How Do Safety Measures Impact the Project Cost and Productivity? Demystifying the Safety-Productivity Argument

Safety analysis in construction projects is obstructed by the deficiency of construction injuries and fatalities data. The dynamic nature of the construction work environment and inadequate records of safety measures exacerbate this situation. Contractors tend to ignore safety believing it will negatively impact the construction time, cost, and labor productivity. The stakeholders in Pakistan's construction sector practically ignore research in the area of implementing safety measures in preference of productivity. The persistently high number of fatal injuries in Pakistan's construction sector indicates that current safety measures are not sufficient to provide the appropriate levels of a safe environment. This study identified the safety risks that occur in three different phases of construction through literature and respective safety measures through international standards. Data is collected using questionnaire-based surveys and the top 10 critical safety risks in each phase are identified. Further, the impact of adopting the safety measures for the critical risks on the project cost and productivity is analyzed. The regression modeling is carried out to find the impact of safety measures on the cost and productivity of a construction project. The developed model is validated through two case studies to reveal that the impact on cost and productivity is less than 3% each. The implications of this study are of importance for local contractors in the form of recommendations for incorporating the margin of cost and time for safety in project planning. Future research can extend the current findings by including other factors like project features and external factors