Three out of four employees who use wearable distance monitoring and contact tracing devices at work state they feel safer than those who do not. (iStock/lakshmiprasad S)
The pandemic has incredibly impacted the construction industry. Nearly one million jobs were lost in April last year. Nonresidential construction starts were down by almost a quarter in the first half of 2020. And the industry’s unemployment rate was still hovering above 7% as last year wrapped.
But there are some positives for the construction industry to build on in 2021. Some states’ classification of construction workers as “essential” has helped keep both public and private development projects moving. The introduction of vaccines, when they become widely available, should help protect individual workers. Continued safety and health guidance specific to construction sites from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) should also provide developers and employers actionable steps to keep workers safe.
For an industry that represents 13% of global GDP, it’s imperative for the health of economies worldwide that construction industry leaders keep their workers safe, limit service disruptions and improve project costs. Fortunately, there are plenty of new workplace health and safety technologies that can meet these needs, and some companies have already implemented them with success.
Pairing technology with a comprehensive safety plan using the latest guidance from the CDC and OSHA, construction companies can reduce outbreaks and improve productivity at jobsites. This begins with the ability to efficiently analyze and gather critical data insights related to health and safety.
“It’s imperative for the health of economies worldwide that construction industry leaders keep their workers safe, limit service disruptions and improve project costs.”
