b'Creating Safer Jobsites: Understanding How Human Factors and Performance Impact Construction SafetyA foundational principle in understanding performance is the concept that even the best people make mistakes. Human factors and human performance are crucial forErrors are not exclusive, and they are not intentional. workplace safety in most industries, but few are more direExploring the details behind an error and what changes to than in the construction industry. These concepts focus onmake in procedures is important to avoid future errors. how certain factors correlate with individual behaviors andWhen an error does occur, rather than blaming an interactions in the workplace. Understanding these elementsemployee or group of employees for that error, dive into can help leaders improve productivity, safety and decision- the factors that led to the incident and how to prevent making, and create a supportive environment that fostersfuture incidents. An environment where deliberate better overall performance.learning is the norm is also a vital component of improvement. When an incident occurs, stepping back to Understanding Human Factors in the Industryanalyze what happened and why will ultimately help teams anticipate potential incidents to avoid future Human factors describe how people interact with theirincidents. Finally, as a leader in an organization, it is workplace and how these factors can influence and affectcritical to understand that your response matters. Taking a their overall health and safety.Examples of human factorscollaborative approach that focuses on correcting errors include the environment, organizational and job factors, andrather than placing blame can build a sense of trust and human and individual characteristics.These factors focusaccountability between all levels of the team. This does on why people make the choices they make and how thenot mean that errors are not addressed in an appropriate connection between the job, the individual and theway, rather there is a balance to the approach that will organization shape decisions.help influence future actions.Understanding the design and structure of a job, includingConstruction Safety Week, the annual nationwide week-the workload, the nature of the tasks involved, thelong initiative, will take place May 5-9 with the theme All processes, the environment and overall balance, plays a rolein Together, focusing on how teams can plan, own and in workplace safety.Individual factors rely on the personcommit together. To view and download available and who they are, their personality, skill set, risk perception,planning and safety resources, attitude and more. Some of these are fixed attributes, whilevisit https://www.constructionsafetyweek.com/plan-for-others can be flexible to change, but theyre all helpful forsafety-week/resources/. understanding how an individual interacts with their role effectively. The organizational factors focus on workBy Mike Choutka, CEO Hensel Phelps and Construction Safety patterns, culture, communication, leadership and more. These factors within an organization, especially in anWeek Chair 2025industry like construction, can play a critical role in shaping behaviors. When in alignment, the job, the individual and the organization work in tandem for success and safety. Sources: The 5 Principles of Human Performance and their rolehttps://www.hse.gov.uk/humanfactors/introduction.htm in safetyhttps://safety4sea.com/cm-human-factors-and-human-performance-whats-the-difference/ According to Todd Conklin, there are 5 principles of human performance that weave together as the foundational blockshttps://safetycollaborations.com/5-principles-of-human-for human performance. Each principle plays a role inperformance-part-1/ understanding performance, what the driving forces behind performance are, and how they make a difference in influencing behavior.Conklin, T. (2019). The 5 principles of human performance: A contemporary update of the building Working toward a safer industry togetherblocks of human performance for the new view of safety. Fostering a culture that prioritizes a better understanding of why people make the decisions they make and how we can influence better choices is essential for workplace safety in the construction industry. It is critical to recognize the interconnectedness of people, our work environments, and our role in improving performance and safety. 5'