Safety management practices and safety performance among pesticides industry workers in Port Klang

The pesticide manufacturing industry is a high-risk sector due to workers’ frequent exposure to hazardous chemicals, which increases the likelihood of occupational injuries, poisoning, and long-term health effects. Despite the presence of occupational safety regulations in Malaysia, chemical-related incidents continue to occur, indicating weaknesses in workplace safety management. This study aimed to examine the relationship between safety management practices, specifically management commitment and safety training (independent variables), and safety performance, measured through safety knowledge, safety motivation, and safety compliance (dependent variables), among pesticide manufacturing workers in Port Klang, Malaysia. A quantitative cross-sectional research design was employed. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire administered to 55 pesticide manufacturing workers involved in chemical handling, production, packaging, and related operations. The data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS), including descriptive statistics, Spearman’s rho correlation analysis, and multiple linear regression to determine the relationships between the independent and dependent variables. The findings revealed that both management commitment and safety training had significant positive relationships with safety knowledge, safety motivation, and safety compliance. Management commitment emerged as the strongest predictor of safety performance, indicating that leadership involvement, enforcement of safety policies, and provision of safety resources strongly influence workers’ safe behavior. Safety training was also found to significantly improve workers’ hazard awareness, motivation to work safely, and adherence to safety procedures. These findings highlight the importance of strengthening safety leadership and training programmes to improve safety performance and reduce chemical-related risks in pesticide manufacturing workplaces.