Tauranga building sites will be targeted during surprise safety inspections next month in a bid to cut the number of construction accidents.
The Labour Department is concerned at the rising number of injuries on construction sites around the country and planned to send teams of health and safety inspectors to Tauranga
building sites to raise awareness about people's duty to take all possible steps to ensure the safety of workers.
Steve Worsley, the Department of Labour's Tauranga team leader, said the current accident fatality and injury rates were tragic and unacceptable.
ACC statistics showed that injuries in the construction industry cost $25 million last year.
"Despite the good work and participation in local initiatives by many within the industry ... the number of injuries on New Zealand construction sites continues to rise," he said.
Mr Worsley said that accidents and injuries in the workplace had a significant impact on the productivity of a business.
"The direct impact upon the victims, their families and colleagues is immeasurable ... so it makes good business sense to ensure everyone working on a construction site goes home safely at the end of the working day."
During the visits, information and advice would be provided to encourage firms to lift their performance.
Firms that did not comply or were using unsafe work practices would have action taken against them.
New Zealand Certified Builders Association chairman Richard Merrifield said the organisation was reviewing industry safety standards.
"It is a decision they [workers on sites] make themselves to make shortcuts ... you take a horse to water but can't make it drink," he said.
Mr Merrifield said next month's visits did not seem a lot different to what the Labour Department was already doing but he welcomed the reinforcement of safety standards.
"People who are doing the building should be upholding the safety standards."
