Category Archives: Risk Management

Lack of Skilled Workers a Challenge Facing Construction Industry

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NASHVILLE—While a number of issues face the booming construction industry, one concern that has been discussed throughout the IRMI Construction Risk Conference here is the shortage of skilled workers. Projects are larger than ever, with technology and the global supply chain only adding to their complexity, making it even more difficult to find talent.

“The construction industry is absolutely in a war for talent,” said keynote speaker Dominic Casserley, chief executive officer of Willis Group Holdings. He cited a 2013 Willis survey that found 93% of respondents listed a “lack of skilled workers” as their biggest concern. He noted that many workers who left the construction industry during the financial crisis have since gained new skills in other areas and are not coming back.

An example, he said, is in his home, the United Kingdom, which decided in the last two years to return to building nuclear power stations. They had not done this for a number of decades and “quickly found that there were no engineers left. There was nobody capable of building a nuclear power station in the United Kingdom, so our new power station is being built by our great friends, the French. That’s what happens if you lose talent in an area of construction.”

Organizations are putting programs in place in the emerging markets to train talented resources “close to where the action is,” he said. Going forward, however, “We don’t see this challenge getting any easier.
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” Looking at millennials as a potential workforce, which represent 27% of the U.
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S. population, “you will see that they have some pretty interesting attitudes about work.”

Casserley noted that of millennials:

● four out of five feel they need to be recognized for their work and want regular feedback

● 72% would like to be their own boss

● 79% would like to have their boss serve as a coach or mentor

● 88% prefer a collaborative to a competitive work culture

● 88% want to integrate work and home life

● 74% want flexible work schedules

Asked how firms can bring millennials into their workforce and be flexible while still getting the job done, he said he views this as an opportunity for companies. “I think this is a very talented, aspirational, exciting generation.

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They are highly tech-savvy and have grown up in a global world.”

What employers will need to do, he said, is to “get their minds around how to harness that asset.” An interesting aspect about millennials, he noted, is their belief in having social value in what they do. “I can tell you, that for the generation entering the workforce today, that really matters. They want to work for a firm that means something to them so they can go home and feel proud of what they do.

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While all generations may feel this way, millennials are expressing it more openly. “And until you can get your mind around describing what [your industry] does and why it is important to the way the world goes around, I think we will struggle to attract and attain people, particularly that generation,” Casserley said, adding that if members of the industry don’t do this, “you are going to constantly lose people.”

Jack Gibson, president and CEO of the International Risk Management Institute (IRMI), agreed, noting that the construction industry is often viewed as a workplace where people are injured and the insurance industry is seen as a life insurance sales force. “Both industries do so much good, but we have not done a very good job of delivering that message,” he said. Gibson encouraged contractors to get involved in mentoring programs as well as the Insurance Industry Charitable Foundation (IICF), which has contributed more than million in local community grants and more than 155,000 hours of volunteer service.

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Zero Tolerance Needed to Stop Construction Injuries

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Photo by Caroline McDonald

NASHVILLE–For David B. Walls, president and chief executive officer of Austin Industries, construction safety became a lifelong mission the day he had to answer to the father of a worker killed in an accident.

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“Why did you kill my son?” he asked Walls over and over.

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“Those words haunted me,” Walls said during his keynote address at the IRMI Construction Risk Conference here. “Nothing I could do would bring him back.” Tragic events such as this are “defining moments,” he said.

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“But we need to get passionate about safety without experiencing a fatality.” Walls explained that the construction industry has a long way to go, with the worst record for fatalities, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Organizations, he added, should focus on the physical work environment and the company culture. They also need to realize that a world-class safety program leads to higher quality throughout the organization.

One prerequisite is strong leadership. A good leader takes the time to really listen to people, admits to making mistakes and shares recognition for a project well done with employees, he said. This person also should be consistent in addressing safety issues and assertive enough to stop workers from continuing on a job if unsafe conditions are evident.

An effective leader needs to be accountable and hold the entire team accountable when it comes to safety. For example, workers need to know that breaking certain safety rules could cost them their job. After all, he said, “you have a moral obligation to get employees home to their families each night in a safe condition.”

Walls recommended frequent discussions of company successes as well as failures. Weekly dialogues of near-misses, for example, can raise awareness about how they could have been prevented and encourage safe behaviors. Posting the safety records of contractors “makes them improve quickly,” he said. Walls advocates for both classroom and thorough on-the-job training.

Safety managers and employees also need to focus on what they might be overlooking, the “sins of omission.” For example, he said, “what are you not doing that you could be doing to save lives?” The litmus test, he added, would be for a manager to ask him or herself, “Would I let my child work here?”

Asked by an audience member how to get the necessary buy-in from a CEO, Walls advised, “Get the CEO to walk the job and see the hazards. Go to the job site and see where someone fell and where the accident took place. Two to three people a day are dying in this industry and it is unacceptable.”

Corporate Reputation Drastically Impacts Talent Acquisition, Salary Costs

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According to a study from Corporate Responsibility Magazine and talent acquisition firm Alexander Mann Solutions, company reputation has a significant impact on staff recruitment, retention, and salary expenses. Prospective candidates are extremely hesitant to join a company with a bad reputation and, among those who may be willing to accept a job offer, a significant pay raise is required. Conversely, they can be tempted to move to a company with a good reputation for a significantly lower raise.

To leave their current employer and take a job with a company with a bad reputation, males would require an average of a 53% pay increase—60% among females. In total, nearly half  (48%) would require more than a 50% increase in pay. While 93% of people who are currently employed would leave their employer to work for a company with a good reputation, that rate goes down to 70% for companies with a bad reputation. Workers would only require, on average, a 33% pay increase to move to a company with a good reputation, with just 18% requiring a raise of more than 50%.

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Among companies with a bad reputation:

Expense to Recruit to Company with Bad Reputation

Among those with a good reputation:

Expense to Recruit to Company with Good Reputation

These trends hold true and are even magnified among unemployed individuals. An overwhelming 76% of people said they are unlikely to accept a job offer from a company with a bad reputation, even if they do not hold a current job.

Odds of Accepting Job with Company of Bad Reputation While Unemployed

Researchers found that companies face increased recruiting costs due to the greater difficulty to source and attract new hires, particularly when recruiting women and more experienced workers.

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But these costs are far from the greatest of a company’s troubles.

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“While recruiting expense increases are in the millions of dollars, this great expense is literally dwarfed by the billions of salary cost differential,” the study reads. “The cost of recruiting and salaries added to any expenses associated with a reputation damaged by an environmental scandal, for example, can be disastrous to a company’s bottom line.”

Further, CEO reputation can make a critical impact on the success and expense required to recruit top talent. “A CEO perceived to be active in CR and environmental issues has impact on recruiting. This reputation should be maximized when building the employer brand or against competitors whose reputations may be weaker,” the study said.

The study also examined the most damaging sources of a bad corporate reputation:

Most Harmful Sources of Bad Corporate Reputation

Lloyd’s Underwrites Ebola Indemnity Coverage

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A new class of insurance is now being offered to address the occupational hazards faced by healthcare workers and first responders who are in jeopardy of contracting blood-borne pathogens such as Ebola, HIV, Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C.

Underwritten by Lloyd’s of London and distributed by Specialty Insurance Advisors, Essential Professional Insurance Coverage (EPIC) is the first such indemnity coverage available to individuals, including administrators who check in patients, doctors and nurses treating patients and patrolmen and women responding to 911 calls. The coverage goes beyond workers compensation and disability insurance to protect these individuals, EPIC said.

According to the Occupational Safety and Hazards Association (OSHA), up to 800,000 needle sticks occur each year, of which 16,000 are likely to be contaminated with HIV. The risk of acquiring Hepatitis B or C from a needle stick is even higher than HIV.

EPIC President Richard Kosinski said in an online interview with Fox Business, “We provide the ability for a health care worker or law enforcement professional to buy very inexpensive coverage in the event they get infected with Ebola, HIV or Hepatitis B or C.

For a nominal amount of 9 per year they can get 0,000 of coverage if the worst case happens and they get infected with Ebola or some other type of blood pathogen.

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While the coverage has been available for more than a year, primarily through unions, to large health care hospitals and other institutions, “We have just announced the ability for an individual to buy a policy,” Kosinski said. Centinela Hospital Medical Center in Inglewood, California was one of the first hospitals in the United States to offer EPIC to its healthcare workers, and the first to add Ebola infection coverage, according to EPIC.

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The plan provides a safety net that can help defray some of the costs, Kosinski explained, adding that otherwise, “No one is going to pay the cost for the average health care worker to be flown by a private jet to a specific CDC facility to get Ebola care.”

How is it possible to write this coverage? “Because this is Lloyd’s of London, which has a 500 year history of writing specialty risks,” Kosinski said.

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“We understand the risk, how to price it correctly and how the claims will be paid out.”