Construction has traditionally been a man’s world, but increasingly it is a world of older men. A shortage of entry-level workers, pressure from a tough economy and a thinning workforce as Baby Boomers retire has resulted in a graying workforce at jobsites nationwide.
That aging workforce translates into an increased focus on worker safety and jobsite redesign to ensure these older workers can be as productive as possible.
Tom McManus, 63, has worked in the trades for 45 years and continues to work as a pipefitter and welder for Decco Inc., a mechanical contractor in Brookline. McManus loves his job, despite aches and pains from arthritis. He has torn ligaments in his ankles and hurt his back twice, once while connecting iron pipe in Maine before joining Decco. “I was up 90 feet, slipped and swung down on a lanyard, wrenching my back,” McManus says. “It’s harder to do the same amount of work in the same amount of time.” But like other older workers, he says he now works smarter.
McManus may be a little slower than his younger coworkers, but his skills are highly valued, especially as those younger coworkers are harder to come by. As of 2010, the average construction worker was 41.5 years old, at least five years older than in 1985, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ current population survey.
Larry McDonald, chair of safety and occupational health at Keene State College in Keene, says in the past eight years he has observed many companies retaining more older workers because young people are less willing to join a profession that is known to be both dangerous and lead to premature aging due to wear and tear.
Measuring Risk
While job site safety has improved, construction can be treacherous, as in the case of the 53-year old steel erector who lost his life last year in Hanover after he was struck by a crane hook. It was the first construction fatality in NH since 2006. Still it sent a deadly message to those looking to launch careers in that industry.
Another issue for the industry is that older workers recover from injuries more slowly, despite being more likely to know their limits, according to research by Engineering News Record. Jim Beck, 64, started as a welder at Decco 22 years ago but recalls, before joining Decco, being buried in a trench when it caved in during mud season. (That was before the Occupational Safety and Health Administration was created in 1970.) Today's regulations require protections preventing an accident like that.
Beck, though a supervisor, still pitches in. When placing pipes for a tunnel or working on other jobs that may require lifting up to 40 pounds, he makes sure he gets help when needed. Older workers like Beck are depended on to keep the younger guys in line. “You can’t really put a price on the knowledge and experience of older workers. The younger guys are more prone to injury statistically. It’s the older workers that keep the guys smart,” says Mike Roberts, safety manager at Bremco, an industrial contractor in Claremont.
In construction, the mean total cost of an injury claim for someone age 65 is triple that of someone 24, per Natalie Schwatka, a doctoral student and public health researcher at Colorado State University who analyzed 107,000 construction-industry workers’ compensation claims. The extra cost is from indemnity, disability and out-of-work payments. Compounding the problem is that older workers appear to need more time to recover. According to the federal 2008 Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses, median days away from work due to work-related injuries nearly doubles from 15 to 29 in the construction industry after age 65.
Securing the Ropes
Realizing the value of older workers, some NH contractors are taking a proactive approach to keeping them safe. Kevin Temple, safety director at North Branch Construction, Concord, says, “The macho mentality doesn’t work; you have to encourage teamwork. They get tired, they need to take breaks, take shade, get plenty water.”
“You can’t make a 60-year-old back stronger, but you can minimize or eliminate the hazards that will damage that back,” says Tim Barton, vice president and director of corporate safety at Decco.
His firm invests in a federally compliant safety program and self-insurance. “In three-plus million hours we have had no injuries,” he says. Decco belongs to the Associated Builders and Contractors NH Self-Insured Group Trust for Worker’s Compensation, created in 1994. “My partners in [the trust] make me accountable for safety,” Barton says.
As part of the Self Insured Trust, each member receives loss control support from an independent third-party safety consultant that provides additional site inspections and training, including specific elements on how to support the aging workforce, Barton says.
“Last year, many providers of commercial Workers Compensation Insurance experienced losses that were greater than the premiums they collected, while the self-insured group we belong to experienced losses of less than 50 percent of the premiums collected," he says.
Four years ago, Decco invested $75,000 in new safety equipment to minimize operator involvement in mobilizing material, including positioners for holding pipes while cutting and welding and new welding machines that make it easier on welders.
At Bremco where workers frequently weld, install and retrofit heat recovery generators in tight spaces that require a lot of twisting, Roberts says having crews or a third-party subcontractor build scaffolding, platforms or little armrests to accommodate workers’ needs makes the work space more comfortable and reduces fatigue. Such adjustments also can prevent both joint pain and injuries for older workers overall.
Worker rotation is another way contractors can avoid soft tissue injuries that result from repetitive, high impact work. When de-finning a boiler tube, for instance, often done with a muffler gun, (similar to a pneumatic hammer chisel), Bremco workers are put on rotation schedules that last about 15 minutes to an hour, depending on site conditions, Roberts says.
For many older workers still able to perform respectably, deciding when to quit is difficult. Jim Beck will turn 65 in August and plans to retire a year after that but says it’s possible he could work even longer.
“I wouldn’t be doing this if I didn’t like construction work.”
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