Abstract:
Employee safety practice is a function of safety management systems operating within the
organizational safety culture. Organizations with positive safety culture are likely to have
employees with good safety practice. Ethiopian electric utility company is engaged with
generation, transmission, distribution and sale of electricity. Employees of this company,
especially the electricians and engineers deal with electricity which is hazardous and
risky. Due to the risks involved in such occupations, the creation and improvement of
safety culture is of paramount importance to inculcate practice of safety to workers.
Therefore, the objective of this study was to assess and determine whether five
organizational safety culture dimensions described herein were predictors of employee
safety practice. A sample size of 240 out of 642 employees was taken. Out of the targeted
240 respondents, only 194 completed the questionnaire representing a response rate of
80.8%. Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) version 20 was used to analyze the
data collected and generate results. Accordingly, descriptive statistics and inferences
were made. It was found out that the current safety culture and safety practices at this
company were inadequate and workers level of compliance to safety was also low. In
summary, from the findings, there is positive correlation on the relationship between
management commitment, safety training, safety communication, accident prevention,
safety involvement, and employee safety practice. Based on coefficients, the adjusted R2
turned 0.323 showing that there is 32.3% of the variation in safety practice which is
accounted for by the combined effects of the five predicators namely; management
commitment, safety training, safety communication, accident prevention, safety
involvement. The major findings of the study indicated that three independent variables
i.e. safety training, safety communication and accident prevention and control measures
influence significantly the compliance to safety practice. But, safety involvement and
management commitment were not significantly influence compliance of employee safety
practice. Therefore, In order to improve employee safety practice maintaining positive
safety culture in the company is advisable.
