About the survey
The Queensland Mining Industry Safety Reporting Survey aims to independently survey workers in Queensland's coal mining and mineral mining and quarrying industries to better understand safety reporting practices and to drive potential improvements to safety and health.
The survey is driven by the Queensland Coal Mining Board of Inquiry finding that, "an extensive study undertaken by CMSHAC on reporting culture in coal mines would benefit the industry in Queensland” (Finding 91) and its recommendation that, “as part of carrying out its functions under section 76A of the Act, CMSHAC considers including within its 5-year Strategic Plan activities that will facilitate improvements in the reporting culture in Queensland coal mines” (Recommendation 28).
The survey was adapted by the Commissioner for Resources Safety and Health from the safety culture survey tool that was developed by Safer Together as a workforce engagement tool to provide managers and supervisors in the oil and gas industry with information about the overall safety attitude/feeling of a team, department, and organisation. It is supported by the Coal Mining Safety and Health Advisory Committee and the Mining Safety and Health Advisory Committee.
Methodology and approach
In response to the Queensland Coal Mining Board of Inquiry finding and recommendation, CMSHAC and MSHAC established tripartite working groups of experienced industry personnel to collaborate with the Commissioner’s office in the development of the survey.
The survey questions were designed to understand a respondent’s perceptions of the behaviours of members of their team, supervisors and senior leaders in relation to safety reporting culture.
To ensure the robustness and suitability of questions across sectors and company hierarchies, the Commissioner’s office ran cognitive testing sessions at coal mines, mineral mines, and a quarry in February 2023.
Message from the Commissioner
One of my key messages as Commissioner for Resources Safety and Health is that a positive safety reporting culture is an essential element of any safe and healthy workplace and requires a commitment to engagement, learning and continuous improvement.
A positive safety reporting culture promotes the reporting and investigation of incidents to identify any hazards or near misses. This includes the verification of hazard controls and the cross pollination of learnings across work areas, sites and industries. This requires genuine engagement and communication and a commitment to learning. However, as an industry, we currently rely on anecdotal evidence to inform us about the current state of the safety reporting culture in Queensland’s coal mines, mineral mines and quarries.
The Queensland Mining Industry Safety Reporting Survey will provide a baseline of the safety reporting behaviours exhibited at mine and quarry sites across the state, and collect important data on the reasons why people do, or do not, report high potential incidents, near misses and early warning signs.
This survey will provide valuable insight into the safety reporting culture in Queensland and will help to identify any opportunities and barriers to drive further research and continuous improvement by implementing sustainable solutions.
I urge every coal mine, mineral mine and quarry worker in Queensland to complete the survey. It will help to draw a picture of the current safety reporting culture across our industry.
Kate du Preez
Commissioner for Resources Safety and Health
Last updated: 27 Apr 2023