Perception of Drug Abuse on Productivity of Construction Site Workers in Minna, Niger State

Abstract

The prevalence of drug and alcohol abuse globally has become a matter of concern to organisations globally. Organisations such as construction industries constitute the majority of work-related drug abusers worldwide. These drugs when misused or abused could bring about adverse psychological and behavioural changes that hampered productivity on sites. This research aims to investigate the perception of drug abuse on the productivity of construction site workers in Minna, Niger state. A quantitative research approach was adopted for the study through a self-administered structured questionnaire. The data gotten were analysed using descriptive statistics which included frequencies, percentages, mean item scores, relative important index (RII) and graphical presentations. Findings from the study revealed that the most negative effect of drug abuse on construction sites which plays a negative impact on workers’ productivity are workers inability to follow instructions, carelessness, violence on sites and friction among workers with mean scores of 3.84, 3.80, 3.55 and 3.53 respectively. The study also discovered that very little attention is given by the construction industry (regarding employee drug testing, the setting of anti-drug policy and awareness programme) to curb drug abuse on site. Based on these findings, the paper recommended that anti-drug policies should be set up and enforced on sites. Additionally, the industry should constantly create awareness about the negative impact of drug abuse on the users with a bid to foster labour productivity on construction sites.