What can be done to ensure workplace safety of

Shagang group employees

Course Name: 21505
Course Code:

Student Name:
Student Id:

Name of the University: University of Technology Sydney

Executive Summary
The organization where the research was conducted is Shagang Group. Shagang Group deals
in steel products and has its headquarters in China. The research problem that is identified is
that Shagang Group employees are not confident enough regarding the safety procedures
followed by the company. The aim of this report is to find out the ways that can be used to
ensure workplace safety of Shagang Group employees. Two research questions are formulated
in order to fulfill the research aim. First research question is “Why the employees of Shagang
group believes that the safety procedures are not adequate “. Second research question is “What
are the ways to prevent accidents at Shagang Group”. According to the previous researchers,
risk management and risk assessment should be done in the organizations so as to ensure the
safety of the employees. The main findings of the study are that the majority of the respondents
said that they have encountered the safety problems at the workplace. There are a lot of
respondents who said that they don’t have enough knowledge about the ways that can be
adopted during the time of any accidents. Organizations need to provide awareness amongst
the employees regarding the ways that can be adopted during the time of accidents. Further
elaboration has been done in the report regarding the suggestions for the Shagang group.

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Table of Contents
Executive Summary .................................................................................................................... i

1.0 Introduction .......................................................................................................................... 1

1.1 Research questions ........................................................................................................... 1

1.2 Outline of the Study ......................................................................................................... 1

2.0 Literature Review................................................................................................................. 1

3.0 Research Design................................................................................................................... 3

3.1 Research design ................................................................................................................ 3

3.2 Sample size....................................................................................................................... 3

3.3 Data Collection and Data Analysis .................................................................................. 3

3.4 Ethical considerations ...................................................................................................... 3

4.0 Findings................................................................................................................................ 4

4.1 Confrontation with the safety problems ............................................................................... 4

4.2 Safety policies of the organization ....................................................................................... 5

4.3 Awareness of the employees ................................................................................................ 6

5.0 Implications.......................................................................................................................... 7

5.1 Methods of reducing the safety problems ............................................................................ 7

5.2 Amendments in the Safety policies and procedures ............................................................ 8

5.3 Awareness of the employees ................................................................................................ 8

6.0 Conclusion ........................................................................................................................... 9

References ................................................................................................................................ 10

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1.0 Introduction
Ensuring workplace safety of the employees is very necessary so that the employees can work
free mind without any kind of fear. The organization taken into consideration in this report is
Shagang Group Company Limited. The company deals in Steel products and is headquartered
in China (Shagang Group , 2018). Shagang Group was started in 1975. The company has a
remarkable industry in the Steel Industry. The research problem is that the employees at
Shagang Group do not feel much confident regarding the safety procedures of the company.
Workplace safety can be defined as making such policies and procedures that can help in
maintaining the safety of the employees of the organization (Christian, et al., 2009). There is a
need to establish such safety procedures in Shagang Group, which can ensure the workers that
their safety is taken care by the company. Now the question is that what can be done to ensure
workplace safety of the employees of Shagang Group. The aim of this report is to find out the
ways through which the workplace safety of Shagang Group employees can be ensured. This
aim will be fulfilled by solving below mentioned research questions.

1.1 Research questions

1. What are the reasons behind the perception of the employees that the safety procedures are
not adequate at Shagang Group.

2. What can be done to prevent the accidents that can occur at Shagang Group?

1.2 Outline of the Study

The further report constitutes four main sections. First section is of Literature Review. It will
constitute the previous studies done by the researchers on the topic of workplace safety. Second
section is of Research Design. In this section, the sample size taken and the process of
collecting data will be discussed. Ethical considerations will also be discussed in this section.
Next section is of findings. This section will constitute the analyzed data and its interpretation.
Last section is implications section. This section will constitute the ways that the Shagang
Group can practically adopt to enhance the workplace safety of the employees.

2.0 Literature Review

Accidents that occur at the offices can cause a lot of harm to the employees of the organization.
That is why it is very necessary to have preventive measures on time, so as to avoid any serious

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threat to life. Moreover, these accidents also lead to high economic cost. Organizations should
do risk management in order to avoid the probability of the accidents at the workplace (Aven
& Zio, 2018). In order to do risk management, the foremost thing is to do risk assessment. Risk
assessment is a process wherein the potential risks are identified, that can be caused due to the
hazards present in the organization (Stolzer, et al., 2018). After doing risk assessment, the
measures that can be used to reduce the probability of risk needs to be determined. The
foremost thing that needs to be taken care of during the risk management is that the measures
identified should add to the protection provided to the workers. It means that the measures
should increase the protection provided to the staff. It can be said that, organizations should
adopt for risk management as it is very necessary in order to lessen the probability of accidents
at workplace.

Safety of the employees need to be maintained by the organization as well as individuals itself.
Employees themselves need to be cautious enough so that they do not get encountered with
any kind of accidents at workplace. Certain chance of risk is present in every type of
organizations (Hu, et al., 2018). The chances of risk can be reduced but it cannot be eliminated
at all. It is very necessary that the employees take into consideration this limitation and ensure
that own safety. For example, employees can wear gloves and face mask while working on
those machineries or equipment’s that are risky to be worked upon. Furthermore, during
critical and technical works, employees should not show carelessness at any point of time. This
carelessness can cost much to the employees in terms of their health and safety. In this regard,
organizations can contribute as they can provide sessions to the employees regarding how the
employees can themselves ensure their safety at the workplace. Moreover, organizations need
to provide adequate training to the employees before bringing them on the ground. It can be
said that there needs to be the contribution of employees as well as the organization, in order
to ensure workplace safety of employees.

Organizations should adopt health and safety management system in order to ensure the safety
of the members of the organization. This system constitutes policies and procedures designed
keeping in mind the safety of the employees (Álvarez-Santos, et al., 2018). Moreover, in these
systems, organizations try to align the safety aspects with all the business processes. Such
systems at the workplace enables the organization to better identify the risks and hazards
present in the organization. There are several elements of an effective health and safety
management system. The foremost thing is that the support of the leaders should be there. Top
management should be in favor of such systems and provides such resources which are

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necessary for the successful implementation of systems. Moreover, there should be open
communication in the organization. Each and every employee should know the roles and
responsibilities so as to perform efficiently and safely. Another element is to ensure that the
work procedures at the workplace should be safe enough. Another most important element is
that the results of these systems needs to be continuously assessed to ensure that the
organization is achieving the safety goals. It can be said that organizations can have health and
management system for ensuring the safety of its employees.

3.0 Research Design

3.1 Research design
Exploratory research design is used in the study. Exploratory research is done when there is
not enough information already available on the subject matter (Nardi, 2018). Exploratory
research is used in the study as there is a need to investigate more regarding the hazards at
Shagang Group and what can be done to improve the safety of workers.

3.2 Sample size

It is very necessary to choose appropriate sample size as per the study. Sample size is the subset
of the whole population which can represent the whole population (Kretzschmar & Gignac,
2018). The sample size for the study is 30 employees. Sampling frame is employees of Shagang
Group.

3.3 Data Collection and Data Analysis

Primary data is collected for the study by using survey method. Primary data can be defined as
the first hand information which the researcher collects by himself (Blumberg, 2018). The data
is collected in the form of quantitative data. In order to do data analysis, excel is used. Graphical
representation helps in better presentation of the information collected and the readers can
interpret the findings easily. Through excel, various charts will be drawn to interpret the results
easily.

3.4 Ethical considerations

While collecting the data from the Shagang Group employees, various ethical considerations
were also kept in mind. Ethics in the research work can be defined as considering what is wrong
and what is right while conducting the whole process of the research (Kagan, 2018). The
foremost ethical consideration which is followed is that the employees of Shagang Group were
informed about the purpose of the survey before conducting the survey. After that the consent

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of the individual members were taken. The respondents should have their own willingness
regarding filling the questionnaire (Ary, et al., 2018). While conducting the survey for this
study, there wasn’t any kind of force on any employee to fill the survey. Moreover, respondents
were informed that they can withdraw from the survey in the middle of the survey too, if they
feel uncomfortable at any point of time. Respondents were also informed that their individual
responses will not be disclosed to anyone. Privacy and security of the data will be highly taken
care of. Collective responses will be used to analyze the results. Another ethical consideration
which is taken into consideration is that the researchers of previous works have been given
credit of their work. This is done by doing referencing of their work. It can be said that ethical
considerations have been taken care of during the entire research work.

4.0 Findings

4.1 Confrontation with the safety problems

46%

54%

No Yes

Figure 1: Figure depicting the number of employees confronted with the safety problem

From Figure 1, it can be interpreted that 54% of the employees of Shagang Group responded
that they encountered with the safety problems at the workplace. 46% of the respondents said
that they have not encountered any safety problems at the workplace. The reasons of the people
who said that they are confronted with the safety problems are diverse. The foremost reason is
that the employees get confronted with the heat problems while working at the steel making

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plant. These heat problems led to the burns to the employees. These burns can cause huge
damage to the employees and there is a threat on their lives as well. According to the
respondents, another hazard present in the organization is the fire hazard. In the past, there were
instances wherein there was fire in the whole room. There are huge chances that these fire
hazards can harm the people in future too. Furthermore, there are some other hazards as well
because of which the employees got confronted with the safety problems. Sometimes the
temperature of the room becomes too high because of the nature of the work. There were
instances of the fire outages as well. However, Employees still had to do the work during the
urgent requirements. It can be said that the safety problems of at Shagang Group arises because
of the diverse hazards.

4.2 Safety policies of the organization

Strongly disagree
10%

Disagree
13%

Neutral
43%

Agree
30%

Strongly agree
4%

0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45% 50%

Figure 2: Opinion of the employees regarding the statement “Shagang Group has the adequate
safety policies”

From figure 2, it can be interpreted that 10% of the respondents said that the safety policies at
Shagang Group are not adequate enough to ensure safety of the employees. 13% of the
respondents said that they disagree to the statement that “Shagang Group has adequate safety
policies”. 43% of the respondents gave a neutral response. They neither agree nor disagree with
the statement that “Shagang Group has adequate safety policies”. 30% of the people agree that
the company has adequate safety policies. 4% of the people strongly agree that the company

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has adequate safety policies. It can be interpreted that there are a number of respondents who
believes that the adequacy of the safety policies should be enhanced.

There can be diverse reasons behind the perceptions of the employees that the safety policies
are not adequate. In general, the employees believe so, when the safety policies of the
organization do not give a sense of commitment towards the health and safety of the employees
(Lundgren & McMakin, 2018). Moreover, the employees also believe so, when the safety
policies are not made keeping in mind the safety concerns relating to the employees. Employees
can also have a perception that the responsibilities of the employer regarding the safety
concerns of the employees are not adequately fulfilled by the company. Employees can also
believe that there is a gap between the policy planning and policy implementation. Sometimes,
the employees also feel the inadequacy of the safety policies when the work practices that are
followed in the organization are not safe enough. In case of Shagang Group, the employees
feel that there is no fencing around the dangerous areas. The employees also believe that the
protective equipment’s owned by the company are not complete enough. Hence, there can be
diverse reasons behind the perception of the employees that the safety policies of the company
are not adequate enough.

4.3 Awareness of the employees

Strongly disagree
4%

Disagree
10%

Neutral
36%

Agree
40%

Strongly agree
10%

0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45%

Figure 3: Opinion of the respondents regarding the statement “I have the knowledge of what
can be done during the accidents”.

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From Figure 3, it can be interpreted that 4% of the people disagree to the statement that they
have the knowledge regarding the ways that can be adopted during the accidents. 10% of the
people said that they disagree to the statement that they have the knowledge regarding the ways
that can be adopted during the accidents. 36% of the people gave a neutral response to the
statement “I have the knowledge of what can be done during the accidents”. 40% of the people
agree that they have knowledge regarding the ways that lead to protection during the incidents
of accidents. 10% of the people strongly agree that they have knowledge regarding the ways
that can be adopted at the time of any accidents. There is still a huge chunk of employees at
Shagang group who do not have knowledge regarding the ways that can be adopted during the
accidents. The knowledge regarding the safety aspects is very necessary because there occurs
a chaos at the time of accidents. Employees themselves should know the ways to ensure their
own safety. It can be said that there is a need of providing knowledge to the employees
regarding the safety aspects.

5.0 Implications

5.1 Methods of reducing the safety problems

Shagang Group management should lay focus on the hazards that are causing the risks. The
foremost reason behind the safety problem of the employees was heat problems. Shagang
Group needs to replace the old machineries with the new and updated machineries which can
produce less heat at the workplace. The machineries which are too old often generates more
heat (Chatterjee & S3g Technology, 2018). If these machineries got replaced once in every
fifteen years, then the heat problem at the workplace can be solved. Moreover, there should be
regular service of all the machineries and other equipment’s at the workplace (Su, et al., 2018).
Regular service will ensure that the machines generates less heat. Another thing that the
Shagang Group can do in order to reduce safety problems is that the fire proof jackets can be
made ready to use in the organization. Employees working on dangerous machines can wear
those jackets for their safety. Furthermore, gloves and mask should be made compulsory for
the employees so as to prevent them in case any fire from the machineries. The fire proof
jackets, gloves and masks can prevent the employees from burns in case of fire. It can be said
that the Shagang Group needs to incorporate new and updated machineries, and the fire proof
jackets should be ready in order to be utilized during danger.

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5.2 Amendments in the Safety policies and procedures
Shagang group needs to update the safety policies of the organization. The policies should be
amended in such a manner that it provides commitment to the employees regarding their health
and safety (Jain, et al., 2018). Moreover, the safety policies should be framed in such a manner
that the focus of these policies remain on the improved health and safety of the workers. The
old policies of the Shagang Group should be modified keeping in mind the increasing need of
health and safety of the employees at Shagang Group. Moreover, the gap between the policy
planning and implementation should be reduced. All the things that will be mentioned in the
new policies should be implemented as the way the policy is. Those work practices should be
adopted which are safe enough for the employees of the organization. For example, there
should be proper fencing all around the dangerous areas so as to keep the employees away from
any kind of danger. It can be said that Shagang Group needs to do amendments in the safety
policies and procedures so as to ensure the safety of the employees.

5.3 Awareness of the employees

Organizations can adopt to increase the awareness of the employees regarding the ways that
can be adopted to ensure safety during accidents. Various workshops can be conducted in the
organization wherein the employees can be educated regarding the methods that can be adopted
to lessen the impact of the accidents on the employees’ health (Rakoff, et al., 2018). In these
workshops, the information regarding the signs of dangers should also be told to the employees.
These signs can help the employees in identifying the risk at the earliest, thereby avoiding the
chances of danger. Moreover, the employees should also be provided with adequate training
regarding their work (Rakoff, et al., 2018). They should also be provided the insights regarding
the potential dangers of the job. After that, employees should be told the incidents of the past
and how to deal with them effectively. The training sessions need to be ongoing in the
organization. This is because the employees need regular counselling regarding the ways that
can be adopted during the accidents. Furthermore, the training should be much more elaborated
for the new employees of the organization. These practical measures can be adopted by the
Shagang group management to increase the awareness of the employees.

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6.0 Conclusion
The aim of this report was to find out the ways that can be used to ensure workplace safety of
Shagang Group employees. In order to fulfill this aim, two research questions were formulated.
First research question is to find out the reasons behind the perception of the employees that
the safety procedures are inadequate. Second research question is to find out the corrective
measures that can be used to prevent the occurrence of the accidents at Shagang Group.
Literature says that the employees also need to be careful enough while working on the
dangerous machines. The employers and the employees both are responsible for maintaining
health and safety at workplace. The findings depict that the reasons of the employees behind
such a perception are diverse. Moreover, the majority of the respondents get encountered with
the safety problem at Shagang Group. There is a major chunk of respondents who believe that
the don’t have enough knowledge regarding what can be done during accidents. Shagang
Group should update the machineries and the equipment’s to the latest version so as to reduce
the safety problem at Shagang Group. Moreover, proper training needs to be given to the
employees so that they can prevent themselves during accidents. Hence. It can be concluded
that the employers and the employees both can work towards improving the health and safety
of the employees.

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