But what is HRM? (A LABORER VIEW FROM A BUILDING SITE)
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| Title: "CSCEC construction team working on site — people are the backbone of every project |
Introduction
I have worked in the construction and HSE industry, in my own country, Sri Lanka as well as in Middle East and in Bosnia for more than thirteen years. In these thirteen years, I had dealt with people day in day out. But I never took the time to think what it is, formally, "manage people". Studying this module on People and Organizations has made me realize how important HRM is not only in office but at each site I have been.
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| Title: "Construction workers on a Sri Lankan infrastructure project — HRM starts on the ground |
HRM in Construction Scenario
Definition of HRM as per Armstrong (2020) states that it is a strategic and coherent approach to managing people in organizations; their development and their well-being. While I was reading the definition I found it very suitable for the construction context. According to the World Bank (2025), Sri Lanka's economy grew by 5% in 2024, driven largely by a construction-led rebound, with thousands of workers employed on major infrastructure projects; yet people are still treated as variable cost rather than a valuable asset by many organizations.
Beer et al., (1984) presented the Harvard model of HRM where they stated four key outcomes which are commitment, competence, congruence and cost effectiveness. Based on my experience, having worked in many construction companies in Sri Lanka and abroad as well, including my current position in China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC); I believe that all four of these directly relate to performance in the site work. When people feel appreciated their productivity is increased and so do the safety, otherwise nothing seems good with people's conditions.
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| Figure 1: The Harvard Model of HRM — Four Key Outcomes (Beer et al., 1984) |
Henderson (2017) stated that people management means all the decisions and actions which concerns with the members of the organization. This seems to directly relate to my experience as a people manager in construction sites. All my safety briefings, toolbox talks and warning letters are part of people management.
Conclusion
HRM is not just for academicians; it's what I deal with every day on a building site. With more foreign companies investing in construction in Sri Lanka and the rapid growth of the industry; organizations need to be more conscious in realizing that workers are a critical asset to the organization, rather than a mere cost; and that is what leads an organization from a good to a great position.
References
Armstrong, M. (2020) Armstrong's Handbook of Human Resource Management Practice. 15th edn. London: Kogan Page.
Beer, M., Spector, B., Lawrence, P., Quinn Mills, D. and Walton, R. (1984) Managing Human Assets. New York: Free Press.
Henderson, I. (2017) Human Resource Management for MBA and Business Masters. 3rd edn. London: CIPD.
World Bank (2025) Sri Lanka Development Update 2025. Available at: https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/srilanka/publication/sri-lanka-development-update-2025 (Accessed: 31 March 2026).
How do weather conditions affect labourers’ work?
ReplyDeleteThank you Iresha! Great question! Weather conditions have a huge impact on construction workers — particularly in Sri Lanka where extreme heat and monsoon rains are common. High temperatures cause heat stress, fatigue and dehydration, directly affecting productivity and safety. Heavy rain creates slippery surfaces and halts certain activities like concrete pouring. From an HRM perspective, managing weather-related risks requires proper work scheduling, adequate welfare facilities and clear safety procedures — all of which are part of good work design. Unfortunately many smaller contractors in Sri Lanka do not have formal policies to address these conditions.
DeleteSupervisors or managers of construction sites often claim credit for the work done by laborers or junior employees.This is one of the reasons I think employees at mid and below levels not identified as an asset
ReplyDeleteThank you Sampath! You have raised a very real and important point. Credit-taking by supervisors is unfortunately common in construction — and it directly undermines worker motivation and commitment. When workers feel their contributions go unrecognized or are claimed by others, engagement collapses. This is exactly why transparent performance recognition systems matter — where individual contributions are acknowledged at every level, not just supervisory level. HRM has a critical role to play in making this happen."
DeleteLooking at Human Resource Management from a laborer’s point of view highlights how important it is for HR practices to be understood at every level of an organization, not just in offices or management circles. On a building site, HRM is often experienced through safety, fair treatment, wages, communication, and working conditions. It shows that HRM is not just policies and systems, but how people are actually managed, supported, and valued in real work environments. This kind of ground-level view adds real depth to the understanding of HRM.
ReplyDeleteThank you Janith! You have captured exactly what I was trying to convey. HRM is often taught and discussed at a theoretical level — but for a construction worker, HR is not a policy document. It is whether their supervisor treats them with respect, whether their wages are paid on time, whether someone listens when they raise a safety concern. That gap between HR theory and site reality is what motivated me to write this blog. The workers who build our roads, bridges and buildings deserve the same quality of people management as any office employee — and closing that gap starts with understanding HR from the ground up, not just from the top down."
DeleteInteresting perspective! It clearly highlights HRM from a laborer’s point of view, showing how it directly impacts everyday work experience. Do you think involving employees more in HR decisions could improve trust and make HR practices more effective?
ReplyDeleteThank you Ashan! Absolutely — worker involvement in HR decisions is one of the most underutilised tools in Sri Lanka's construction sector. When workers have a voice in decisions that affect them — shift patterns, welfare facilities, safety procedures — they feel valued and ownership of those decisions increases. Beer et al. (1984) identified employee influence as a core component of effective HRM for exactly this reason. On multinational sites I have worked on, even simple practices like allowing workers to raise concerns in morning briefings or having a suggestion system on site made a measurable difference to engagement and trust. The challenge in construction is that the industry has traditionally operated on a top-down command structure — changing that requires a deliberate and consistent commitment from leadership at every level.
DeleteThis post gives a great explanation of how HRM is important even in construction work. It is interesting to see how people management happens every day on building sites through leadership and communication. What do you think is the biggest HRM challenge in the construction industry today?
ReplyDeletethank you madavi. Retention is arguably the most pressing challenge right now. Sri Lanka's construction boom is creating demand faster than the industry can develop skilled workers — and once experienced people leave for the Gulf or other markets, that knowledge walks out permanently. Firose et al. (2025) highlight how competitive labour markets force organisations to rethink how they attract and retain talent beyond just wages. Without structured career pathways and genuine development opportunities on site, construction will continue losing its best people to industries that invest more visibly in their workforce.
DeleteA very effective application of HRM theory to construction practice. The use of Armstrong (2020) and the Harvard model helps clearly bridge academic concepts with real-world site management experience.
ReplyDeleteAgreed — and the Harvard model is particularly useful in this context because it refuses to separate people outcomes from organisational outcomes. The four Cs — commitment, competence, congruence and cost-effectiveness — are not soft HR metrics. On a construction site, they translate directly into safety performance, productivity and project delivery. The theory holds up because it was always designed to describe what good management looks like in practice, not just in principle.
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