Establishing a positive safety culture in rubber manufacturing sector: human factors

Abstract

Safety and health in the rubber products manufacturing sector has been a neglected subject, though this sector is still a major foreign exchange contributor to the national economy in Sri Lanka, with significant contribution of Rs 72.3 billion in 2008. The rubber industry in the Sri Lanka employs many thousands of people and as it is a heavy industry, it poses a number of safety and health risks to workers employed in that sector. Occupational safety and health concerns in rubber manufacturing facilities have always been and continue to be of the utmost importance. Often the impact of serious workplace injuries overshadows the damage associated with illnesses which may be linked to workplace exposures. Thus, establishing of a positive safety culture is most critical in rubber manufacturing environments with a high risk of health and safety concerns. The cause analysis for failings related to safety culture in rubber manufacturing sector are varied and far reaching; with each issue coming into play at one critical point in time. However, these weaknesses include human and other factors such organisational, systems and processes etc. where majority of failures come under the category of human factors. Thus, understanding of these human aspects is crucial to establish and nurturing a safety culture that suits the organisation and the individuals within it. This paper therefore aims to investigate human factors which contribute towards establishing a positive safety culture in rubber manufacturing sector. A comprehensive literature review and preliminary study were used as the research methodology for this paper. Key words; safety culture, definitions of safety culture, components of safety culture and way to establishing a good safety culture in rubber manufacturing sector were used to search the literature. Further, semi structured interviews were carried out with the industrial experts who are in charge of the concerned areas and with few shop floor level workers who are directly involved in production process. Research findings illustrated that yet, like in any other employment sector, workers in the rubber industry run an equal if not higher risk of being injured as a result of the type of work they do. Due to management and worker ignorance and rubber products manufacturing chemicals and bad work practices in some factories, serious hazards have been created and many accidents have occurred. Research findings illustrated that establishing a positive safety culture is about more than removing hazards and institutionalising safety procedures. It is about working with people of the organisation to change their attitudes, behaviours and thoughts, and improve their situational awareness. Research findings further illustrated that two key aspects under human factors to be considered when developing a safety culture in this sector namely; Psychological aspects and Behavioural aspects. These two aspects are inter-related where if something happens in one aspect it will influence the other aspect. Thus, each organisation needs to consider these aspects in establishing a positive safety culture that suits the organisation and the individuals within it. The finding of this research will be a guideline to propose a better working condition so that the safety culture can be created.