Workplace safety implications of cultural diversity on Australian construction sites : a pilot study

Cultural diversity has become a distinctive feature of Australia's construction workforce. There is a need for a systematic investigation into the cultural divergences among workers in difference ethnic groups and their implications for the workplace health and safety management in the construction industry. This research was proposed to examine the workplace safety implications of cultural diversity issues on construction sites. As the pilot study of a 3-year research program, this paper aims to identify potential workplace safety issues caused by cultural diversity on construction sites. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with 10 safety professionals. The results of the semi-structured interviews indicate that cultural diversity has an influential impact on many aspects of safety practices on construction sites, e.g., management commitment; communication; workers’ involvement; supportive environment; supervisory environment; personal risk appreciation; work pressure; training and education; and rules and procedures. The issues that were identified from the semi-structured interviews will be used to develop a quantitative data collection instrument which aims to develop a framework for managing construction safety in a multicultural workforce (the second stage of this research).