CANADIAN CONSTRUCTION ASSOCIATION
with social exclusion is to proactively
encourage an inclusive and civil climate
amongst employees.
Exclusion diminishes employee engagement
– the mental and emotional connection
employees feel toward their place of work –
and that’s just bad for business.
Employee engagement:
• Increases employee safety: A 2016 Gallup
study showed that business units with
engagement scores in the top quartile of
Gallup’s employee engagement database
have 70 per cent fewer safety incidents
compared with bottom quartile units.
• Lowers absenteeism: Another Gallup study
noted that highly engaged workplaces saw
41 per cent lower absenteeism.
• Increases quality: That same Gallup study
also noted that highly engaged workplaces
saw 40 per cent fewer quality defects.
The bright side? If you reduce exclusionary
behaviour in the workplace, you’ll help to reduce
employee turnover.
In fact, fostering an inclusive culture as part
of a robust HR and talent management strategy
not only helps to reduce employee turnover,
it actually gives companies a competitive edge
when hiring – many feel that a more inclusive
organization is a better place to work. The experts
at McKinsey agree that inclusion increases
employee satisfaction and reduces conflict
between groups. The result is improved collaboration
and loyalty, higher employee retention,
and an environment that is more attractive to
high performers.
Drive a positive safety culture
Studies show that immigrant and female
workers who have not been integrated into
an existing workplace culture face higher or
substantial risk of work-related injuries or illnesses.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor
Statistics (2008), eight per cent of total job
site fatalities involve women workers; the risk
is high considering that tradeswomen only account
for two to three per cent of the construction
workforce.
The most recent statistics from the
Association of Workers’ Compensation
Boards of Canada (AWCBC) tell us that in
2017, 917 workplace fatalities were recorded
in Canada. Of those, 219 were in construction.
Construction workers account for almost onequarter
of all workplace fatalities in the country.
Add to that the 26,510 lost time claims in
construction in the same period.
MARTIN NOVAK / 123RF
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