Extended overtime and the effect to labour productivity in construction : workers perspective

Abstract

Extended Overtime is a very common scenario in the construction industry in many parts of the world to accelerate the project schedule. Many contractors have been adopting this method in order to make up for the late changes and project delays. But as a Client, we often look into the three most essential criteria which are cost, quality and time in any project undertaken. This study aims to looks into three related objectives which includes the need of extended overtime in the construction, the consequential impact of extended overtime and the overall impact of extended overtime in the construction industry. The study identifies that overtime is needed to accelerate the project and also as a result of change work and shortage of materials. The surveyed workers indicate their tiredness, laziness as they are required to work overtime but are motivated by extra earnings. The study shows three major overall impact of extended overtime on construction performance are premium wages, lower productivity and increase of accidents rates.