The KGHM Polska Miedź S.A. Group has defined significant risks and their mitigation in the area of safety. Information about key risks and their mitigation are described in this Report in the section “Comprehensive Risk Management System in the KGHM Group”.
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The life and health of our employees are our priority and the previous year and the pandemic have brought new challenges in the work safety area. We have proved that well-thought out decisions, consistency in implementing procedures and above all the cooperation and responsibility of all employees are an effective solution for times as difficult as these. In 2021, we follow the motto of “Be responsible for others”, we have continued our activities, striving in particular to continue reducing the number of workplace accidents due to technical, organisational or human reasons.
For several years the Company has advanced its vision of “Zero accidents due to human and technical errors, zero occupational illnesses among our employees and contractors”. In 2020, the Group continued the implementation of the Employee Safety Improvement Program – “Think About The Consequences” as well as a Program to prevent the most common hazards to workplace safety by utilising innovative technologies in accordance with the Business Strategy of KGHM Polska Miedź S.A. for 2019-2023.
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The Company has high occupational health and safety standards that apply equally to its employees and the employees of other service providers operating on the premises of KGHM Polska Miedź S.A., which was confirmed by the fact that in 2020 the Company received a certificate for its occupational health and safety management system under the ISO 45001:2018 standard. All work stations have identified threats. The Company has assessed the professional risk and updates it on an ongoing basis. The conditions of the working environment are continuously monitored and periodic reviews and assessments of possible hazards, equipment overhauls and required technical inspections and type approvals are conducted. Employees undergo systematic training and continually enhance their qualifications. The company promptly implements new legal requirements and regulations in the area of occupational health and safety.
In 2020, the Company recorded a significant reduction in the number of workplace accidents and occupational diseases (as this term is defined in the social security act of 30 October 2002), measured year over year, from 299 to 213 injured persons (down by 86 accidents). The number of workplace accidents in 2020 in KGHM Polska Miedź S.A., excluding accidents due to natural causes (rock bursts, destressings, tremors, roof collapses) was lower by 54 (a drop from 248 to 194). Most of the registered workplace accidents (about 97.2%) qualified as light injuries, caused mainly by loss of balance by employees, contact with (being hit by) moveable/ immoveable objects and rock falls.
Mining activities KGHM Polska Miedź S.A. are inherently accompanied by natural hazards. They primarily result from mining tremors and their potential effects in the form of rock bursts, roof collapses and destressing. These factors affect employee safety, as their occurrence can lead to serious or even fatal injuries as well as damage to underground machinery, equipment and infrastructure and also production downtimes. For many years, the Company has been undertaking numerous preventive actions in its mines, including systematic seismological observations, ongoing assessment of the rock mass and identification of areas of elevated roof collapse hazard. The Company selects the sizes, shapes and numbers of chambers and intra-chamber pillars, designs the most favourable direction of advancing mine work and the optimum order of extracting ore from deposits to minimise local concentrations of stress in the rock mass. It also applies “active” methods of preventing uncontrolled roof collapses and rock falls, which involve provoking dynamic events through mass blasting of mining faces and through blasting to release stress in the orebody or its roof.
In 2020, 19 workplace accidents were recorded in the mines of KGHM Polska Miedź S.A., which were caused by natural hazards inherent in the rock mass. These incidents represented 11.3% of all workplace accidents in the mines during this period. KGHM Polska Miedź S.A. is continuously improving its safety record in the mining of the copper ore deposit.
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The LTIFRKGHM ratio (Lost Time Injury Frequency Rate KGHM) in 2020, which is the total number of workplace accidents (as defined by the Social Security Act of 30 October 2002) in the Company, which is the number of accidents per million hours worked by KGHM Polska Miedź S.A. employees, was at 7.3 and at the same time it was 61% less than the 2010 figure and 29% less than the 2019 figure (10.3). So far, this has been the best result in the Company’s history, achieved as a result of the attitude and commitment of all company employees.
OHS golden rules
KGHM Polska Miedź S.A. has prepared and applies the Golden Rules of OHS, as presented below:
I think
before I act
I work
with properly functioning tools, machinery and equipment
I think
of my family
I come to work
rested and sober, and not under influence of intoxicants
I am aware
of the occupational hazards and risks
I use
appropriate protective equipment
I react
when I see unsafe behaviour or situations
I maintain
harmony and order at my workspace
Occupational safety council of KGHM Polska Miedź S.A.
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The Parent Entity’s employees are represented in the Occupational Safety Council whose functioning is based on the principles of mutual trust and cooperation. The Council is the opinion-making and advisory authority with respect to matters of occupational safety and health. It consists of 40 persons, including representatives of the employers (Divisions), representatives of the trade unions operating in the Company and the Company Voluntary Labour Inspectors in KGHM Polska Miedź S.A.’s Divisions. The scope of operation of the Occupational Safety Council encompasses, among other things, periodic evaluation of the state of occupational safety and health at the Company, submitting opinions on preventive actions and formulating conclusions with respect to improvement of the working conditions. At each facility of KGHM Polska Miedź S.A., the representatives of the employer, employees and medical services who are members of the Company Committees for Occupational Safety and Health perform periodic reviews of the working conditions, assess occupational safety and health and draw conclusions with respect to improvement of the Divisional working conditions.
In 2020 and previous years the OHS area was analysed many times using a variety of procedures. The occupational safety status is monitored on an ongoing and regular basis. An ongoing assessment of occupational safety in the Company is made at weekly meetings of the Vice President of the Management Board (Production), weekly meetings of the OHS and Occupational Risk Department, monthly meetings of the Management Board with the management of all the Divisions and during regular meetings of the Company’s management with the people involved in the OHS process.
Zero harm policy of KGHM Polska Miedź S.A.
Risk management, including the principle of prudence, is an essential element of our business. KGHM strives for minimisation of any threats to its employees, local communities and the environment (Zero Harm Approach). The best facilities are those with the highest level of safety. Employees in the copper ore mines of KGHM Polska Miedź S.A. work in difficult conditions and are exposed to a great number of various hazards. Natural hazards connected with underground mining of copper ore deposits are among the most important threats to the life and health of employees of KGHM Polska Miedź S.A. Specifically, the threats connected with rock mass tremors and their potential impact in the form of rock bursts and roof collapses are considered to be very important in terms of safety as they may lead to serious or fatal accidents, damage to machinery, equipment, and underground infrastructure, as well as mining downtimes. Since employee safety is our priority, the KGHM Polska Miedź S.A. Group has undertaken various preventive measures. Regular seismic observations are conducted in the mines based on a well-developed network of underground and surface-based seismic monitoring stations, encompassing all the regions and mining areas. The Company has implemented an integrated model of occupational health and safety management. The following entities are involved in it:
- Company Occupational Health and Safety service;
- the Mine-Smelter Emergency Rescue Unit of proven world-class excellence;
- Miedziowe Centrum Zdrowia S.A., an entity providing specialised medical services;
- research and development unit, KGHM Cuprum Sp. z o.o. CB-R;
- accredited laboratory of Centrum Badań Jakości Sp. z o.o.;
- An entity specialised in rescue services equipped with its own medical facilities.
Good cooperation practice within the KGHM Polska Miedź S.A.
The life and health of employees and workplace safety in general is the top priority in the hierarchy of values of the KGHM Polska Miedź S.A. Group. For several years the Company has advanced its vision of “Zero accidents due to human and technical errors, zero occupational illnesses among our employees and contractors”. It is also one of the pillars of our Corporate Social Responsibility Strategy. The Company has high occupational health and safety standards that apply equally to its employees and the employees of other service providers operating on the premises of KGHM Polska Miedź S.A., which was confirmed this year by the fact that the Company received a certificate for its Occupational health and safety management system under the ISO 45001:2018 standard. In view of our business profile, interference in the environment and care for our employees, we set ourselves ambitious goals, the achievement of which translates into concrete effects in terms of improvement of work and occupational safety conditions. Our focus on respect for life and health improves efficiency and effectiveness and ensures continuity of production, which is essential in the mining and metallurgy industry. Moreover, the highest standards in the OHS area apply not only to the Company, but to all entities providing services to the KGHM Polska Miedź S.A. Group.
Taking into consideration the international nature of our activities, cultural differences and specific natures of the Group’s industries, each company has been performing a number of actions in the area of respect for diversity. In view of the above, the independent Diversity Declaration has been defined at KGHM Polska Miedź S.A. The Company complies with the prohibitions of discrimination and takes actions in order to ensure respect of diversity in the workplace. It creates an organisational culture based on mutual respect, equality, access to development opportunities and optimal use of employee talent regardless of ethnic origin, age, gender, nationality, citizenship, religious confession, political convictions or trade union membership, among others. It aims at ensuring reasonable diversity both in the selection of personnel (including in the recruitment process), with special focus on knowledge, technical competence and social skills.
The Parent Entity guarantees the implementation of the diversity principle across the KGHM Polska Miedź S.A. Group, and promotes and popularizes these values among its stakeholders and business partners.
Diversity management applies also to members of the KGHM Polska Miedź S.A. Supervisory Board and Management Board. The management and supervisory staff are diverse in terms of gender, age and experience. More information on the approach to diversity in the supervisory bodies is presented in the Statement on Corporate Governance in The Management Board’s Report on the activities of KGHM Polska Miedź S.A. and of the KGHM Polska Miedź S.A. Group in 2020.
Taking into consideration the international nature of our activities, cultural differences and specific natures of the Group’s industries, each company engages in a number of actions to protect human rights. Given that, the independent Declaration on Human Rights Protection has been defined at KGHM Polska Miedź S.A. The Company declares that it recognizes, respects and promotes human rights wherever it conducts its business and does not tolerate human rights violations. We undertake to operate in compliance with the United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other norms and standards, including the statutory and executive regulations of the home countries of our business operations.
KGHM is a global organisation, which is aware how important respect for human rights is in the modern world. The Company accepts responsibility for protection and respect for fundamental human rights and implements such standards across the KGHM Polska Miedź S.A. Group. It also assumes that respect for human rights by other entities is a vital element of mutual relationships.
In compliance with the adopted principles, each employee and collaborator of the KGHM Polska Miedź S.A. Group is responsible for ensuring that in his/her closest environment human rights are respected, and any infringements are reported according to the agreed procedure. This Declaration is the basis of our approach to human rights. It supplements and consolidates the human rights issues contemplated in other policies and guidelines of the Company, such as the Code of Ethics, the Diversity Declaration, HR and the Responsible Supply Chain Policy.
The Declaration is implemented in the following manner:
- each employee provided with access to a computer receives the adopted declaration electronically, via the Company Document Circulation System.
- employees with no access to a computer for work purposes are informed of the declaration implementation via extranet (accessible to all employees) and by their direct superior.
Infringements are reported as follows:
- an employee has the right and obligation to report an infringement of the Declaration on Human Rights Protection to his/her direct superior.
- employees may report infringement to the trade unions operating in the Company. (in KGHM Polska Miedź S.A. there are 15 trade unions, which have established 48 company trade organisations; the trade union membership percentage ratio in the Company is 88.6%). KGHM Polska Miedź S.A. acts in compliance with the collective bargaining agreement;
- infringements may be reported to the Occupational Safety and Health Committee.
- the Company has in place formal institutions of the Employee Council and a Whistleblower.
- to the National Labour Inspectorate (PIP).
Company collective bargaining agreement (CBA) of KGHM Polska Miedź S.A.
The Collective Bargaining Agreement specifies the conditions to be met by the employment relationship, in particular: working hours, holiday and additional leave, remuneration rules, protection of working conditions, benefits associated with employment and rules of their assignment and provision, benefits for former employees, old-age and disability pensioners and members of their families, and mutual obligations of the parties to the Agreement.
