Direct and Indirect Workers

The workers at the project site are inducted to perform a specified function and its connected tasks. These workers include supervisors, construction workers, operators and drivers and administrative personnel. For case of estimating, planning, accounting and controlling, the project workers are broadly divided into two categories, namely-direct workers or construction site workers and indirect workers or support manpower.

Direct manpower

These are the construction site workers who can be identified with execution of the client’s permanent works such as those listed in the bill of quantities. The direct manpower constitutes 70-90% of the total manpower employed at the project site.
The direct construction workers include foreman and tradesmen, skilled in various engineering trades, in addition to the semi-skilled and unskilled manpower. The tradesmen electricians, furniture carpenters, metal workers, painters and decorators.
Generally the wages of construction site workers are accounted on a daily or hourly basis, and their activity-wise requirement is computed using the worker’s productivity standards.

Indirect manpower

The indirect manpower covers all supervisors, staff and workers other than those in the direct manpower. It is required to support the direct manpower, both technically and administratively. It generally consists of the project management and administration group.
The indirect manpower is generally accounted on monthly basis with some exceptions like plant and machinery operators who can be accounted on daily wages like direct manpower. Most of the indirect manpower can be assessed while formulating organization of work and can also be estimated using thumb-rules based on experience.

The following are some examples of direct and indirect construction site workers.

a)     A shuttering carpenter employed in the preparation of formwork during construction of the roof slab of a building, which forms a part of the contract, is categorized as a direct worker, while another carpenter engaged in the construction of a worker’s camp (temporary accommodation) for housing labour is an indirect worker. Similarly a welder employed in the manufacture of metallic inserts for fixing in the ground slab of a permanent building is a direct worker, while a welder in the vehicle and plant maintenance and repair workshop is considered an indirect worker.

b)    A vehicle driver of a concrete truck mixer used for transporting ready-mix concrete from site batching plan and the concreting site is classified as direct worker of the ready-mix concrete supply work-centre, whereas a driver of a personnel-carrying vehicle is taken as an indirect worker.

c)     Generally all persons in a project engaged in the administrative duties such as office functioning, supervision, repair and maintenance workshop, and operation and maintenance of utility services are grouped as indirect workers.