Safety culture and safety education in mining industry: Issues and challenges

Nowadays, safety culture is emerging to avoid near-misses, injuries, accidents, and disasters. The Malaysian mining industry is rich in minerals discovered and exploited. However, a literature study on safety culture and safety education among Malaysian mining industries is inadequate. Therefore, the objective of this research is to investigate the safety culture and education in the Malaysian mining industry by focusing on their issues and challenges. Fifteen mining professionals or mining experts were volunteered to involved in this research interview. By applying a thematic analysis, three main themes were created namely: (1) Internal issues (2) External issues and (3) Challenges with six, four, and three sub-themes respectively. The finding showed it is quite challenging to inculcate a safety culture due to the negligence of mine operators to prioritise the culture of safety, especially for small-scale mining operations. In conclusion, this study may be beneficial to government agencies, mine operators, and local governments in emphasizing the need for a strong safety culture and safety education in the mining sector. In the near future, safety culture and safety education can help to develop responsible miners, establish a safe working environment, enhance worker productivity, and reduce the number of mining accidents in Malaysia.