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Background
The safety of our employees and the communities in which we operate is an integral part of our business. Our goal is Zero Harm. To this end, we are seeking to create a mindset where people believe it is possible to work injury free - regardless of where they are in the world, what role they undertake or in which business they work.
Across the organisation we manage safety risks through our risk-based HSEC Management Standards and other dedicated systems. The key safety risks include:
- mobile equipment and related interactions, including light vehicles and surface and underground mobile equipment
- underground ground control, encompassing ground stability and ground support
- hazardous materials storage, handling, production, transport, recycling and disposal
- handling and processing of molten materials
- plant and equipment safeguarding and isolation
- working at heights.
The following section discusses our safety performance over the year and highlights some of the key initiatives and subsequent outcomes.
Safety performance
In 2003, we saw a significant improvement in our overall safety performance and a more consistent demonstration of safety as a core value at all levels within the organisation. The leadership team is determined to make Zero Harm a reality, and a critical milestone along the way is the complete elimination of fatalities from our operations.
We deeply regret that three people lost their lives in our controlled operations during the year. While this number of fatalities was significantly lower than last year (13), each death that occurs has a profound impact on our people and their families. Our resolve to attain our goal of zero fatalities is stronger than ever, and we will relentlessly pursue opportunities to achieve this. We are also monitoring and have established processes to learn from significant incidents, including fatalities, that result from activities related to our business but not directly within our management control (i.e., not at controlled operations). For example, employees travelling from their residence to work or an injury that is solely the result of an employee doing personal activities. (The Company broadly aligns reporting criteria with the US Occupational Safety and Health Administration Standards.) During this period, 16 fatalities within this category were reported. Of the 16 fatalities, eight were at joint venture operations managed by our partners, and nine occurred at or around our sites but were not part of our work activities.
Figure 12 presents Company fatalities from 2000/01 to 2002/03. A full list of these incidents is included in Appendix C. Each of these incidents has been thoroughly investigated, utilising our Incident Cause and Analysis Methodology (ICAM). Learnings from these incidents have been shared across the organisation.
During the period, we received five health and safety related fines totalling US$129 372. These are detailed in Appendix D.
A broader injury indicator, which we have called a classified injury, was introduced as the principal safety indicator this year. (A classified injury is any workplace injury that has resulted in the person not returning to their unrestricted normal duties after the day on which the injury was received. Classified injuries are the sum of lost day cases and restricted work cases. The Classified Injury Frequency Rate (CIFR) is the number of classified injuries per million workhours. A 20 per cent reduction in our Classified Injury Frequency Rate, from 6.51 in 2001/02 to 5.18 in 2002/03 was a promising achievement during the period, reflecting efforts dedicated to safety improvement (see Figure 13).
Figure 12.Fatalities (Controlled Operations)2000/01 to 2002/03 |
Figure 13.Classified Injury Frequency Rate*2001/02 to 2002/03 |
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These improvements show encouraging signs that the initiatives undertaken to drive a step change improvement in safety performance are having an impact. Our strategies for safety improvement focus on people and systems, with emphasis on:
- leadership effectiveness
- behaviours and awareness
- rigorous standards and procedures for managing key risks.
To support these focus areas, the following safety initiatives were completed during the year:
- The development of Company-wide network groups for key risks
- The development and introduction of nine Fatal Risk Control Protocols to manage key operational risks (see below)
- Safety leadership training and development programs across all businesses
- The continued introduction of behavioural safety processes
- The introduction of broader lag indicators of safety performance
- The introduction of lead indicators of safety performance within business units.
The safety improvement road map (see Figure 14) is our guide to safety excellence.
The diagram illustrates that, as the maturity of our organisation increases, our safety improvement initiatives become all-encompassing. The most mature organisations understand that the behaviours of their people are the key to their success.
Figure 14.
Safety Improvement Road Map
Safety awareness poster
Fatal Risk Control Protocols
A review of our fatal and high potential incidents over the last ten years identified a number of common risks to our people - risks that require the development of sound practices to eliminate incidents that have the potential to cause fatalities.
Figure 15 provides an analysis of these incidents by cause for the 2002/03 period.
Figure 15.
Significant Incidents by Cause
2002/2003
A significant step we have taken to support our drive to eliminate fatalities from our operations is the development of Fatal Risk Control Protocols in nine key areas.
The areas identified include:
- Light Vehicles
- Surface Mobile Equipment
- Underground Mobile Equipment
- Underground Ground Control
- Hazardous Materials Management
- Molten Materials Management
- Equipment Safeguarding
- Isolation
- Working at Heights.
The Protocols were written by experienced teams drawn from across the Company. These Protocols establish minimum performance expectations for managing risk in each of the key areas (see Case Study No. 6).
Fatal Risk Control Protocols are being implemented across the company