As a society, we like to believe that we are better and more enlightened than those that went before us. The facts tell a different, unpalatable story.
Man’s inhumanity to his fellow man remains unchanged. We are still fighting wars over land, religion, and resources. Poor nutrition and hunger results in the death of more than three million people each year. Millions of citizens in some of the world’s richest nations still live below the poverty line. Many have no homes. And we still treat as different – less – those with a different skin colour, gender and sexual preference.
Sadly, for all its claims to the contrary, progress in the demolition business is equally scarce and hard to find.
Yes, we have better equipment than our forebears. Cloth caps and donkey jackets have given way to hard hats and high vis’ vests. And in the field of training and competence, we have more cards than a Las Vegas croupier.
But demolition workers still die on site; and many are maimed at a frequency that has barely changed over the years.
Mental health issues within the sector are still rife, even though demolition contractors have almost universally pinned their colours to the “mental health awareness” mast. Suicides among workers are still almost four times the national average.
Demolition remains a “last resort” career that an increasingly small number of young people are willing to pursue.
Demolition sites are still dangerous and toxic places in which to work and where great swathes of the population – women, ethnic minorities, the disabled, the LGBTQ community – are hugely under-represented. Those sites are managed using a disproportionate amount of stick and very little in the way of carrot.
The corruption that we all hoped was a thing of the past clings to the industry like a parasite. Companies and their owners are still caught out – often with catastrophic results – by shifts and downturns in the economy.
The industry is still looked down upon by the wider construction sector, even though demolition could teach them a thing or two in many key areas. And demolition workers are still seen as somehow “less” than their counterparts on construction.
The industry remains entirely misunderstood by the general public, many of whom still believe that demolition began and ended with Fred Dibnah and that contractors just pitch up and “blow stuff up” as and when they see fit.
The demolition industry has, unquestionably, made some giant leaps in terms of technology, training and the environment. But have we truly progressed? Has the industry needle really moved?
Sadly, I fear the answer is no. Not really.
This article was first published on Demolition Insider together with some bonus reading.
