industry and contextual issues Compliance with H&S regulations is one of the pi llars to achieving optimum H&S in the workplace; regrettably, its level is low in Nigeria. This low level of compliance with H&S regulations in Nigeria remains one of the major factors blamed for the challenging state of H&S in Nigeria, especially in the c onstruction industry. Hence, this paper examines the determinants of compliance with H&S regulations in Nigeria’s construction industry, unearthing the salient issues to compliance with H&S regulations in N igeria’s construction industry. Using compliance t heories, it explains the compliance behaviour of the Nigerian construction industry. Although studies on compliance with H&S regulations in developed countries abound, contextual influence prompts a study peculiar to Nigeria. A systematic review of availab le literature gathered through desk literature search and qualitative content analysis were conducted The result of this study shows that key determinants to compliance with H&S regulations in the Nigerian construction indu stry include: culture, client in fluence, inadequate legislation, activities of the informal construction sec tor, beliefs, enforcement of H&S regulations, bribery and corruption . It is evident from this study that contextual issues may explain compliance behaviour . This paper goes further to conclude that irrespective of the inadequate regulations and lack of governmental support, stakeholders in the construction in dustry and trade unions can improve H&S . It also recommends that: building planning departments in local councils be involved in H&S enforcement; in tender selection, preference should be given to construction contractors with good safety records; H&S professionals should exploit the economic benefits of good H&S management system to attract management commitment 
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spelling doaj-art-1f67ed2426af44d1b7b158f8716fa84c2025-01-08T06:14:22ZengUJ PressJournal of Construction Project Management and Innovation2223-78522959-96522014-06-014Supplement10.36615/jcpmi.v4iSupplement.72DETERMINANTS OF COMPLIANCE WITH HEALTH AND SAFETY REGULATIONS IN NIGERIA’S CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRYNnedinma UMEOKAFOR0oniface UMEADIDavid ISAAC1Department of Built Environment, Faculty of Architecture, Computing & Humanities; University of Greenwich.Department of Built Environment, Faculty of Architecture, Computing & Humanities; University of Greenwich. UK The accident rate of the construction industry is disproportionate to the number of its workers compared with other industries. Despite this, the Nigerian construction industry lags behind in tackling the health and safety (H&S) challenges posed by the hazardous activities of the industry and contextual issues Compliance with H&S regulations is one of the pi llars to achieving optimum H&S in the workplace; regrettably, its level is low in Nigeria. This low level of compliance with H&S regulations in Nigeria remains one of the major factors blamed for the challenging state of H&S in Nigeria, especially in the c onstruction industry. Hence, this paper examines the determinants of compliance with H&S regulations in Nigeria’s construction industry, unearthing the salient issues to compliance with H&S regulations in N igeria’s construction industry. Using compliance t heories, it explains the compliance behaviour of the Nigerian construction industry. Although studies on compliance with H&S regulations in developed countries abound, contextual influence prompts a study peculiar to Nigeria. A systematic review of availab le literature gathered through desk literature search and qualitative content analysis were conducted The result of this study shows that key determinants to compliance with H&S regulations in the Nigerian construction indu stry include: culture, client in fluence, inadequate legislation, activities of the informal construction sec tor, beliefs, enforcement of H&S regulations, bribery and corruption . It is evident from this study that contextual issues may explain compliance behaviour . This paper goes further to conclude that irrespective of the inadequate regulations and lack of governmental support, stakeholders in the construction in dustry and trade unions can improve H&S . It also recommends that: building planning departments in local councils be involved in H&S enforcement; in tender selection, preference should be given to construction contractors with good safety records; H&S professionals should exploit the economic benefits of good H&S management system to attract management commitment  https://journals.uj.ac.za/index.php/JCPMI/article/view/72Compliance, Construction industry, Health and safety, Nigeria, Regulations.
spellingShingle Nnedinma UMEOKAFOR
oniface UMEADI
David ISAAC
DETERMINANTS OF COMPLIANCE WITH HEALTH AND SAFETY REGULATIONS IN NIGERIA’S CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY
Journal of Construction Project Management and Innovation
Compliance, Construction industry, Health and safety, Nigeria, Regulations.
title DETERMINANTS OF COMPLIANCE WITH HEALTH AND SAFETY REGULATIONS IN NIGERIA’S CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY
title_full DETERMINANTS OF COMPLIANCE WITH HEALTH AND SAFETY REGULATIONS IN NIGERIA’S CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY
title_fullStr DETERMINANTS OF COMPLIANCE WITH HEALTH AND SAFETY REGULATIONS IN NIGERIA’S CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY
title_full_unstemmed DETERMINANTS OF COMPLIANCE WITH HEALTH AND SAFETY REGULATIONS IN NIGERIA’S CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY
title_short DETERMINANTS OF COMPLIANCE WITH HEALTH AND SAFETY REGULATIONS IN NIGERIA’S CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY
title_sort determinants of compliance with health and safety regulations in nigeria s construction industry
topic Compliance, Construction industry, Health and safety, Nigeria, Regulations.
url https://journals.uj.ac.za/index.php/JCPMI/article/view/72
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AT onifaceumeadi determinantsofcompliancewithhealthandsafetyregulationsinnigeriasconstructionindustry
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