Karlatornet, standing at 246 meters with 74 floors, is the tallest residential building in the Nordic region. Karlatornet has been built by the company Serneke AB from 2017 to this day. During this time, several incidents were reported with heavy construction objects falling on multiple occasions and a worker falling during casting work.
Karlatornet. Credit: A. Salah
The construction industry is a rapidly growing, highly competitive sector in Sweden leading companies to look for workers abroad. According to Arbetsmiljöverket, “foreign workers are generally a vulnerable group at greater risk of being exposed to various forms of cheating and rule violations in working life.”
Behind this flashy building, is an underexposed side of an industry characterised by a demanding work environment and hierarchical structures fostering mental health issues among construction workers. A recent study by the psychology department of the University of Gothenburg confirms that this working environment has a negative effect on the mental health of workers.
Stress and safety at Karlatornet
“The work environment affected our mental well-being,” says “Michal”, a Polish worker employed on the construction site for the building in Gothenburg. In fact, one of the researchers from the study, Kristina Aurelius, states that several work-related stressors have been found to be risk factors for various negative health outcomes such as depression and cardiovascular diseases.
In a report by Arbetsmiljöverket an employer on site claimed that “although it is high tempo, no one should have to stress: if there is someone who feels stressed, it is perceived stress, not actual stress.” Standards for the work environment are primarily set by the Work Environment Act and the regulations by Arbetsmiljöverket on systematic work environment management, addressing both physical and psychological wellbeing.
According to “Michal”, mental health was never part of the conversation: “They have never asked us about mental health. If I had raised my mental illness with my employer, I don’t think anyone would have reacted.’’
Bribery and bullying: part of construction work
Before working for Serneke, “Michal” tells us about his former workplace Uniflex: “I had to leave two other projects as it was not possible for me to work with people due to sheer bullying.” The impact of this behaviour was not limited to mental distress: “This led to physical problems. At some point, I felt that I had a pain in my heart, and it turned out that I had problems in my left heart valve.”
Later we found out that bribery was also common between employers and employees. “Michal” mentions: “I was once threatened by a coordinator. I come from southern Poland, up in the mountains, where there is a very famous type of smoked cheese. He clearly told me that on my next trip to Poland I had to bring a piece of this cheese and strong liquor back to Sweden for him. ‘If you don’t bring me these gifts, you won’t be able to work here anymore,’ he told me.”
The presence of many subcontractors is also a risk factor, as it becomes harder to control the contractor chain and ensure all are complying to the rules and regulations. “Serneke doesn’t have that many employees: they have subcontractors who are affected by enormous demands, short construction times and competing with others to see who can do the job cheapest and fastest,” says Jan Nyqvist, ombudsman at Byggnads.
Jan Nyqvist at Byggnads. Credit: A. Netinder
“Culture of silence”: who is responsible?
“In hindsight, the Karlatornet project has gone relatively well. There is a culture of silence that means that you do not complain at the risk of losing your job,” says Nyqvist.
Henrik Johansson, former site manager of Karlatornet, confirms this “We are in an industry where you hardly talk about mental illness at all. I believe that our most significant obstacle is the cultural challenges present within our working groups.” Language barriers encountered by most foreign construction workers adds another layer to this “culture of silence”. This reinforces their vulnerability as they may not be able to access information and exercise their rights.
Henrik Johansson at Serneke. Credit: A. Netinder
In order to change the culture, education on mental health and training managers to spot employees that are struggling is necessary, says Kristina. Companies must address the lack of structures in place and facilitate the conversations on mental health in line with current regulations. Only then will the construction industry be able to build a culture ensuring the physical and mental wellbeing of workers. “Even though it has been a while since I worked at Karlatornet, those feelings are still in me and those thoughts are still in my head,” Michal concludes.
By Group 1 Aros Salah, Kristofer Andersson, Erin Rizzato and Alice Netinder