Exploratory Study to Identify Perceptions of Safety and Risk among Residential Latino Construction Workers as Distinct from Commercial and Heavy Civil Construction Workers

Abstract

Latino workers in residential construction currently suffer disproportionately high rates of injuries and fatalities compared to Latino workers in commercial and heavy civil construction. The aim of this study is to investigate possible differences in safety culture and risk perception among Latino construction workers across residential, commercial, and heavy civil construction sectors. Analysis was conducted using 218 survey responses from Latino construction workers collected in the Denver metro and northern Colorado areas. Results suggest that Latino workers in commercial and heavy civil construction share more similar perceptions of safety culture and risk than those in residential construction. Specifically, Latino workers in residential construction were more likely to agree with the statements that (1) work productivity and quality have a higher priority than safety and (2) safety rules and safety procedures are difficult to understand and that dangers present on construction sites cannot cause death. This study enhances the knowledge about the safety culture and risk perceptions of Latino construction workers in all three sectors. Study findings support the hypothesis that differences in safety culture perceptions among Latinos may contribute to differences in injury rates across the three sectors. Specifically, perceptions of a less-supportive safety culture may correlate to higher rates of miscommunication and incorrect assumptions that influence decision making, resulting in disproportionately higher rates of injuries and fatalities in residential construction compared to commercial and heavy civil construction. Such research findings are important because they provide a meaningful context and basis for effective construction worker safety interventions in the future.