The relationship of safety management practices and safety behaviour among employees in a palm oil mill

In Malaysia, the agriculture, forestry, logging and fishery sector recorded the second higher number of victims in relation to occupational accidents after the manufacturing sector followed by the construction sector in 2017. This alarming statistic call for the necessity to examine the effectiveness of safety management practices, which aim to reduce occupational accidents through the establishment of positive work behaviour. This study is confined to a palm oil mill located in Besout, Perak. Six facets of safety management practices namely management commitment, safety training, and worker’s involvement, safety communication and feedback, safety rules and procedures and safety promotion policies were studied in relation to two (2) components of safety behaviour (safety compliance and safety participation). A total of 82 sets of questionnaires were distributed among employees in the palm oil mill. The results of this study demonstrated the validity and reliability of six facets of safety management practices on safety compliance and safety participation. Direct effects of safety management practices on components of safety behaviour (safety compliance and safety participation) were also identified. The results of this study revealed that safety training, workers’ involvement, safety communication and feedback, safety rules and procedures and safety promotion policies were important factors to predict safety behaviour. These findings may enhance management’s understanding of employees’ safety behaviour and how it can be influenced.