The Health and Safety Authority (HSA) is to form a new unit of construction-site inspectors which will step up random checks for breaches in the safety regulations.
The move comes just days after two workers died on a site in Co Tipperary, crushed by a wall. Meanwhile, SIPTU has called for a separate, self-regulatory safety squad to tour permanently the State's building sites.
"There will be a task force of inspectors from next month," said Minister of State, Mr Tom Kitt. "They will intensify the visits and inspections of building sites and if necessary shut them down."
Currently, HSA inspectors cover many types of workplaces across the State. A spokesman for the authority said under the move a new group of officers would concentrate only on safety in the construction industry.
The deaths in Tipperary brought to 13 the number of people killed on building sites in the Republic so far this year. There were 13 construction site fatalities recorded for the whole of 1997.
Mr Kitt said he was also determined to increase the resources and staff numbers at the HSA. Last year, the authority was allowed to hire another seven workers; Mr Kitt said he would be seeking approval for at least the same number again.
Meanwhile, SIPTU's construction specialist, Mr Eric Fleming, has proposed an internal, building-industry safety squad, made up of union and company representatives. Under this plan, there would be a small levy on every construction project, which would fund a unit of 30 people to tour the State on a permanent basis.
"We want a health and safety partnership between the unions and the companies," Mr Fleming said. "The roving representatives would not just be about detection of breaches in safety, and ear-marking sites for the HSA; it would also be pro-active, training workers in safety awareness."
