The number of construction-sector accidents stood at 778 in the first quarter, down 23% from the 1,010 reported in the same period last year, Permanent Secretary for Economic Development & Labour Matthew Cheung says.

The accident rate per 1,000 workers also dropped - 22.3%, from 60.6 to 47.1.

Speaking at the Construction Safety Day Award Presentation Ceremony today, Mr Cheung said he was shocked to discover the accident rate per 1,000 workers had hit a record high of 374.4 in 1989, which meant that a construction site was just as risky as a battlefield.

"Compared with 1989, the rate has now dropped by a hefty 87.4%. This means that the chance of injury has reduced sharply from more than 33% to less than 5%," he said.

He stressed there was always room for improvement and stakeholders must continue to join hands to bring the accident toll down further.

The Labour Department has strengthened co-operation with the Hong Kong Association of Property Management Companies and has put in place a new reporting mechanism to acquire maintenance schedules of estates and commercial buildings as early as possible for follow-up actions on safety matters.

11 contractors barred from tendering

Mr Cheung said any work accident inevitably results in an lose-lose situation. For the injured employees and their families, it means human suffering, loss of earning capacity or even loss of lives.

To employers, work accidents incur huge costs. These translate into compensation payments, lower staff morale, failure to meet project deadlines because of work re-arrangements and a negative impact on their corporate image.

He added a contractor will risk being barred from tendering for public works projects because of its poor safety performance. So far, 11 contractors have been barred from tendering this year.

According to International Labour Organisation figures, the financial loss arising from work accidents and occupational diseases amounted to 4% of the global gross domestic product.

In terms of employees' compensation, 6,548 cases involving the construction sector were reported to the Labour Department in 2002. Of these, 6,148 cases with sick leave exceeding three days and 29 fatal cases had been settled as of last month.

More than $300 million was payable as compensation to the injured employees or dependants of the deceased employees. The number of work days lost amounted to well over 400,000. On average, each construction accident resulted in nearly $49,000 as compensation and productivity loss of about 66 work days.

Mr Cheung urged the Government, relevant organisations, employers and employees to work together to enhance safety performance.

On occupational safety and health performance over the past few years, he said there has been sustained and marked improvement. The number of occupational injuries dropped 10% from 47,023 in 2002 to 42,022 last year, while the accident rate per 1,000 workers dropped 8.1%, from 19.2 to 17.7.