Toolbox talks (TBTs) have shown potential to improve occupational health and safety in the construction industry.
Studies indicate that TBTs can increase knowledge of safety practices and compliance with safety standards. One study found that delivering TBTs via text message to residential construction supervisors improved adherence to safety meeting standards by 19.39% (Rice et al., 2022).
Another study demonstrated that including narratives and discussion questions in TBTs significantly increased knowledge gain and training impact, particularly for less experienced workers (Eggerth et al., 2018). Research also suggests that participatory, context-driven TBTs can improve workplace safety practices (Kaskutas et al., 2016).
However, results are not always consistent across all safety aspects. For instance, one study found that while TBTs significantly influenced knowledge of personal protective equipment use, they did not significantly affect attitudes or behaviours (Herlina et al., 2020).
Overall, these studies indicate that well-designed TBTs can be an effective tool for improving occupational safety in construction.
