Factors associated with unsafe work behaviours in an Iranian petrochemical company: perspectives of workers, supervisors, and safety managers

• Published in: BMC public health Vol. 20; no. 1; pp. 1192 - 13
• Main Authors: Zahiri Harsini, Azita, Ghofranipour, Fazlollah, Sanaeinasab, Hormoz, Amin Shokravi, Farkhondeh, Bohle, Philip, Matthews, Lynda R
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England BioMed Central Ltd 31-07-2020; BioMed Central; BMC
• Subjects: Accidents, Occupational; Behavior; Beliefs, opinions and attitudes; Clinical trials; Content analysis; Dangerous Behavior; Employees; Fatalities; Female; Health aspects; Humans; Industrial hazards; Industry; Injuries; Interviews; Iran; Male; Occupational accidents; Occupational Health; Occupational safety and health; Oil and Gas Industry; Petrochemical industry; Petrochemicals; Petrochemicals industry; Petroleum workers; Public health; Qualitative Research; Research Design; Research Personnel; Researchers; Risk factors; Safe work behaviours; Safety; Safety and security measures; Safety Management; Safety training; Sampling; Studies; Supervisors; Work related injuries; Workers; Working hours; Workplace; Workplace accidents; Iran; Petrochemical industry; Occupational health; Safe work behaviours; Industrial hazards; Workplace accidents
• ISSN: 1471-2458; 1471-2458
• DOI: 10.1186/s12889-020-09286-0

The petrochemical industry is hazardous, in part because of the inherently dangerous nature of the work conducted, and incidents frequently result in significant financial and social losses. The most common immediate cause of incidents and injuries in this industry is unsafe worker behaviour. Identifying the factors encouraging unsafe work behaviours is the first step in taking action to discourage them. The aim of this study was to (a) explore workers', supervisors' and safety managers' attitudes and perceptions of safety in a petrochemical company in Iran, and (b) identify the factors that discourage safe work behaviours.
A qualitative study was conducted by applying the steps described by Graneheim and Lundman (2004). Twenty participants were recruited from an Iranian petrochemical company using a multi-stage approach, with initial purposive sampling followed by snowball sampling to enhance recruitment. Individual face-to-face and semi-structured interviews were conducted to gain an in-depth understanding of factors acting as barriers to safe behaviour. The interviews were recorded and transcribed in Persian and then translated into English. Conventional content analysis was performed.
The main themes emerging from the interviews were: (i) poor direct safety management and supervision; (ii) unsafe workplace conditions; (iii) workers' perceptions, skills and training; and (iv) broader organisational factors.
The findings give insights into practical organisational measures that can be implemented by management to promote workers' commitment to safety and engage in safe behaviours in their workplace.
Iranian Registry of Clinical Trials: IRCT20170515033981N2 . Retrospectively registered 19 June 2018.