Industry is operating in a challenging environment. Despite trends suggesting that workplaces are becoming safer, life-altering injuries and fatalities are still occurring – affecting both staff and contractors.

Incidents such as these, as well as other poor safety performance indicators, erode business value and operational efficiency, while impacting morale and reputation. 

Contractors are becomingly increasingly integral to many companies’ business models, and contractor safety performance is a growing challenge that, when poorly managed, can create vulnerabilities outside of your direct lines of sight and control. An increase in incidents involving contractor workforces can be attributed to a number of factors, including but not limited to:

  • Contractors are often performing the higher risk activities and tasks on sites;
  • Tight budgets hence contractor margins;
  • Challenging deadlines;
  • High contractor turnover;
  • Language barriers; and
  • Incidents that are often perceived as an inevitable part of work.

Overall, your safety culture and performance expectations and those of your contractors may be markedly different.