Vision Zero in the mining industry – a review of the application in Russia and Vietnam

1. Introduce

Corporate social responsibility is a trend and is becoming mandatory worldwide. Vision zero (VZ) is a transformative approach to prevention that integrates the three dimensions of safety, health and well-being at all levels of work. [1]

Enterprises increasingly have to pay attention to the impact of businesses on sustainable development goals such as environmental protection, social justice, etc. Consumers in developed countries in the past 10 years are not only interested in prices, the quality of the goods and services they use, but also the degree of corporate social responsibility. One example is that there have been waves of boycotts of very good products, competitive prices but lack of ethics in the use of labor.

The Minister of Labor and Social Protection of the Russian Federation Maxim Topilin emphasized that in 2017, the country recorded positive dynamics in the field of occupational safety. "The number of serious accidents is down 13%, fatal - by a quarter compared to the previous year. Our goal is zero injury and no loss. This can be achieved through efforts. We need to constantly map out the route, analyze the situation, understand the details of each specific case when we lose people or harm their health." [2]

In Vietnam, the problem of Vision Zero has been and is being concerned in the field of mineral exploitation. Moreover, Russia and Vietnam have a special relationship in culture, education and have great influence on the mining industry. Both countries have had the time to adopt Vision zero in the mining industry. In Russia there are about 672 thousand enterprises officially participating in the Vision Zero concept [15]. In Vietnam, there have been 2 mines applying Vision Zero's 7 principles in workplace health and safety management, and Vision Zero has been introduced through conferences, seminars, seminars, short-term training programs. etc… to different audiences in the mining industry such as senior managers, middle managers, plant managers (junior managers) and direct workers such as miners, supervisors safety, etc., contributing to reducing occupational accidents and improving knowledge and awareness of occupational safety in enterprises.

Sibirskaya Coal Energy Company (SUEK) and Ha Lam Coal Mining Company (HLC) are two typical companies applying Vision Zero pioneering in the two countries to be researched, so the data of these two companies will represent Russia and Vietnam in this research.

2. Research fields

Vision Zero is a major movement/campaign, including Seven Golden Rules, leading indicators, teaching materials, poster-style promotion materials, songs, apps, etc. In which, Seven Golden Rules are goals. in the theoretical part of the paper.

The seven golden rules for Vision Zero are as follows:

Rule 1: Lead - show commitment

Rule 2: Identify hazards - control risks

Rule 3: Define goals - build a program

Rule 4: Ensure a safe and healthy system - well organized

Rule 5: Ensure the safety and health of machines, equipment and workplaces

Rule 6: Improve qualifications - develop capacity

Rule 7: Invest in people - get motivated by getting involved

These golden rules are developed using a variety of questions with three ratios (1) required action, (2) room for improvement, and (3) fully implemented for leaders and managers. and other employees can use them as a checklist to see how things look at their company. Seven Golden Rules consists of 23 questions, of which 110 questions are used for evaluation [3].

3. Vision Zero documents and guides

Vision Zero has offered resources for people who wants to use VZ as a helpful tool in companies, such as the Seven Golden Rules and guides, Powerpoints, videos, visual indentity, articles, proactive leading indicators, app, and resources produced by VZ supporters [6]. There are several guidelines for mining industry, which is developed by the International Social Security Association – Prevention in Mining [3], seeing if in a mining company how the safety, health, and well-being are implemented, or if there is a need for improvement, or whether it needs to take corrective action.

Golden rule 1: Take leadership – demonstrate commitment: Safety and health are not only duties of the executive or a manager, or an employee, but of the whole company’s system. However, the safety competence of companies’ leaders issignificant, so are leader skills regarding communication, management culture and role models. Thus, a good leader with demonstrate commitments about safety is a decisive factor for the success or failure of safety and health in a mining company.

Golden Rule 2: Identify hazards – control risks: Risks cannot be controlled if they are not fully identified. Once hazards are identified, the assessment of risks’ damages and losses, either visible or invisible, or time is more precise. Accidents, injuries and near misses should also be recorded.

Golden rule 3: Define targets – develop programs: Success in occupational safety and health requires clear goals and concrete steps for implementaion, which should be established in a program. In another words, plans for safety management in short-term, midium-term and long-term are important to utilize the companies’ resources.

Golden Rule 4: Ensure a safe and healthy system – be well-organized: To implement this rule, leaders should understand the advantages of an adequate and a systematic occupational safety and health organization. As disruptions, production downtime and other quality issues can be protected with the system, productivity can be increased and the companies can be more profitable.

Golden Rule 5: Ensure safety and health in machines, equipment, and workplaces: Safe production includes all technical, organizational and personal measures, in which technical issues should be first improved. Although companies cannot use the lastest technology most of the time, when they can maintain the newest occupational and health standards, the companies’ employees, assets, and images can be protected.

Golden Rule 6: Improve qualifications – develop competence: This rule requires the understanding of investment in the training and skills of employees is bringing the readiness of knowledge and competence for the workers, managers and leaders of the companies.

Golden Rule 7: Invest in people – motivate by participation: This rule relates to the leadership and the role model of the leader to engage their employees talk openly about risks and hazards, and the employees feel that they are part of the safety strategy and safety culture.

4. Data collection in Russia and discussion

The Ministry of Labor and Social Protection of the Russian Federation became the official partner of the global campaign on the concept of "Vision Zero" in 2017 [9]. Since that time period, according to information available in the public domain on the official website of Vision Zero, for 2020, the number of participating companies in Russia has exceeded 6500. According to Shaidullina RS [10] (Shaidullina, 2019), they began to take an increasingly formal approach to issues of ensuring labor protection. It is important to realize that a partnership with the "Do Not Injury" concept, as endorsed by the certificate, is not actual proof of the implementation of the rules of the organization's workflow. organization or business. Therefore, for successful operation, it is necessary to disassemble the 7 "Golden rules" of the program, and then adjust the strategy to suit the business.

In 2018, the program "Safe Work" was adopted, carried out in conjunction with the state program "Promoting Employment", approved by Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation of April 15, 2014 no.298 [11]. Its main mission is to ensure that prevention of occupational injuries and occupational diseases is a priority, and the target index is "no injury". Therefore, by 2025, as a result of the implementation of the subroutine, it is expected to reduce the number of victims of industrial accidents per 1,000 workers to 109 and then reduce the indicators to "zero". injured". According to Rosstat, in 2019, the current number is 1.2. Exactly the same value of the index is in 2018 [12]. But since this subroutine started being implemented relatively recently, it is too early to draw conclusions about its implementation.

To date, the state of accidents at coal mining enterprises in Russia is characterized by a downward trend in the value of absolute indicators (Figure 1).

Figure 1: Changes in production, fatal injuries and number of employees in the coal industry in Russia [8].

Companies that have applied Vision zero in Russia [6]:

· Sibirskaya Coal Energy Company (SUEK);

· Salym Petroleum;

· AGC glass;

· EON;

· Nissan-Renault;

· Олюс золото ;

· Аллургический омбинат ;

· Альская горно-металлургическая компания (УГМК).

Sibirskaya Coal Energy Company (SUEK) is the largest coal company in Russia and one of the leading coal and energy companies in the world, one of the five largest coal suppliers to the global coal market. The company was founded in 2001, has its headquarters in Moscow with regional divisions. SUEK produces 110 million tons of coal per year and its proven coal reserves amount to 7.5 billion tons (number 5 in the world) [7].

Figure 2 : Changing occupational injury dynamics at SUEK enterprise [8].

“In its more than 15 years of existence, SUEK has increased production volumes several times, reducing the main industrial safety index - LTIFR - to the best in the world, in line with world best practices. At the same time, the company aims to achieve zero injury rates, so SUEK joins the International Social Security Association's Vision Zero program. For SUEK, participation in international organizations for injury and accident reduction is an opportunity to find new tools, share what we know, and work together towards zero injuries, zero accidents. there are illnesses, there are no accidents and incidents." Dmitry Syromyatnikov, Deputy Executive Director, Director of Human Resources and Administration of SUEK, said in 2021.

As a result of this strategy, 294 injuries were registered at businesses in 2019, of which 105 were injured, including fatal and serious cases. During the reporting period, the injury rate increased to 0.86, 11.69% higher than in 2018. The growth of this indicator is related to an increase in the quality of incident registration. The Company has identified the following strategic objectives:

· No fatal accidents involving employees and contractors;

· Performance through the end of 2022 for industrial injuries totaling no more than 0.5 among employees and contractors;

Forming employees' conscious attitudes towards their own safety [14].

To improve the work of the occupational health and safety management system, SUEK has developed and approved a Vision Zero concept implementation program for 2019–2022. The strategic plan of this program is to increase economic and social efficiency, as well as create a corporate culture of labor protection through the introduction of new management tools in the field of labor protection. During the reporting period (2019), the degree of occupational injury at SUEK Joint Stock Company has decreased compared to the figure in 2018: the total number of people injured at work is less than 10% (down from 168 people in 2018) to 152 people in 2019), the number of fatal accidents decreased by 5% (from 21 to 20 people) and the number of serious injuries - decreased by 16% (from 51 to 43 people). At the same time, the occupational injury frequency coefficient decreased by 9% (from 0,234 to 0,214), with a fatal outcome - 3% (from 0,029 to 0,028).

	2018	2019	Rate difference
Number of people injured at work	168	152	10%
Number of fatal accidents	21	20	5%
Number of people seriously injured	51	43	16%
Occupational injury frequency coefficient	0,234	0,214	9%
Fatal outcome	0,029	0,028	3%

Table 1: Casualty indicators after applying Vision Zero concept at SUEK [14].

Based on the above results, it can be clearly seen that the impact of rigorously applying the Vision Zero concept has significantly reduced work-related accidents in just the first year of applying the zero-injury strategy.

According to the Federal Tax Service, as of October 2020, there are 5.6 million businesses in the Russian Federation [15], the official partners participating in the concept of "No Injury" account for 0.12% this number. Since the developers of this concept are not required to enter into the partnership in terms of the ability to implement it within their organization and it is not fixed at the legislative level, many employers simply is not to register to receive a certificate of participation. In this regard, such organizations cannot be viewed in the list presented on the official website of Vision Zero, it is impossible to calculate the actual number of businesses that have implemented this strategy. If we only work with official information, the percentages that show the usage of this concept are very small, despite the official partnership of the Russian Ministry of Labor and the Social Insurance Fund . Regarding the above, we can distinguish several factors that hinder the large-scale implementation of the Vision Zero concept:

· Lack of legal provisions of the implementation process (voluntary nature of the application);

· Lack of economic incentives on the part of the state and, therefore, in the interests of employers;

· Lack of active advocacy of commitment to occupational safety and health throughout the country;

· Limited information shows the socio-economic benefits of implementing this concept;

There is a lack of a single source of information (section on the website of the Unified All-Russian Reference and Information System for Worker Protection) dedicated to the implementation of the Vision Zero concept in the Russian Federation.

5. Data collection in Vietnam and discussion

Coal companies that have applied Vision zero in Vietnam:

· Ha Lam Coal Mining Company (HLC);

· Duong Huy Coal Mining Company.

Ha Lam Coal Mining Company (HLC) in Ha Long City, Vietnam. Ha Lam Coal Mining Company was founded in 1950, today is one of the precursors in the coal mining industry in terms of technological innovation to meet the needs of digging deeper in the vertical axis, safety and strength. health, and the amount of output and profit from production. HLC has been employing more than 3,100 employees. From 2015 - 2019, the company had 132 labor accidents that caused three deaths [4]. The annual output of HLC has reached about 2.5 million tons in the past 5 years.

Figure 3: Annual coal production of Ha Lam Company [4].

Ha Lam Company complies with the regulations of the competent authority on the structure of Occupational Safety and Health (OSH), issues internal regulations and guidelines on OSH, collects and stores statistical data. statistics, regular reporting, training, practice, ..

At HLC, a culture of safety has been established over the years by various regulations, campaigns and activities. In addition, HLC is also the first coal company in Vietnam to set out a safety strategy by 2025, focusing on improving leadership and organizational capacity in OSH work, ensuring effective OSH management by investment. invest in technological innovation, improve safety training and create rewards and sanctions in safety management. , reducing incidents, accidents and deaths. At the top management level, HLC ensures the implementation of technological innovation in OSH, with strong commitments to safety. At the middle management level, statistical data on OSH, including well-recorded incidents and near-misses, is useful in reducing risks. In 2020, HLC also evaluates its safety culture in consultation with ISSA Mining experts to recommend solutions to improve safety culture and safety competence for its staff and workers. company [4].

All scales in Table 4 are scored in a 3-point Likert format from (1) required action - 1 point, (2) room for improvement - 2 points and (3) fully implemented - 3 the point. The checklist is delivered to the participants in Vietnamese. The survey questionnaire was sent to the participants via the hard version. The distribution of respondents in terms of age and advanced age was assessed accurately and reliably.

In general, the directors of HLC highly appreciated the OSH management with 2,934. The lowest score came from workers with 2,705. This figure shows that OSH management in HLC still needs to be improved. Board . Present safe culture results in HLC according to the checklist from the VZ golden rules.

Rule	Leaders and managers		Department officers		Foremen		Workers
	Mean	Rank	Mean	Rank	Mean	Rank	Mean	Rank
Total	2,712		2,896		2,934		2,705
Rule 1: Take leadership –demonstrate commitment	2,669	5	2,903	2	2,938	4	2,743	2
Rule 2: Identify hazards – control risks	2,715	3	2,902	3	2,897	6	2,738	3
Rule 3: Define targets – develop programs	2,746	2	2,899	4	2,901	5	2,712	5
Rule 4: Ensure a safe and healthy system – be well-organized	2,669	5	2,887	6	2,889	7	2,717	4
Rule 5: Ensure safety and health in machines, equipment, and workplaces	2,762	1	2,935	1	2,972	2	2,633	6
Rule 6: Improve qualifications – develop competence	2,646	7	2,853	7	2,978	1	2,774	1
Rule 7: Invest in people – motivate by participation	2,692	4	2,893	5	2,961	3	2,588	7

Table 2: Quality assessment of safety culture in Ha Lam [13]

While a safety culture is an essential aspect of HLCs in their safety strategy, the assessment varies between each focus group. From the point of view of leaders, managers as well as departmental officers of HLC, the company has been invested in safe machinery and equipment. They also build and maintain a safe and healthy working environment for employees, especially underground workers.

Company leaders can gain insight into their leadership and commitment, understanding that they must do more to maintain and increase leadership effectiveness in OSH at the company. The same goes for the managers, the leaders in place. From that understanding, following advice from experts of ISSA Mining, HLC leaders enhance their sense of leadership and commitment in safety work with the slogan: Safety is ethics, our employees are above all. This commitment is currently the strongest commitment in the mining industry in Vietnam ever.

The managers and workers of HLC, through the questionnaire, said that they have been well trained to adapt to production. However, leaders, managers as well as departmental staff of HLC all realize that they must improve their qualifications - capacity development, especially training for employees to prepare skilled workforce, with high safety capacity to meet their production needs in the future. Based on the assessment from the employee's point of view, HLC has issued compliance guidance to ensure the safety and health of machinery, equipment and workplaces for officials and employees in early 2021.

Although the leadership has understood the importance of the workforce, the salary, reward and motivational system for employees at HLC still needs to be improved.

6. Recommendations:

Legal development of the implementation process (voluntary nature of the application);

Increased economic incentives from the state and, therefore, in the interests of employers (as an incentive, it can be proposed to include this concept in the indicators determining the receipt of discounts in the table). insurance tax for compulsory insurance for accidents and occupational diseases at work or affecting the partial return of premiums for preventive measures);

There is a lack of active advocacy of commitment to occupational health and safety throughout the country, which is achieved through the implementation of this concept;

Propagating and disseminating information demonstrating socio-economic benefits of implementing this concept;

The only source of information (the section on the website of the Completely Unified Reference and Information System for Worker Protection) dedicated to the implementation of the Vision Zero concept in each country.

7: Conclusion

In Russia, a large number of examples can be found in which accidents at work really do not materialize. Therefore, the possibility of continuing the positive dynamics of occupational injury reduction and approaching the "zero" mark of this indicator cannot be excluded in the future.

Vision zero and the Seven Golden Rules are gradually introduced into coal mining companies in Vietnam at different levels of training to raise awareness, implement the rules and develop into different activities such as equipment handbook and manual at the mine. The pilot programs at Ha Lam Coal Joint Stock Company demonstrate the wide applicability of the Seven Golden Rules in the Vietnamese coal mining industry, regardless of production conditions and cultural aspects.

To date, no country has achieved zero injury rates. At the same time, if we consider individual organizations around the world and especially in Russia and Vietnam.

In our opinion, this can be achieved if the concept of "No Injury" and other programs to improve working conditions and labor protection are used in enterprises as tools to ensure safe operation. of the labor protection management system. To date, the above statistics show that there is still much work to be done in the field of labor protection of the Russian Federation to achieve this goal.