Case study: Making zero harm a South African reality
Bettermen Dlamini (left) and Dennis Denyschen (right) use tip rock removers at Union mine. They invented this tool to eliminate hand injuries
Anglo American South Africa is committed to working with government, unions and the industry to find common solutions to achieving the highest levels of safety in mining. In 2008, it initiated the Tripartite Safety Summit and – in an unprecedented collaborative effort – senior representatives of Anglo American, the Department of Mineral Resources and the National Union of Mineworkers met to achieve zero harm.
The summit concluded with a call from all parties to work together to find solutions to health and safety challenges within Anglo American and the broader South African industry. A steering group was set up to examine the outcomes of the summit – transforming blame cultures into partnerships, dealing with discrimination, capacity-building, aligning incentives, implementing best practice and aligning standards.
The team also embarked on best practice study tours locally and abroad to gain fresh insights into making zero harm a South African reality. These visits gave members a deeper understanding of the key drivers for zero harm, including connectedness and relationship-building, an aligned approach to standards, capacity-building, contractor integration and a solid belief that zero harm is possible.
An important outcome is the ‘Declared Future for Anglo American South African mines for the year 2012’. This requires zero fatalities and zero lost-time injuries driven by, among others, visible felt leadership, care and respect for workers and communities and a united front on the part of Anglo American management, employees, unions and government.
It is out of this declared future that priority actions have been derived. These are stakeholder engagement, capacity-building, an aligned approach to standards and extended visible felt leadership.