Predicting the relationship between safety climate and safety performance in cement industry

BACKGROUND: As cement industries have remarkably affected the economy of producer's countries, one of the main concerns of these industries is to prevent accidents and related costs. OBJECTIVE: The present study investigates the relationship between the safety climate and safety performance with the moderating role of safety knowledge and the mediating role of safety motivation in the cement industry. METHODS: Data were collected from 230 Iranian employees of the cement industry using a safety climate and performance questionnaire. The relationships between variables and analysis of the collected data were tested using structural equation modeling. RESULTS: The results indicated that the safety climate had a positive effect on safety performance in the cement industry. Moreover, management's commitment to safety was positively or negatively related to the social support and production pressure. There was either a positive and negative relationship between social support and production pressure of safety knowledge and safety motivation, respectively. CONCLUSION: The integrative model suggested that it was important to promote the safety knowledge at all organizational levels to develop spontaneous activities and raise safety in the intended organization.