Winter 1999/Volume 30/Number 4 251 Journal of Safety Research, Vol. 30, No. 4, pp. 251–261, 1999 Copyright © 1999 National Safety Council and Elsevier Science Ltd Printed in the USA. All rights reserved 0022–4375/99 $–see front matter PII S0022-4375(99)00020-1 Pergamon An Exploratory Study of Meanings of Risk Control for Long Term and Acute Effect Occupational Health and Safety Risks in Small Business Construction Firms Noni Holmes, Helen Lingard, Zeynep Yesilyurt, and Fred De Munk A qualitative study of employers’ and employees’ meanings of occupational health and safety (OHS) risk control was conducted among a sample of small busi- nesses engaged in the Australian construction industry. Two OHS risks relevant to the construction industry were selected for study. One risk (falls from height) repre- sented an immediate consequence, whereas the other (occupational skin disease) represented a long-term health effect. Meanings of the sources and control for these risks were explored during in-depth interviews. Participants perceived the imme- diate effect, falls from height OHS risk, as being more important in their work- places than the delayed effect, skin disease OHS risk. The risk of falls from height was perceived to be controllable but requiring a great deal of effort to prevent, whereas there was a fatalistic resignation to the risk of occupational skin disease. Meanings of risk control for both occupational skin disease and falls from height focused on individual rather than technological risk controls. Organizational barri- ers to the adoption of technological OHS risk controls in the construction industry were identified. © 1999 National Safety Council and Elsevier Science Ltd Keywords: Small business, construction, occupational health and safety, risk perception, risk control Dr. Noni Holmes completed a Bachelor of Science before working as a medical research technologist at the Cancer In- stitute in Melbourne. She was awarded a Masters of Environ- mental Science, writing her thesis on the relationship between occupational cancer research and its benefit to workers. Noni received her Ph.D. in the field of workplace perceptions of oc- cupational health and safety risk in 1996. She died from breast cancer before taking up this position. Dr. Helen Lingard completed her Ph.D. in the field of be- havior-based safety management. She works as a lecturer in construction management and law in the Faculty of Architec- ture, Building, and Planning, The University of Melbourne. She has also worked as an occupational health and safety (OHS) advisor in the construction industry, where she gained practical experience in managing OHS on large-scale infra- structure construction projects such as the new Hong Kong airport site at Chek Lap Kok and the Tsing Ma Bridge. Zeynep Yesilyurt has a BA (Honors) in Sociology and has nearly completed an MA in Health Studies. Since starting her research career in 1994, Zeynep has mainly worked in women’s health research, with particular emphasis on Non English Speaking Background communities. Zeynep has a special interest in qualitative methodologies and was the Re- search Officer in the current study. Fred De Munk’s major research interests are ecological sustainable development and its implementation strategies in industry. He has also conducted in vitro research into the ef- fects of xenobiotics on skin and bone and this has led to his interest in occupational skin disease. Fred has submitted a Ph.D. in natural resource management and has been involved in teaching environmental management to occupational health and safety students for 10 years.