The construction industry needs to find the means to elevate the status of health and make it an equal partner to safety.
That is the message that Clive Johnson, group head of health and safety at Land Securities, will drive home at the IOSH conference today.
Presenting in track D from 12.10, Mr Johnson will look at the obstacles facing the industry when it comes to improving health in the workplace and will outline solutions.
Although the construction sector and many of the supporting bodies couple health and safety together to manage and control both, health has traditionally taken the back seat due to cause and effect in many cases taking decades to present symptoms, he will argue.
Also, unlike safety, the burden of managing health falls predominantly on the employer. For these reasons, the construction industry must do more to elevate the status of health and make it an equal partner to safety.
Mr Johnson will also tell delegates that there is confusion in the industry between occupational health management, occupational hygiene and wellbeing. All have a role to play, he will argue, and they are complementary in engaging employers, employees and the population at large.
Clive Johnson will be presenting in track D in the IOSH conference from 12.10.
