Abstract This study explores the relational conditions that influence contractors’ safety management on multi-employer worksites, with a focus on the Swedish mining industry. Using interviews, observations, and informal conversations, the study examines how the blurred boundaries between client companies and contractors shape safety practices. The findings show that safety management is influenced not only by formal contractual relationships but also by the relational dynamics between social actors, where power asymmetries and informal networks play a significant role. The research highlights how these relational conditions – defined by the positions and symbolic authority of the actors involved – impact coordination, communication, and accountability regarding safety. Contractors, often struggling to assert their expertise and legitimacy within the relational field, face challenges in aligning safety practices with client companies’ priorities. The study concludes that to improve safety management on multi-employer worksites, it is essential to address the relational dynamics between contractors and client companies, moving beyond formal agreements to consider the underlying power relations and position-takings that shape safety practices.
Magnus Nygren (Thu,) studied this question.