<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">

<p>Falls from height (FFH) are considered the most dangerous accident in the global construction industry, especially in emerging economies like Saudi Arabia. This study investigates the causative factors responsible for FFH accidents in the construction industry in Saudi Arabia. The approach used by the study entailed a review of the extant literature to identify the main causes of FFH accidents. The identified causes were used to develop a questionnaire survey, which was administered to construction professionals in Saudi Arabia. Useable feedback from ninety-one responses was obtained and consequently analysed using the Relative Agreement Index (RAI). The results revealed that the top three causes include “lack of training”, “no safety inspection”, and “no safety meeting and seminar between stakeholders”. The causes were also categorized into three groups including “unsafe acts”, “unsafe conditions”, “communication barriers”, and “management commitment”, where “unsafe acts” was the most influential category. The significance of this study is its potential to help control the occurrence of FFH in the construction industry through the adoption of relevant controls, safety training, and risk-based decision-making in the planning and execution of construction works.</p>
</abstract>

Falls from height (FFH) are considered the most dangerous accident in the global construction industry, especially in emerging economies like Saudi Arabia. This study investigates the causative factors responsible for FFH accidents in the construction industry in Saudi Arabia. The approach used by the study entailed a review of the extant literature to identify the main causes of FFH accidents. The identified causes were used to develop a questionnaire survey, which was administered to construction professionals in Saudi Arabia. Useable feedback from ninety-one responses was obtained and consequently analysed using the Relative Agreement Index (RAI). The results revealed that the top three causes include “lack of training”, “no safety inspection”, and “no safety meeting and seminar between stakeholders”. The causes were also categorized into three groups including “unsafe acts”, “unsafe conditions”, “communication barriers”, and “management commitment”, where “unsafe acts” was the most influential category. The significance of this study is its potential to help control the occurrence of FFH in the construction industry through the adoption of relevant controls, safety training, and risk-based decision-making in the planning and execution of construction works.

Fall From Height Accidents in the Construction Industry in Saudi Arabia

Safety Technology Program, Dammam Community College

King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals

Architecture, Civil Engineering, Environment

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

{"article-title":"Fall From Height Accidents in the Construction Industry in Saudi Arabia"}

Falls from height (FFH) are considered the most dangerous accident in the global construction industry, especially in emerging economies like Saudi Arabia....

FFH Causative Factors	RAI	Rank
Lack of training	0.885	1
No safety inspection	0.879	2
No safety meeting and seminar between stakeholders	0.868	3
No safety officer or supervisor	0.863	4
Workers fail to wear PPE	0.863	4
Poor housekeeping	0.857	5
Lack of knowledge	0.854	6
No safety programs	0.849	7
Bad attitude towards safety	0.843	8
Poor warning signs	0.841	9
Failure to provide PPE	0.821	10
Lack of PPE	0.821	10
Wrong position during the task	0.808	11
Working at a high level	0.808	11
Employees are unaware of the safety directions	0.799	12
Bad delivery of safety message	0.799	12
Lack of awareness among construction workers	0.794	13
Bad safety policies	0.794	13
Unstable scaffolding	0.791	14
Poor understanding of safety signs	0.772	15
Working in a crowded space	0.758	16
Unclear safety information	0.739	17
Bad weather during the work	0.728	18
Floor opening in the site	0.725	19
Defect of machinery	0.725	19
Inadequate communication between workers	0.723	20
The environment is not suitable for work	0.714	21
A language barrier between staff	0.662	22
Fall protection provided (e.g., safety harness)	0.659	23
Stakeholders are giving priority and value to safety practices	0.618	24
Periodic medical examination for workers	0.615	25

Fall From Height Accidents in the Construction Industry in Saudi Arabia

Published Online: Jul 20, 2023

Page range: 101 - 110

Received: Jan 31, 2022

Accepted: Feb 04, 2023

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/acee-2023-0019

Keywords
Fall Accidents, Falling from Height, Construction Industry, Safety Performance, Safety Culture, Saudi Arabia

© 2023 Abubakar Sadiq Mahmoud et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Figure 1.

Figure 2.

Figure 3.

Figure 4.

Figure 5.

Figure 6.

Figure 7.

RAI of causative factors related to fall from height accidents

Fall From Height Accidents in the Construction Industry in Saudi Arabia

Published Online: Jul 20, 2023

Page range: 101 - 110

Received: Jan 31, 2022

Accepted: Feb 04, 2023

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/acee-2023-0019

KeywordsFall Accidents, Falling from Height, Construction Industry, Safety Performance, Safety Culture, Saudi Arabia

© 2023 Abubakar Sadiq Mahmoud et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Figure 1.

Figure 2.

Figure 3.

Figure 4.

Figure 5.

Figure 6.

Figure 7.

RAI of causative factors related to fall from height accidents

Keywords
Fall Accidents, Falling from Height, Construction Industry, Safety Performance, Safety Culture, Saudi Arabia