The Swedish Dream: A Safe Place to Work A Qualitative Study Revealing the Challenges with Health and Safety Work within a Swedish Construction Firm

Abstract

Employers within the Swedish construction industry are required by law to engage in Health and Safety work. Health and safety work is in turn, the practical activities employers engage in to achieve compliance with work-environment laws and regulations. This paper seeks to reveal potential challenges with engaging in health and safety work, and in particular investigate how these challenges unfold within construction. A qualitative study was conducted based upon one case study of one Swedish construction company, including 20 deep-interviews and three observations. The respondents include HR-partners, health and safety representatives and line managers. Strategy-as-Practice (SaP) was used as a theoretical framework for analyzing the empirical data. The three concepts within the SaP framework; practice, praxis and practitioners helped us understand the challenges with health and safety work. The empirical findings yielded different challenges an employer face in terms of health and safety. The concept of strategic human resource management (SHRM) was reproduced as being the main issue, influencing how the health and safety work is carried out today within the company and hence the firm's ability to comply with stipulated Swedish laws and regulations.