Occupational Accidents, Injuries, and Associated Factors among Migrant and Domestic Construction Workers in Saudi Arabia
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Materials and Methods
2.1. Study Design
2.2. Data Collection
2.3. Ethical Considerations
2.4. Statistical Analysis
3. Results
3.1. Accidents Trends
3.2. Fatal Accidents: Among Migrant and Domestic Workers
3.3. Non-Fatal Accidents among Migrant and Domestic Workers
3.4. Association between Type of Accident and Its Consequences across Domestic and Migrant Workers
4. Discussion
4.1. Research Limitations
- The research depends on the GOSI database, which may not record every single incident and could fail to obtain comprehensive knowledge on the particular causes and settings of accidents and injuries. This shortcoming causes possible underreporting or misclassification.
- Using a retrospective cohort design reduces the capacity for determining causation. Potential confounding variables that could affect the observed associations include variations in experience levels, safety training, and the enforcement of safety laws. These variables were not controlled for.
- The findings may not be applicable to industries beyond Saudi Arabia’s building industry due to its distinctive socio-economic and regulatory environment.
- The reliability of the data could also be influenced by selection bias and self-reporting inaccuracies, which could potentially distort the results.
4.2. Recommendations and Future Works
- Developing more effective and structured safety training programs using advanced technology such as wearable sensors and implementing safety audits and inspections.
- Employers and construction site managers should ensure that migrant workers use personal protective equipment appropriately at all times.
- More attention should be paid to migrant workers with less experience and knowledge of safety measures. This can include providing safety training in their native languages.
- Given the prevalence of psychosocial factors and musculoskeletal injuries in the construction industry, a comprehensive risk management technique must be implemented in order to effectively reduce these risks [37,38]. Further studies should be conducted to examine the causation of work-related accidents among migrant construction workers in SA and its potential impact on occupational health and safety is imperative.
5. Conclusions
- Routine risk assessments should be implemented to identify high-risk activities and environments that are unique to migrant workers. Development of management plans involving improved safety measures and the supply of personal protective equipment (PPE) to help to reduce identified risks.
- Develop and implement training programs that are specifically designed to address the distinct safety challenges encountered by migrant workers, with an emphasis on the prevention of falls, strikes, and collisions. Enhance the comprehension and efficacy of migrant workers by providing training that is conveniently accessible in their native languages.
- Adjust work schedules and safety measures to account for seasonal variations in accident rates, particularly during the spring when accidents are more frequent.
- Establish a robust monitoring system to track the effectiveness of implemented safety measures and make data-driven adjustments as needed. Regularly review accident and injury data to identify emerging trends and areas for improvement.
Author Contributions
Funding
Data Availability Statement
Acknowledgments
Conflicts of Interest
References
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General Organization for Social Insurance (GOSI) | |
---|---|
Data Categories | Description |
Workers Time period provided | Categorization as Saudi (domestic) or non-Saudi (migrant) 2014–2019 |
Fatal and Non-Fatal Accidents/Injuries | Fatal accidents: Resulting in death Non-fatal accidents: Resulting in >1 day of work absence |
Type of Accidents/Injuries (Recorded by GOSI) Consequences of work-related accidents | Falls Strikes and Collision (struck by objects or materials) Rubbing and Abrasion (injuries from scraping or abrasion) Transport and Vehicle Accidents that related to construction Bodily reactions (reactions to chemicals or materials) Other Full recovery Under recovery Permanent disability Fatality (death) |
Seasons | Spring (March–May) Summer (June–August) Autumn (September–November) Winter (December–February). |
Age Groups | <20 years 20–29 years 30–39 years 40–49 years 50–59 years 60+ years |
Industry | Construction |
Variables | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | Average |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Accidents % Compared to Total Accidents for All Industries | 32,781 | 31,085 | 18,681 | 15,389 | 13,442 | 10,621 | 22,275.6 |
47.3% | 46.3% | 35.0% | 36.3% | 36.5% | 34.76% | 41.4% | |
Fatality Rate (Per 100,000) | 7.9 | 4.8 | 4.2 | 3.3 | 2.5 | 2.6 | 4.2 |
Non-Fatal Accident Rate (Per 1000) | 8.3 | 7.3 | 4.3 | 3.8 | 4.1 | 4.6 | 5.4 |
Variable | Overall 2 | Migrant N 1 (%) | Domestic N 1 (%) | p-Value 2 |
---|---|---|---|---|
Fatal accidents No Yes | 311,682 (99.9) 973 (0.1) | 2,764,697 (99.9) 914 (0.1) | 346,985 (99.9) 59 (0.1) | <0.01 |
Fatal accidents by age group | <0.001 | |||
<20 | 3 (0.0) | 1 (0.0) | 2 (3.4) | |
20–29 | 259 (26.6) | 231 (25.3) | 28 (47.5) | |
30–39 | 324 (33.3) | 306 (33.5) | 18 (30.5) | |
40–49 | 260 (26.7) | 254 (27.8) | 6 (10.1) | |
50–59 | 96 (9.9) | 91 (10.0) | 5 (8.5) | |
>60 | 31 (3.2) | 31 (3.4) | 0 (0.0) | |
Type of fatal accident | 0.02 | |||
Fall | 176 (18.0) | 176 (19.3) | 0 (0.0) | |
Stuck and Collision | 99 (10.2) | 97 (10.6) | 2 (3.4) | |
Rubbed and Abrasion | 2 (0.2) | 2 (0.2) | 0 (0.0) | |
Other | 37 (3.8) | 36 (4) | 1 (1.7) | |
Bodily Reaction | 2 (0.2) | 2 (0.2) | 0 (0.0) | |
Transport and Car Accidents | 584 (60.0) | 528 (57.7) | 56 (95.0) | |
Seasons | 0.90 | |||
Autumn | 249 (25.6) | 232 (25.4) | 17 (28.8) | |
Spring | 263 (27.0) | 248 (27.1) | 15 (25.4) | |
Summer | 209 (21.5) | 198 (21.7) | 11 (19.3) | |
Winter | 252 (25.9) | 236 (25.8) | 16 (27.0) |
Variable | Overall n (%) | Migrant N 1 (%) | Domestic N 1 (%) | p-Value 2 |
---|---|---|---|---|
Non-fatal accidents No Yes | 2,991,629 (96.1) 121026 (4.0) | 2,646,095 (95.7) 119516 (4.5) | 345,534 (99.6) 1510 (0.4) | <0.01 |
Non-fatal accidents by age group | <0.001 | |||
<20 | 45 (0.0) | 15 (0.0) | 30 (2.0) | |
20–29 | 36,610 (30.2) | 35,857 (30.0) | 753 (49.9) | |
30–39 | 47,237 (39.0) | 46,749 (39.0) | 488 (32.3) | |
40–49 | 25,018 (20.7) | 24,847 (20.8) | 171 (11.3) | |
50–59 | 9843 (8.1) | 9790 (8.2) | 53 (3.5) | |
>60 | 2273 (1.9) | 2258 (1.9) | 15 (1.0) | |
Type of non-fatal accident | <0.01 | |||
Fall | 39,626 (32.7) | 39,150 (32.8) | 476 (31.5) | |
Stuck and Collision | 32,483 (26.8) | 32,170 (26.9) | 313 (20.7) | |
Rubbed and Abrasion | 15,398 (12.7) | 15,298 (12.8) | 100 (6.6) | |
Other | 9324 (7.7) | 9243 (7.7) | 81 (5.4) | |
Bodily Reaction | 7186 (5.9) | 7098 (5.9) | 88 (5.8) | |
Transport and Car Accidents | 5974 (4.9) | 5717 (4.8) | 257 (17.0) | |
Non-fatal accidents by seasons | 0.378 | |||
Autumn | 26,940 (22.3) | 26,584 (22.2) | 356 (23.6) | |
Spring | 35,502 (29.3) | 35,046 (29.3) | 456 (30.2) | |
Summer | 26,023 (21.5) | 25,712 (21.5) | 311 (20.6) | |
Winter | 32,561 (26.9) | 32,174 (26.9) | 387 (25.6) |
Consequences | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Type of Accident | Full Recovery n 1 (%) | Under Recovery n 1 (%) | Permanent Disability n 1 (%) | Fatality n 1 (%) | Total n 1 (%) | p-Value 2 |
Fall | 24,048 (60.4) | 12,906 (32.4) | 2672 (6.7) | 176 (0.4) | 39,802 (100.0) | 0.021 |
Migrant | 23,730 (60.3) | 12,774 (32.5) | 2646 (6.7) | 176 (0.4) | 39,326 (100.0) | |
Domestic | 318 (66.8) | 132 (27.7) | 26 (5.5) | 0 (0) | 476 (100.0) | |
Strike and Collision | 23,411 (71.8) | 7211 (22.1) | 1861 (5.7) | 99 (0.3) | 32,582 (100.0) | 0.676 |
Migrant | 23,181 (71.8) | 7146 (22.1) | 1843 (5.7) | 97 (0.3) | 32,267 (100.0) | |
Domestic | 230 (73) | 65 (20.6) | 18 (5.7) | 2 (0.0) | 315 (100.0) | |
Rubbing and Abrasion | 11,218 (72.8) | 3145 (20.4) | 1035 (6.7) | 2 (0.0) | 15,400 (100.0) | 0.990 |
Migrant | 11,144 (72.8) | 3125 (20.4) | 1029 (6.7) | 2 (0.0) | 15,300 (100.0) | |
Domestic | 74 (74.0) | 20 (20.0) | 6 (6.0) | 0 (0.0) | 100 (0.6) | |
Other | 6345 (67.8) | 2345 (25.1) | 634 (6.8) | 37 (0.4) | 9361 (100.0) | 0.054 |
Migrant | 6300 (67.9) | 2318 (24.9) | 625 (6.7) | 36 (0.4) | 9279 (100.0) | |
Domestic | 45 (54.9) | 27 (32.9) | 9 (10.9) | 1 (1.2) | 82 (100.0) | |
Bodily Reaction | 5524 (76.8) | 1388 (19.3) | 274 (3.8) | 2 (0.0) | 7188 (100) | 0.445 |
Migrant | 5456 (76.8) | 1374 (19.3) | 268 (3.8) | 2 (0.0) | 7100 (100) | |
Domestic | 68 (77.2) | 14 (15.9) | 6 (6.8) | 0 (0.0) | 88 (100) | |
Transport and Car Accidents | 2045 (31.2) | 3397 (51.8) | 532 (8.1) | 584 (8.9) | 6558 (100) | 0.001 |
Migrant | 1973 (31.6) | 3235 (51.8) | 509 (8.2) | 528 (8.5) | 6245 (100) | |
Domestic | 72 (23.0) | 162 (51.7) | 23 (7.3) | 56 (17.9) | 313 (100.0) |
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Alruwaili, M.; Carrillo, P.; Soetanto, R.; Munir, F. Occupational Accidents, Injuries, and Associated Factors among Migrant and Domestic Construction Workers in Saudi Arabia. Buildings 2024, 14, 2714. https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings14092714
Alruwaili M, Carrillo P, Soetanto R, Munir F. Occupational Accidents, Injuries, and Associated Factors among Migrant and Domestic Construction Workers in Saudi Arabia. Buildings. 2024; 14(9):2714. https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings14092714
Chicago/Turabian StyleAlruwaili, Musaad, Patricia Carrillo, Robby Soetanto, and Fehmidah Munir. 2024. "Occupational Accidents, Injuries, and Associated Factors among Migrant and Domestic Construction Workers in Saudi Arabia" Buildings 14, no. 9: 2714. https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings14092714