Abstract

Contractor safety performance in multi-contract industrial projects remains a persistent challenge due to the complexity of organizational structures, dispersed workforces, and overlapping responsibilities. Traditional compliance-based safety approaches often fail to address systemic risks arising from multi-tier contracting arrangements, dynamic project environments, and variable contractor capabilities. This proposes a governance-oriented conceptual model that links organizational structures, decision authority, and oversight mechanisms to contractor safety outcomes, providing a structured framework for understanding and managing safety in multi-contractor contexts. The model conceptualizes contractor safety performance as a function of governance inputs, operational controls, and feedback mechanisms. Governance inputs include clarity of roles, decision rights, and contractual obligations, which establish the structural and procedural foundation for accountability. Operational controls encompass risk assessment, hazard mitigation practices, and reporting systems, while feedback mechanisms facilitate learning, continuous improvement, and performance monitoring. The model emphasizes the importance of integration across owner organizations, primary contractors, and subcontractors, recognizing that safety outcomes are contingent on effective communication, oversight, and alignment of objectives throughout the contractual hierarchy. Key assumptions underlying the framework include the dynamic, context-dependent nature of safety risks, the role of data-driven monitoring and reporting, and the critical influence of organizational culture and leadership commitment on contractor compliance and proactive behavior. By identifying mediating mechanisms such as trust, perceived fairness, and responsiveness to feedback, the model highlights pathways through which governance practices influence both perceptual and behavioral safety outcomes. Additionally, moderating factors—including project phase, contractor experience, and workforce characteristics—are incorporated to account for variability in performance across complex industrial projects. This governance-oriented model contributes to safety management literature by bridging organizational theory, governance frameworks, and practical contractor oversight, providing actionable insights for project owners, safety professionals, and policymakers. By emphasizing structured oversight, accountability, and continuous learning, the framework supports the design of multi-layered safety governance systems that enhance contractor performance, mitigate risks, and improve overall project safety outcomes in multi-contract industrial environments.