OREANDA-NEWS. January 28, 2015. POSCO has made a great leap forward to be the top global company in terms of safety. It has managed to achieve `POSCO the Great with workplaces that are safe and where employees are happy` by creating an industrial environment capable of sustaining a zero-injury record.

POSCO hosted the `2015 POSCO Family Self-directed Safety Spread Festival` at the Gwangyang Steel Mill to promote the staff-oriented activities of the Self-directed Safety Spread and create an industrial environment capable of sustaining a zero-injury record by practicing the basics.

Attended by 560 staff and executive members of POSCO Family, including POSCO and Group companies and outsourcing partners, the event was also broadcast live to Pohang and Gwangyang, with topics covered including: #sharing excellent cases of disaster prevention for better health and safety, #awarding safety prizes, #listening to specially invited guest lecturers, #explaining the purpose of the Safety-directed Safety Spread activity, #announcing execution strategies for disaster prevention for better health and safety, #safety performance together with the company and staff, and #a message from the CEO.

What distinguishes the Self-directed Safety Spread activity from top-down HSE approaches is that at POSCO it is carried out from the bottom-up throughout the organisation. This shows the importance staff themselves place on health and safety and the meticulous way they seek to observe the basics.

POSCO has long put safety as its top priority and, under the umbrella of improving workplace safety, it has undertaken wide-ranging activities, including reorganization, strengthening of preventive actions of unsafe actions, class-based education, and identifying and addressing risk factors. It found through its investigations that both major and minor safety accidents were still occurring due to #low safety level, #lack of habituation and internalization of safety activities, and #lack of sympathy between staff and the company.

That`s why POSCO has pledged that this year would be the first of establishing a sustainable voluntary safety culture to achieve its zero-injury record. This chimes well with its vision of `POSCO the Great with workplaces that are safe and where employees are happy`, with staff at all levels of the company aligned to achieve this vision. Voluntary participation and execution was seen by POSCO as a way to swiftly execute its strategic vision by promoting the `Self-directed Safety activity Spread` and `Establishing a voluntary practical culture founded on the basics`. These activities enable employees to feel and practice safety by themselves. They also promote the `ultimate elimination of hidden hazards` and `the construction of safety infrastructure based on mutual trust` in order to build a strong platform for better long-term health and safety.

The representative of employee-members in the labor-management conference, Lee Joo Hyung, said, ``This change in safety paradigm was needed so that we could go from the previous company-oriented safety management to the habituation of voluntary safety practice by employees. Let`s actively carry out the Self-directed Safety Spread activities that fortify the safety mindset of staff and help them to practice activities that improve safety by themselves.``

President Kwon Oh Joon requested, ``Even though we have been involved in various safety activities that reflect the way we have set safety as our top priority, what we have seen is the continuous occurrence of accidents and serious disasters. This is due to a poorly-formed safety culture at the organizational level. We need to observe the basics. I want you to direct your efforts into the vision of `POSCO the Great with workplaces that are safe and where employees are happy`. We can achieve this vision through heartfelt and trustful self-directed safety activities and by observing and practicing the basics.``

All staff and executive members of POSCO are now set to devote their energy to creating a zero-injury company by promoting the safety activities based on the Self-directed Safety Spread to uphold respect for man`s life and dignity.