Determining safety climate factors in the repair, maintenance, minor alteration, and addition sector of Hong Kong

Abstract

Accident record of the repair, maintenance, minor alteration, and addition (RMAA) sector has been alarmingly high; however, research in the RMAA sector remains limited. Unsafe behavior is considered one of the key causes of accidents. Thus, the organizational factors that influence individual safety behavior at work continue to be the focus of many studies. The safety climate, which reflects the true priority of safety in an organization, has drawn much attention. Safety climate measurement helps to identify areas for safety improvement. The current study aims to identify safety climate factors in the RMAA sector. A questionnaire survey was conducted in the RMAA sector in Hong Kong. Data were randomly split into the calibration, and the validation samples. RMAA safety climate factors were determined by exploratory factor analysis on the calibration sample. Three safety climate factors of the RMAA works were identified: (F1) management commitment to OHS and employee involvement; (F2) applicability of safety rules and work practices; and (F3) responsibility for health and safety. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was then conducted on the validation sample. The CFA model showed satisfactory goodness-of-fit, reliability, and validity. The suggested RMAA safety climate factors can be utilized by the construction industry practitioners in the developed economies to measure safety climate of their RMAA projects, thereby enhancing safety of RMAA works.