Safety Science 47 (2009) 980991

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Safety Science
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/ssci

Relation between occupational safety management and rm performance

Beatriz Fernndez-Muiz *, Jos Manuel Montes-Pen 1, Camilo Jos Vzquez-Ords 2
University of Oviedo, Facultad de Ciencias Econmicas y Empresariales, Departamento de Administracin de Empresas y Contabilidad, Avda. del Cristo, s/n, 33071, Oviedo, Spain

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: Occupational accidents severely deteriorate human capital, and hence negatively affect the productivity
Received 25 September 2007 and competitiveness of countries. But despite this, we still observe a scarcity of preventive practices, an
Received in revised form 3 October 2008 unsatisfactory management commitment and an absence of safety culture among Spanish rms. The
Accepted 30 October 2008
result is evident in rms high accident rates. This situation is a consequence of the general belief among
rms that investing in safety is a cost, and hence has negative repercussions for their competitiveness.
The current work aims to identify good practices in safety management, and analyse the effect of these
Keywords:
practices on a set of indicators of organisational performance. For this, we rst carry out an exhaustive
Safety management
Competitive advantage
literature review, and then formulate a series of hypotheses. We then test the proposed model on a sam-
Occupational accidents ple of 455 Spanish rms. Our ndings show that safety management has a positive inuence on safety
Productivity performance, competitiveness performance, and economic-nancial performance. Hence they provide
Structural equation modelling evidence of the compatibility between worker protection and corporate competitiveness.
2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction
The occupational accident rate has increased considerably in
Spain in recent years, in spite of the legal reforms beginning in
1995. This large number of accidents has a signicant human cost
for Spanish society, and leads to a loss of economic potential and
productivity for the country,3 since apart from the decrease in hu-
man capital and the damage done to production equipment, a large
number of working days are lost.4 Although the economic cycle (Bec-
erra et al., 1986; Castejn, 2000) and Spanish labour market charac-
teristics can explain an important part of the variations in the
accident rate, they cannot alone be considered the main causes.
Other variables inuence the accident rate, including the cultural
perception of preventive actions (Castejn, 2000). In this respect,
researchers have detected a decient preventive culture in Spanish
organisations (Narocki, 1999). Indeed, it is a priority objective of
the new legislation to build such a culture. But creating an authentic
safety culture requires not only stronger institutional pressure, but
also a change of mentality and an authentic commitment from rms,
where everyone participates and commits themselves to occupa-
* Corresponding author. Tel.: +34 985106215; fax: +34 985103708.
E-mail addresses: beatrizf@uniovi.es (B. Fernndez-Muiz), jmmontes@uniovi.es
(J.M. Montes-Pen), cvordas@uniovi.es (C.J. Vzquez-Ords).
1
Tel.: +34 985104975; fax: +34 985103708.
2
Tel.: +34 9853704; fax: +34 985103708.
3
The Spanish economys lost productivity due to occupational accidents amounted
to 3% of GDP (13,280m) in 1996, according to estimates from the Spanish Ministry of
Labour and Social Affairs.
4
The Spanish Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs reported 21,597,604 working
days lost in 2002.
tional health and safety. This commitment must start from the top
management of the organisation.
Various authors attribute this weak management commitment
to the general belief that preventive measures require expendi-
tures that have nothing to do with the rms production objectives,
and consequently have negative repercussions for its protability
and competitiveness. But accidents have adverse affects in terms
of decreases in productivity and quality, and deterioration of the
rms public image or internal climate. It is for this reason that a
good occupational safety management can have a positive effect
not only on accident rates, but also on competitiveness variables
and nancial performance. It is therefore a good opportunity for
those organisations that take up the challenge and adopt safety
management. Many authors have defended this theory (Andreoni,
1986; Grimaldi and Simonds, 1989; Ashford, 1997; HSE, 1997;
Kjelln et al., 1997; Narocki, 1999; Smallman and John, 2001; Best-
ratn et al., 2003; Rechenthin, 2004), although the literature has
provided scarce empirical evidence for it.
The current work is conceived in this context, and its funda-
mental aim is to analyse the relation between rms health and
safety management and their performance. This objective breaks
down into the following specic goals: (1) to identify appropriate
preventive practices as part of an effective health and safety man-
agement system and (2) to analyse the effect of such a system on a
set of indicators of rms safety, competitiveness and economic-
nancial performance. In order to accomplish these objectives,
we rst carry out an exhaustive review of the literature on occupa-
tional safety management. We then formulate a model summaris-
ing the hypotheses of the study. Subsequently, we develop
measurement scales of the concepts used in the proposed model,

0925-7535/$ - see front matter 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.ssci.2008.10.022
 B. Fernndez-Muiz et al. / Safety Science 47 (2009) 980991
in order to operationalise them, and carry out an empirical study
on a sample of 455 Spanish rms to test the hypotheses. This study
uses the structural equation modelling statistical technique.
2. The occupational safety management system
Managing risks in an integrated way with the organisations
operations has become increasingly important in recent years,
since it not only cuts accident rates but can also improve the rms
productivity and economic and nancial results (OToole, 2002).
However, researchers have paid little attention to dening what
exactly constitutes an effective occupational health and safety
management system (Santos-Reyes and Beard, 2002). Safety man-
agement systems are integrated mechanisms in organisations de-
signed to control the risks that can affect workers health and
safety, and at the same time to ensure the rm can easily comply
with the relevant legislation. A good safety management system
should be fully integrated into the rm and be a cohesive system,
consisting of policies, strategies and procedures that provide inter-
nal consistency and harmonisation. Guastello (1993) offers a meta-
analysis exploring the effectiveness of various interventions for
occupational safety, and nds that behaviour-based processes are
the most effective. Thus, developing the safety management
system should be regarded as a way of creating awareness,
understanding, motivation and commitment among all the organi-
sations employees. But its success will depend on the manage-
ments commitment to it (Zohar, 1980; Civil Aviation Safety
Authority, 2002).
Given the lack of empirical research identifying the specic
dimensions of an adequate safety management system, we have
obtained a combination of the characteristics of the management
systems and models from both national and international regula-
tions and guidelines, created by various bodies and institutions
from several countries (total loss control, from Bird, 1974; BS
8800:1996, from the British Standards Institution; HSE, 1997; OH-
SAS international guidelines 18001/18002:1999; guidelines on
occupational safety and health management systems, from the
International Labour Ofce, 2001). These guidelines have a similar
structure, as they are based on continuous improvement (plan-do-
check-act). Likewise, we have considered empirical studies
investigating the safety culture (Guldenmund, 2000; Cooper,
2000; Glendon and Stanton, 2000; Sorensen, 2002; Arboleda
et al., 2003; Richter and Koch, 2004), as well as works analysing
the practices that distinguish between high and low accident rate
companies (Cohen et al., 1975; Cohen, 1977; Shafai-Sahrai, 1971;
Guastello, 1993; Shannon et al., 1997; Vredenburgh, 2002;
Tinmannsvik and Hovden, 2003; Mearns et al., 2003). Thus, we
have identied the following key aspects as critical for a good
occupational health and safety management system capable of
reducing workplace accidents in a sustained manner:
(1) Development of a Safety Policy that includes the organisa-
tions commitment to safety, and formally expresses objec-
tives such as the principles and guidelines to follow in
questions of health and safety at work. This aspect is sup-
ported by authors such as Donald and Canter (1994), Coyle
et al. (1995), HSE (1997), Daz and Cabrera (1997), Isla and
Daz (1997), Meli and Ses (1999) and Mearns et al. (2003).
(2) Incentives for Employee Participation in health and safety
activities, aimed at promoting safe behaviour and involving
personnel in decision-making processes, by means of pun-
ishments/rewards or by consulting them about their wellbe-
ing in the workplace (Zohar, 1980; Glennon, 1982; Reason,
1990; Lee, 1998; Eiff, 1999; Vredenburgh, 2002; Wiegmann
et al., 2002).
981
(3) Training and development of employee competences, in
order to improve ability, skills, and aptitudes in terms of risk
prevention (Shafai-Sahrai, 1971; Zohar, 1980; Glennon,
1982; Ostrom et al., 1993; Cooper and Philips, 1994; Glen-
don et al., 1994; Donald and Canter, 1994; Coyle et al.,
1995; Shannon et al., 1997; Cox et al., 1998; Lee, 1998; DeP-
asquale and Geller, 1999; Fleming, 2000; Grote and Knzler,
2000; Guldenmund, 2000; OToole, 2002; Vredenburgh,
2002; Silva et al., 2004).
(4) Communication and transfer of information about the work-
place, its possible risks and how best to combat them (Sha-
fai-Sahrai, 1971; Zohar, 1980; Ostrom et al., 1993; Glendon
et al., 1994; Donald and Canter, 1994; Berends, 1996; Cabre-
ra et al., 1997; Shannon et al., 1997; Cheyne et al., 1998; Lee,
1998; Fleming, 2000; Grote and Knzler, 2000; Rundmo and
Hale, 2003; Vredenburgh, 2002; Wiegmann et al., 2002;
Mearns et al., 2003; Siu et al., 2003; DeJoy et al., 2004; Silva
et al., 2004).
(5) Planning (HSE, 1997; Guldenmund, 2000; OToole, 2002),
distinguishing between preventive planning and emergency
planning. The former attempts to develop an organised
method of putting into practice policies and actions
designed to avoid accidents. At the same time, the emer-
gency plan attempts to calmly programme the action to be
taken to provide a quick and efcient response to any inci-
dent, thus reducing as far as possible its adverse effects.
(6) Control and review of activities carried out within the orga-
nisation (Shafai-Sahrai, 1971; Zohar, 1980; Donald and Can-
ter, 1994; Cabrera et al., 1997; HSE, 1997; Shannon et al.,
1997; Lee, 1998; Grote and Knzler, 2000; Vredenburgh,
2002), this will permit continuous improvement. This con-
trol is executed by means of an analysis of working condi-
tions and events occurring within the company, and
through comparisons with other companies. We can distin-
guish two sub-dimensions: internal control (Kjelln et al.,
1997) and benchmarking techniques (Fuller, 1997).
To achieve excellence in prevention, safety must be integrated
into all the organisations decisions and actions, and the prevention
must be more organisational and strategic than material, given the
important role that the human component plays in the causal chain
of workplace accidents. Thus, rms need to implement a system to
manage occupational risk prevention like the one described above,
foster the commitment and participation of all their members, and
achieve the support of the top management (Fernndez-Muiz
et al., 2007). There must consequently be a profound change in
rms behaviour and mentality, leading to a true safety culture.
3. Economic impact of occupational safety
Satisfactory working conditions provide benets of many kinds,
and the beneciaries are both direct and indirect. The direct bene-
ciaries are the workers themselves, since they are the most af-
fected by accidents, but also the rm, because it avoids losses
and improves its protability. The indirect beneciaries are the
insurers, contractors, consumers, families and society in general
(Mossink, 2002). There are big differences in the type of damage
caused by accidents, in the associated costs, and in the system of
evaluation.
However, rms and more specically their managers are
considered key actors in safety improvements, since they have
the capacity to make decisions to invest in prevention or not. Thus,
much of the information about costs and benets and economic
incentives focuses on the organisation.
Fig. 1 summarises the economic effects of occupational safety
from a business perspective. Occupational accidents interrupt the
982 B. Fernndez-Muiz et al. / Safety Science 47 (2009) 980991
Fewer health & safety risks
Better opportunities for
rehabilitation
1. Investments
2. Management Health &
3. Activities Safety
4. Training Measures
Better fit to work processes
More motivated personnel
Improvement of skills
Source: Mossink (2002).
Fig. 1. Economic effects of health and safety at company level.
production process, generating, on the one hand, both nancial and
opportunity costs (Heinrich, 1959; Andreoni, 1986; Brody et al.,
1990; Grimaldi and Simonds, 1989; Kjelln et al., 1997; Bestratn
et al., 2003), and on the other, decreases in the quantity and quality
of production achieved, with a consequent decline in the rms
productivity (Hunter, 1999). But this is not the only negative effect
that accidents cause in rms. They also undermine the rms inter-
nal relationships, and harm its public image, causing a severe dete-
rioration in the organisations intangibles (Fernndez et al., 2000;
Bestratn et al., 2003) critical factors in the rms survival in
the market.
Unsafe working conditions worsen the industrial climate and
undermine workers morale and motivation, as well as their iden-
tication with the owners and managers. This can ultimately lead
them to leave the rm, and the rm can have difculty in nding
qualied workers to replace them. Thus, health and safety in the
workplace benets the organisation because of the advantages of
keeping its workers healthy and productive workers who are dif-
cult to replace because they possess specic knowledge or skills.
Moreover, accidents can adversely affect the rms image and rep-
utation (Smallman and John, 2001), provoking a severe deteriora-
tion in its public relations. This has occasionally led consumers
to boycott certain brands or rms accused of anti-social behaviour.
Public criticisms and serious accidents are a source of adverse pub-
licity that can have negative commercial consequences, which are
often regarded as social sanctions (Gunningham, 1999). Acci-
dents can also cause rms to miss delivery dates, leading, on the
one hand, to economic losses due to the delay itself, and on the
other, to a deterioration in the customers perception of the rm.
This can have a negative impact on the order book. All this can
damage the organisations value creation, and lead to a decline in
the rms competitiveness, with a consequent loss of market posi-
tion. Thus, preventing occupational risks is an essential element in
business management, with important strategic implications for
the organisation (Bestratn, 1996; HSE, 1997; Narocki, 1999; Rik-
hardsson and Impgaard, 2004).
Investing in safety can also lead to changes in the nature of the
process and production technology, which can offer benets in
terms of savings in materials or energy, hence cutting the real costs
- Lower insurance costs
- Fewer accidents
- Less damage
- Fewer liabilities
- Lower legal costs
- Less absenteeism
Health & Safety - Lower medical costs
performance
Less disruption of work
process
Company
performance
- Higher productivity
- Higher efficiency
- Higher quality
- Better company image
- Greater innovative
capacity
of such investment. Ashford (1997) considers the importance of
technological advances, following Porters (1991) line, and argues
that the new legislation on risk prevention stimulates rms to
develop new technologies that help them comply with legisla-
tion more inexpensively, thereby improving growth and
competitiveness.
Thus, the safety management system is able to reduce not only
personal injuries and harm to workers health, but also material
damage. Consequently, it reduces down time and labour absentee-
ism and improves workers satisfaction and motivation. Similarly,
by reducing the number of interruptions in the productive process,
this management system can improve productivity, the quality of
the products and the rms degree of innovation, thereby affecting
customers satisfaction and the rms reputation. Finally, we would
expect that safety management would also have a positive effect
on the rms position in the market, increasing its market share.
This increase in market share, together with the reduction in the
cost of accidents, raises the rms prots and hence its protability.
These performance indicators can be grouped into three dimen-
sions. First, the direct consequences of accidents, which are per-
sonal injuries, material damage, absenteeism and workers
reduced motivation, have been grouped under a single dimension
labelled safety performance. Second, the indicators of quality, pro-
ductivity, innovation, customer satisfaction and company reputa-
tion are grouped in the dimension competitiveness performance,
as they are considered key variables in the rms competitive posi-
tion. Finally, the rms position in the market, measured through
the rms market share, prot margin and protability, are
grouped under the dimension economic-nancial performance.
The above reasoning leads to the following hypotheses:
Hypothesis 1. The Safety Management System has a positive
inuence on safety performance.
Hypothesis 2. The Safety Management System has a positive inu-
ence on competitiveness performance.
Hypothesis 3. The Safety Management System has a positive inu-
ence on economic-nancial performance.
 B. Fernndez-Muiz et al. / Safety Science 47 (2009) 980991
4. Method
4.1. Sample
In order to test the above hypotheses, we carried out an empir-
ical study. The majority of empirical studies limit their sample to
one organisation from a very specic sector, casting some doubt
about their external validity (Silva et al., 2004). Thus, with the
aim of achieving as high a degree of generalisation as possible
for the results of this work, we considered the target population
made up of companies located in Spain, both national and foreign,
from the construction, industrial and services sectors, employing
more than 10 workers. With these criteria, and using the SABI data-
base (which holds accounting data on Spanish companies), we ob-
tained a population size of 62,146 rms. Subsequently, we
calculated the number of responses that would be necessary to en-
sure that our sample would be representative of the total popula-
tion, assuming a maximum error of 5% for a condence level of
95%. A total of 382 respondents were necessary. Assuming a similar
response rate to that obtained in other survey-based studies car-
ried out in Spain (Ordoez, 2002; Ordiz and Fernndez, 2003; Pri-
eto and Revilla, 2004) 10% we concluded that we needed to
contact and request the collaboration of 3,820 companies. We then
divided the population rms into groups according to rm size
(small: < 50workers; medium-sized: 50249; large:P250) and
sector of activity (industrial, construction and services). Finally,
we selected 3,820 rms systematically at random from each of
these groups in the same proportion as in the population as a
whole.
We devised a questionnaire to compile the information. As sam-
ple unit we chose the safety ofcer, since this individual can be ex-
pected to have the most information about the specic practices
and procedures that are being carried out within the rm, and be
familiar with the difculties involved in implementing the system.
This ofcer can also be expected to have access to all types of infor-
mation concerning potential dangers to the health and safety of the
workers. Likewise, these ofcers occupy an intermediate position
between the management and the employees, so we consider that
their information will be less biased and more accurate. We con-
tacted this particular ofcer in each rm by telephone in order to
Table 1
Distribution of population and sample by activity and size.
Activity sectors (CNAE 93) Population
Industry 26,566 (42.7%)
Food and drink (15)
Textile, footwear and derivatives (17, 18 and 19)
Wood industry (20 and 36)
Chemical, paper and plastics industry (21, 24 and 25)
Metallurgy industry (27 and 28)
Machinery, vehicle and various equipment (29, 30, 33 and 34)
Other manufacturers (22, 26, 31, 32 and 37)
Services 28,257 (45.5%)
Vehicle sales and repairs (50)
Wholesale business (51)
Retail business (52)
Various services (55, 70, 71, 72, 92 and 93)
Construction (45) 9,710 (15.6%)
Total companies 62,146 (100%)
Size (no. employees)
1049 48,702 (78.4%) 2,994 (78.4%)
50249 10,985 (17.7%) 675 (17.7%)
More than 250 2,459 (3.9%)
Total companies 62,146 (100%)
Source: SABI Database (Sistema de Anlisis de Balances Ibricos/system of analysis of Spanish accounts).
983
send them the questionnaire together with a presentation letter.
In this way, we eliminated rms not wishing to take part in the
study, and guaranteed that the appropriate person would respond
to the questionnaire. When the rm lacked a safety ofcer and had
outsourced its occupational safety activities, which was the case in
some small rms, we contacted the safety coordinator responsible
for liaising between the rm and its external service provider, in
order not to exclude this type of rm from the study. Finally, we
received a total of 474 questionnaires. Some of these had been
incorrectly completed in some respect, so we were obliged to con-
tact the rms concerned again requesting data that was either
missing or erroneous. But 19 of these questionnaires still had seri-
ous internal inconsistencies or more than 80% of their values lost,
so we decided to eliminate them, following the complete case ap-
proach described in Hair et al. (1998). In this way, we obtained a
total of 455 valid responses. The denitive response rate was
12%. The sampling error was 4.57% for the most unfavourable case,
and a condence level of 95%. Taking into account only the popu-
lation that we contacted, the error was 4.18%. Although the re-
sponse rate is not as high as in US or UK studies, the sample is
representative because the sampling error, which reects the max-
imum difference between the sample estimator and the corre-
sponding population parameter, is low.
Table 1 reports the rms distribution by activity and rm size
for both the population and the sample, as well as the response
rates by activity and size. The differences between the population
and the sample are due to the different response rates of the seg-
ments of population. We nd that the proportion of construc-
tion-sector rms is very similar in both the sample and the total
population. But the proportion of industrial rms is higher in the
sample than in the population as a whole, while the proportion
of service-sector rms is lower in the sample than in the popula-
tion. This circumstance is due to the fact that the response rate is
higher in the industrial sector than in the service sector, this latter
sector not traditionally being associated with occupational risks.
Nevertheless, we observe an extremely diversied sectorial struc-
ture, which can be interpreted as a signicant reection of the
Spanish productive structure. Similarly, the sample rms are fun-
damentally small and medium-sized rms (88.2%) a proportion
in line with the Spanish economy. But we nd small rms with less
Contacts with rms made Questionnaires received (Sample) Response rate(%)
1,538 (40.2%) 271 (60.0%) 17.6
35 (7.7%)
21 (4.6%)
23 (5.1%)
42 (9.2%)
95 (20.9%)
18 (4.0%)
39 (8.6%)
1,700 (44.5%) 107 (20.2%) 6.3
15 (3.3%)
25 (5.5%)
11 (2.4%)
41 (9.0%)
583 (15.3%) 77 (19.8%) 13.2%
3,820 (100%) 455 (100%) 12
241 (53%) 8
160 (35.2%) 23.7
151 (3.9%) 54 (11.8%) 35.7
3,820 (100%) 455 (100%) 12
984 B. Fernndez-Muiz et al. / Safety Science 47 (2009) 980991
than 50 employees to be more reluctant to respond to the ques-
tionnaire, which leads to a lower response rate from this type of
rm. As a consequence, some differences exist in the distribution
by size between the sample and the population.
4.2. Measurement scales
With the aim of measuring the concepts used in the current
study, scales were built following a multiple indicator approach.
Thus, each concept was measured using various items or variables.
This process for generating items involved successive stages. First,
we conducted an exhaustive review of management systems pro-
posed in the international standards and guidelines (HSE, 1997;
BSI, 1996, 1999; International Labour Ofce, 2001). We also took
into account studies analysing the practices that discriminate be-
tween companies with high and low accident rates (Shafai-Sahrai,
1971; Cohen et al., 1975; Cohen, 1977; Smith et al., 1978; Guastel-
lo, 1993; Shannon et al., 1997; Bentley and Haslam, 2001; Vreden-
burgh, 2002; Mearns et al., 2003; Tinmannsvik and Hovden, 2003;
Tam et al., 2004), as well as studies of safety culture (e.g., Cox and
Cheyne, 2000; Guldenmund, 2000; Lee and Harrison, 2000; Far-
rington-Darby et al., 2005; Havold, 2005; Olive et al., 2006). This
process provided a pool of items to measure some of the concepts
considered in this research. But we observed that the evaluation of
the measurement scales psychometric properties was decient in
some studies. This is why we opted here to build specic measure-
ment scales, adapted to the theoretical model developed in this
study, taking into account not only existing scales but also interna-
tional standards and guidelines in safety management. All the
items were measured on a 5-point Likert-type scale, the respon-
dents being asked to indicate their perceptions of their company
on each item ranging from 1 = strongly disagree to 5 = strongly
agree.
The performance indicators (personal injuries, material damage,
employees motivation, absenteeism, product quality, productivity,
customer satisfaction, reputation, innovation, nancial protabil-
ity, growth in market share, growth in prots and prot/sales)
were measured subjectively. The respondents were required to re-
port their degree of satisfaction with these indicators on a 5-point
Likert scale ranging from 1 = extremely dissatised to 5 = extre-
mely satised. The level of satisfaction with the indicators was
measured taking into account the trend followed by them in recent
years and the rms position with respect to its competitors, or the
sector average. Subjective indicators were chosen in view of the
managers refusal to provide objective performance data. Occa-
sionally, this refusal was due to managers ignorance of these data,
the rm lacking an adequate record of this information. At other
times managers were fearful of making their accident data public
because of the possible legal consequences. At the same time, a
large amount of empirical evidence has found a signicant positive
correlation between objective and subjective estimations of perfor-
mance (Hansen and Wernerfelt, 1989; Lyles and Salk, 1997). Fur-
ther, as Jones et al. (1999) suggest, the rate of near miss reports
is an important numerical indicator of an industrys safety aware-
ness. Implementing a safety management system such as the one
described in this study implies an improvement in the process of
recording and analysing any accidents or incidents that occur.
Hence the rms performance in this area may improve, while at
the same time the objective indicators of the phenomenon are
rising.
We do not consider the potential reduction in insurance costs in
this study, since Spain has a national social security system that
covers the compensation and medical expenses of accident victims.
Spanish rms have to take out insurance to cover these two items
through this public system, paying monthly contributions. The
amount the rm pays bears no relation to its safety performance,
but depends on the sector of activity. Thus, the cost of insurance
to cover compensation and medical expenses is the same for two
rms in the same sector even if one has a substantially lower acci-
dent rate. Consequently, in the particular case of Spanish rms,
implementing the safety management system described here will
not have any effect on the cost of such insurance.
Having obtained an initial structure of items, a rst draft of the
questionnaire to be used to collect the information was elaborated.
In a second phase, the draft questionnaire was submitted to a
renement process in order to eliminate items that were highly
redundant because of analogous meanings. For this, the opinion
of various PhDs in business management was considered, followed
by four in-depth interviews with experts on occupational safety
from the Institute for the Prevention of Occupational Risks of the
region of Asturias (Spain). These experts were engineers with con-
siderable experience identifying and controlling risks in the organ-
isations, having spent more than 20 years advising and supporting
companies and monitoring compliance with the current legislation
in the area of occupational safety. Participants were presented with
a list of the rened scale items, and were requested to comment on
the relevance of each statement to companies. Finally, after select-
ing the denitive items the questionnaire was subjected to a pilot
test with safety ofcers from eight companies. The ofcers were
asked whether they understood the specic terms used, and about
the intended meaning of each statement. The nal composition of
the scales can be seen in the Appendix A.
5. Results
5.1. Estimation of measurement model
The scales proposed were subjected to a process of evaluation,
focusing on the study of their psychometric properties. Specically,
we analysed the dimensionality, examined the reliability of their
composition and evaluated the content, convergent and discrimi-
nant validity of each subscale, following the original proposals of
Churchill (1979) and Anderson and Gerbing (1988). For this pur-
pose, we conducted principal components exploratory factor anal-
yses with varimax rotation, and conrmatory factor analyses using
structural equation modelling, employing the statistics programs
SPSS/PC version 14 for Windows and EQS version 5.7a for Win-
dows, respectively.
5.1.1. Dimensionality study
The evaluation process began by carrying out a principal com-
ponents exploratory factor analysis, considering all the items pro-
posed for each dimension. This analysis reected a composition of
the scales in accordance with the starting assumptions, in other
words, it revealed the unidimensional nature of the factors policy,
incentives, training, communication, and the bidimensional nature
of planning (preventive and emergency) and control (internal and
benchmarking). On the other hand, the analysis identied three
dimensions in the performance construct, which were labelled
Safety performance, Competitiveness performance and economic-
nancial performance. Subsequently, structural equation model-
ling (SEM) was used to perform a conrmatory factor analysis on
the proposed model. The goodness-of-t measures of the initial
safety management system model showed that the model ts the
data poorly. Consequently, an iterative process was applied,
whereby items contributing to lack of t, that is, items not con-
verging sufciently on their corresponding latent variable (Ander-
son and Gerbing, 1988; Steenkamp and Van Trijp, 1991), were
systematically dropped. The best model t possible was achieved
after reducing the proposed safety management system scale from
40 to 29 explanatory variables structured in eight subscales.
 B. Fernndez-Muiz et al. / Safety Science 47 (2009) 980991
Thus, we eliminated 11 items from the original 40. This could
raise doubts about the content validity of the scale. Content valid-
ity assesses the extent to which individual scale items cover the
range of meanings included in the concept (Hair et al., 1998). The
evaluation of this validity is subjective, since it depends on the
opinion of a group of experts about the procedures used in the
development of the scale and the dimensions and variables that
it contains.
Initially, given the scarcity of measurement scales in the litera-
ture for safety management systems we considered the largest
possible number of items to measure each of the concepts used
in this study, in order to shape the scale during its validation pro-
cess, eliminating items that do not make sufcient contribution or
that generate multicollinearity problems. This is common practice
in studies using this methodology to build a more reliable mea-
surement model (e.g., Johnson and Hall, 2005).
In order to guarantee face validity, before eliminating any item
we conducted a detailed analysis of its content and of its contribu-
tion to its scale with safety practitioners and OHS experts, evaluat-
ing the necessity or otherwise of including the item in the nal
scale.
For example, we eliminated planning1 and planning2, which
measure the identication and evaluation of risks, since the ex-
perts argued that they did not add relevant information, the two
items being included in planning3, which measures prevention
plans. It is a legal requirement that these plans be designed on
the basis of an identication of the dangers and a subsequent eval-
uation of the risk to the worker.
The items nally eliminated appear in italics in the Appendix A.
Table 2 reports the results obtained in the estimation of these re-
specied models. The models clearly present satisfactory good-
ness-of-t indices (Bentler, 1990; Hair et al., 1998; Seo, 2005).
We then proceeded to evaluate the reliability and validity of this
nal proposal of items for each of the subscales making up the
safety management system and performance.
5.1.2. Reliability analysis
The reliability study indicates the degree of internal consistency
between the multiple variables that make up the scale, in other
words, the extent to which the indicators or items of the scale
are measuring the same concepts. For the purpose of guaranteeing
the maximum reliability of the scales proposed, Cronbachs a coef-
cient (Cronbach, 1951) and the Composite Reliability Index were
calculated for each one-dimensional critical factor identied in the
previous section. As Table 2 shows, all the unidimensional sub-
scales present Cronbach a coefcients greater than 0.7, considered
to be an adequate level of reliability to test causal relations (Nun-
nally, 1978). Also, the Composite Reliability Index in all cases ex-
ceeds the minimum level of 0.6 recommended by Bagozzi and Yi
(1988).
5.1.3. Validity analysis
The validity of the scales was veried by considering the con-
tent validity, convergent validity and discriminant validity. The
content validity, as mentioned above, is conrmed bearing in mind
that the proposed scales were designed following an exhaustive re-
view of the literature and subjected to a process of revision involv-
ing in-depth interviews with safety experts. The convergent
validity of a concept evaluates the extent to which two measure-
ments of the concept may be correlated (Hair et al., 1998). Conver-
gent validity can be analysed by means of standardised factorial
regression coefcients relating each variable observed with the la-
tent one (Anderson and Gerbing, 1988), in other words, by means
of standardised lambda parameters. A strong condition of conver-
gent validity is that those coefcients are over 0.5 and signicant at
a condence level of 95%, which requires t-values greater than
985
1.96. The values of the coefcients and the t-values appear in Table
2. This table shows that all subscales full both conditions, there-
fore conrming the convergent validity of the proposed scales. The
discriminant validity indicates the extent to which two conceptu-
ally similar concepts differ, and was veried by Anderson and Ger-
bings (1988) methodology, which involves estimating the
condence interval around the parameters that indicate the corre-
lation between the eight unidimensional factors of safety manage-
ment system on the one hand, and the three unidimensional
factors of performance on the other, bearing in mind the value of
these parameters and the corresponding standardised errors, to
check that no interval includes 1.
In order to conrm the bidimensional nature of planning and
control, we ran a second-order conrmatory factor analysis, and
noted that in all cases the existence of two factors or dimensions
improves the model t. In addition, the resulting standardised
lambda parameters were evaluated, and also the condence inter-
vals of the correlations between the factors, in order to re-check
the convergent and discriminant validity. Finally, we ran a third-
order conrmatory factor analysis to conrm that the six dimen-
sions of policy, incentives, training, communication, planning and
control converge on a single latent variable termed safety manage-
ment system. Fig. 2 shows that the model t is satisfactory. Addi-
tionally, the regression coefcients of the safety management
system factor are much greater than 0.5 and signicant at the
95% condence level, conrming the convergent validity of the
concept. Thus, the reliability and validity of the safety management
system scale have been demonstrated, and it is possible to struc-
ture its 29 items in six dimensions that refer to the practices to
which they are linked. Likewise, the reliability and validity of the
measuring scales of the three types of performance are also con-
rmed, meaning they can be used to test the hypotheses.
5.2. Estimation of proposed structural model
To test the proposed model, we use the structural equation
modelling statistical technique. This methodology, which is fre-
quently used in the literature (Brown et al., 2000; Silva et al.,
2004; Siu et al., 2003; Seo, 2005; Huang et al., 2006; Larsson
et al., 2008), allows us to test complex models of relations between
variables considering all the model relations simultaneously. The
goodness-of-t indices of the suggested model shown may be con-
sidered satisfactory (Fig. 3), since they are very close to the recom-
mended values.
With regard to testing the hypotheses put forward, the coef-
cients reected in the model conrm that safety management sys-
tem has a direct, positive and statistically signicant inuence on
safety performance, competitiveness performance and economic-
nancial performance, corroborating hypotheses H1, H2 and H3,
respectively.
Moreover, the results show that the safety management system
has a stronger effect on competitiveness performance than on the
other two types of performance, given its higher structural coef-
cient (b = 0.55, p < 0.05). Thus, implementing this system affects
rst and foremost the rms image and reputation, its productivity
and its capacity to innovate. These are all key factors for the rms
survival in the market.
We also nd that the safety management system has an impor-
tant effect on safety performance (b = 0.47, p < 0.05). This means
that the more developed the system, the fewer and less serious
the injuries and the more motivated the employees. Finally, the ef-
fect of the safety management system on economic-nancial per-
formance is positive and signicant, but weaker than for the
other two types of performance (b = 0.35, p < 0.05). Thus, the safety
management system appears to have a positive inuence on the
rms sales, prots and nancial protability, but the effect is less
986 B. Fernndez-Muiz et al. / Safety Science 47 (2009) 980991

Table 2
First-order Conrmatory Factor Analysis (First order CFA).

Dimension variables Cronbach a Composite Reliability Standardised Lambda t-Values Dimension- Correlation Condence
Indexes Parameters Dimension Interval
First order CFA for safety management system
Safety Policy (SPol) 0.713 0.717 SPol-IN 0.577 (0.4770.677)
Pol1 0.65 13.114 SPol-TR 0.649 (0.5490.749)
Pol2 0.63 14.160 SPol-CO 0.631 (0.5310.731)
Pol4 0.75 15.611 SPol-PrP 0.721 (0.6250.817)
Employees Incentives (IN) 0.731 0.747 SPol-EP 0.465 (0.3570.573)
Incent1 0.57 13.189 SPol-IC 0.658 (0.5680.748)
Incent3 0.52 11.216 SPol-BE 0.458 (0.3520.564)
Incent4 0.80 21.183 IN-TR 0.755 (0.6770.833)
Incent5 0.69 17.359 IN-CO 0.808 (0.7460.870)
Training (TR) 0.782 0.785 IN-PrP 0.523 (0.4210.625)
Train1 0.71 16.803 IN-EP 0.386 (0.2880.484)
Train3 0.74 18.552 IN-IC 0.629 (0.0510.707)
Train6 0.62 15.337 IN-BE 0.450 (0.3420.558)
Train8 0.59 13.395 TR-CO 0.899 (0.8470.951)
Train9 0.58 11.776 TR-PrP 0.650 (0.5600.740)
Communication (CO) 0.805 0.808 TR-EP 0.463 (0.3670.559)
Commun1 0.80 22.704 TR-IC 0.809 (0.7430.875)
Commun2 0.76 20.474 TR-BE 0.470 (0.3680.572)
Commun4 0.74 20.465 CO-PrP 0.676 (0.5940.758)
Preventive planning (PrP) 0.764 0.770 CO-EP 0.552 (0.4640.640)
planning3 0.66 11.816 CO-IC 0.830 (0.7720.888)
planning5 0.83 19.326 CO-BE 0.543 (0.4490.637)
planning6 0.69 14.531 PrP-EP 0.532 (0.4320.632)
Emergency planning (EP) 0.850 0.856 PrP-IC 0.752 (0.6820.822)
planning8 0.82 18.288 PrP-BE 0.397 (0.2950.499)
planning9 0.80 24.075 EP-IC 0.535 (0.4510.619)
planning10 0.86 23.118 EP-BE 0.379 (0.2790.479)
planning11 0.59 16.448 IC-BE 0.580 (0.4960.664)
Internal control (IC) 0.854 0.859
Control1 0.79 20.189
Control2 0.81 23.773 Results of Model Fit: S-Bv2 (349) = 855.561 p = 0.001
Control3 0.71 20.167
Control4 0.81 23.522
Control5 0.58 10.613
Benchmarking (BE) 0.823 0.825 RMSEA = 0.057 IFI = 0.920
Control6 0.79 19.823 BNNFI = 0.901 GFI = 0.879
Control7 0.88 19.922 CFI = 0.920 AGFI = 0.849

First order CFA for performance

Safety Performance (SP) 0.743 0.746
Perform1 0.74 16.591 SP-CP 0.687 (0.6150.759)
Perform2 0.72 14.051
Perform5 0.61 11.450 SP-EP 0.309 (0.2070.411)
Perform6 0.53 10.877
Competitiveness Performance (CP) 0.853 0.857 CP-EP 0.567 (0.4930.641)
Perform3 0.72 15.200
2
Perform4 0.64 13.432 Results of Model Fit: S-Bv (62) = 222.9081 p = 0.000
Perform7 0.77 15.692
Perform8 0.85 19.107
Perform9 0.70 14.425
Economic-Financial Performance 0.929 0.930
(EP)
Perform10 0.83 20.834 SRMR = 0.064 IFI = 0.925
Perform11 0.84 20.542 BNNFI = 0.905 GFI = 0.896
Perform12 0.93 26.482 CFI = 0.924 AGFI = 0.848
Perform13 0.90 25.036

Note: t-values above 1.96 indicate signicance at 95% condence level.

evident than for the other two performance indicators. This nding
may be because a longer time period is needed for these benets to
become apparent.
6. Discussion
Many studies have recognised the important role played by the
rms management in reducing accidents (Zohar, 1980; Hofmann
and Stetzer, 1996; Rundmo, 1996; Dedobbeleer and Bland,
1998; Flin et al., 2000; Rundmo and Hale, 2003; DeJoy et al.,
2004; Fernndez-Muiz et al., 2007). Despite this, we seem to ob-
serve a weak commitment on the part of the management, which
is reected in the low level of implementation of safety manage-
ment systems in rms, in the allocation of only limited resources
to preventive actions, and in a formal compliance with obligations
that only seeks to avoid legal responsibilities. Firms prioritise
 B. Fernndez-Muiz et al. / Safety Science 47 (2009) 980991 987

Policy
0.73
(10.247)

Incentives
0.79
(10.894)

0.92 Training
(11.852)

0.95
SAFETY (20.371)
Communication
MANAGEMENT
SYSTEM
0.89
(12.888) 0.86 Preventive

Planning
Emergency
0.62
0.91
(9.899)
0.97 Internal C.

Control
Benchmarking
0.60

Results of Model Fit: S-B 2 (349) = 736.009 RMSEA=0.058 IFI=0.910

p=0.001 BBNNFI=0.901 GFI=0.864
CFI=0.910 AGFI=0.841

Note: t-values in parentheses.

Fig. 2. Occupational safety management system measurement scale (third-order conrmatory factor model).

production criteria, regarding resources dedicated to occupational
safety as expenditures that have nothing to do with the rms pro-
duction aims, in other words, as costs rather than an investment.
But the current work offers empirical evidence of the economic
advantages of adopting an adequate safety management system,
since the results show that the more developed the system is,
the better not only the safety performance, but also the competi-
tiveness and economic-nancial performance.
The results obtained allow us to say that the safety manage-
ment system reduces both personal harm and material damage.
Thus, it reduces workers absenteeism, improves their motivation,
and consequently makes them less likely to leave the company,
which means the company retains workers with specic knowl-
edge who are difcult to replace.
Likewise, the results show that the safety management system
has a positive effect on competitiveness performance. The more
developed the system is: (1) the higher the quality of the rms
products and services (since the safety management system re-
quires the formulation of working procedures, instructions, and
planning and control of the work), (2) the higher the productivity,
as a consequence of the improvement in quality and reduction in
nancial costs and opportunity costs derived from losses of pro-
duction and of business caused by the accidents; (3) the higher
the customer satisfaction and the better the rms reputation and
image, since occupational safety is particularly important to soci-
ety; and (4) the higher the rms degree of innovation, due to the
technological and organisational innovations derived from the
improvements in safety. Innovation, a good reputation, specialist
knowledge and motivated employees are all assets that can pro-
vide rms with a sustainable competitive advantage over relatively
long periods of time. These assets are strongly affected by occupa-
tional accident rates and working conditions. Hence we can con-
clude that managing occupational risk is a capacity that allows
organisations to maintain and develop their intangibles, speci-
cally their intellectual capital, which has a fundamental value for
the development of the rm.
Finally, we nd that the more advanced the management sys-
tem implemented, the more satised these organisations are with
their economic and nancial indicators. This demonstrates the po-
sitive inuence of safety management on growth in the market
988 B. Fernndez-Muiz et al. / Safety Science 47 (2009) 980991
Policy
Incentives
Training
Communication
Preventive
Planning
Emergency
Internal C.
Control
Benchmarking
Results of Model Fit: S-B2 (181) = 490.079
p=0.000
Note: * significant at 95% level.
Fig. 3. Results of estimation of proposed model.
share and hence the rms position on growth in prots, prot/
sales, and in short, on the rms protability.
Thus, this work conrms that the safety management system,
far from being a burden for the rm, is actually a factor of produc-
tivity, and an essential ingredient for improving the rms position
in the market. Consequently, this work shows that not only are
safety management and economic performance compatible, but
that safety management can become an important source of com-
petitive advantages for rms. This work should therefore encour-
age rms to implement such a system and adopt a responsible
behaviour in this area. They can be assured that doing this will pro-
vide them with the opportunity to gain signicant benets.
6.1. Limitations of study
First, although the constructs used in this research have been
dened as precisely as possible, based on the available relevant lit-
erature, clearly articulating our conceptual framework and carry-
ing out a meticulous process of generation and revision of items,
the measures developed should be understood as an approxima-
tion to latent phenomena, which cannot be measured in full. More-
over, it should be borne in mind that the relations have been
evaluated from the viewpoint of the rms safety ofcer only. Like-
wise, and although it has been shown to be representative, we
should bear in mind that the sample is based on the safety ofcers
willingness to respond. This fact could originate biases, with the
rms with the best safety culture being more predisposed to par-
ticipate in the study. But this is a common problem in studies that
use this methodology based on questionnaires. Finally, the study
was carried out at a specic moment in time, and therefore it is
cross-sectional survey. Thus, conclusions of a causal type may be
debatable. But the methodology used does allow us to reject causal
models that do not conform to the patterns of association detected
SAFETY
PERFORMANCE
0.47*
SAFETY 0.55*
MANAGEMENT COMPETITIVENESS
SYSTEM PERFORMANCE
0.35*
ECONOMIC-
FINANCIAL
PERFORMANCE
SRMR=0.058 IFI=0.920
BBNNFI= 0.907 GFI=0.880
CFI= 0.920 AGFI=0.847
in the data, and accept models that do conform to them (Meli,
2004). In our case, the results indicate that the data are consistent
with the hypothesised causal relations.
Given the above limitations, we would suggest a number of pos-
sible future lines of research. The time lag between efforts to im-
prove working conditions and obtaining superior performance
makes it advisable to obtain a data panel that would allow a
time-series analysis. Researchers could then study the inuence
of the safety management system on the rms competitive situa-
tion in the market more fully, as in Grimaldi (1970), Kjelln et al.
(1997). It would also be advisable to collect employers, employees
and customers opinions to give a more complete picture of the re-
sults. In addition, other aspects could be studied further, such as
the organisational variables that favour or limit the implementa-
tion of such a management system, and the integration of the sys-
tem into the management of the rm. The sector of activity and
rm size conceivably condition the development of this manage-
ment system. For example, this system will presumably be more
developed the larger the rm size and the higher the risk of the
activity. Finally, it would be interesting to study in more detail
the process of technological and organisational innovation un-
leashed as a consequence of the improvement in the working con-
ditions, as well as the economic valuation and quantication of the
effects of the safety management system. This would provide rms
with a useful tool for undertaking the fullest possible cost-benet
analysis.
7. Conclusions
This work has aimed to analyse the effect of implementing an
occupational safety management system on rms performance.
For this purpose, we rst identied good management practices,
 B. Fernndez-Muiz et al. / Safety Science 47 (2009) 980991 989

and then carried out an empirical study on a sample of 455 Spanish Appendix A
Appendix A (continued)
rms using a questionnaire sent to their safety ofcers. After veri-
Pol4 Safety policy contains commitment to
fying the reliability and validity of the measurement scales of the
continuous improvement, attempting to
concepts used in the study, we built a structural equation model
improve objectives already achieved
to test whether implementing a safety management system like
Employees incentives
the one proposed here consisting of a safety policy that estab-
Incent1 Incentives frequently offered to workers
lishes principles and the responsibilities of all organisation mem-
to put in practice principles and
bers, incentives that encourage workers involvement, training, a
procedures of action (e.g., correct use of
uid communication, planning of the activities to carry out and
protective equipment).
an adequate control of such activities subsequently has a positive
Incent2 Modications of production processes or
effect on:
changes in jobs consulted directly with
workers affected or their representatives
(1) safety performance, since it reduces the accident rate, and
Incent3 Resolutions frequently adopted that
hence the personal injuries and material damage, and simul-
originated from consultations with or
taneously improves working conditions, which raises
suggestions from workers
employees motivation and reduces their absenteeism;
Incent4 Meetings periodically held between
(2) competitiveness performance, due to its positive inuence
managers and workers to take decisions
on the rms image, reputation, productivity and innovation;
affecting organisation of work
(3) economic-nancial performance, due to its positive inu-
Incent5 Frequent use of teams made up of
ence on the rms sales, prots and protability.
workers from different parts of
organisation to resolve specic problems
The results provide evidence to support the proposed effects.
relating to working conditions
Thus, far from being an economic burden for rms, implementing
Training in
this safety management system can be seen as an opportunity,
occupational hazards
since it has numerous positive effects on rm performance. The
Train1 Worker given sufcient training period
ndings of this work consequently represent an important source
when entering rm, changing jobs or
of motivation for rms to implement a safety management system
using new technique
like the one described here and improve their safety.
Train2 There is follow-up of training needs and of
efcacy or repercussion of training
Acknowledgements
previously given
Train3 Training actions continuous and periodic,
This work has been supported by funds from the following re-
integrated in formally established
search projects:
training plan
Train4 Training plans elaborated taking into
 Audits of occupational health and safety systems in Spain:
account rms particular characteristics
evaluation of results, nanced by the Regional Ministry of Edu-
Train5 Specic training plans elaborated according
cation and Science of the Region of Asturias (Consejera de Edu-
to section or job position
cacin y Ciencia del Principado de Asturias).
Train6 Training plan decided jointly with
 Integration of prevention of occupational risk in the strategic
workers or their representatives.
management of the company, nanced by the Regional Minis-
Train7 Training actions carried out during working
try of Industry and Employment of the Region of Asturias (Con-
day
sejera de Industria y Empleo del Principado de Asturias), the
Train8 Firm helps workers to train in-house
Regional Ministry of Education and Science of the Region of
(leave, grants)
Asturias; and the European Union, through FEDER funds.
Train9 Instruction manuals or work procedures
 Determining factors in the development of safety manage-
elaborated to aid in preventive action
ment of Spanish companies, nanced by the University of
Communication in
Oviedo.
prevention matters
Commun1 There is a uent communication
embodied in periodic and frequent
Appendix A. Measurement scales of study variables
meetings, campaigns or oral
presentations to transmit principles and
Safety policy rules of action
Pol1 Firm coordinates its health and safety Commun2 Information systems made available to
policies with other HR policies to ensure affected workers prior to modications
commitment and well-being of workers and changes in production processes, job
Pol2 Written declaration is available to all positions or expected investments
workers reecting managements Commun3 When starting in new job position workers
concern for safety, principles of action are provided written information about
and objectives to achieve procedures and correct way of doing tasks
Pol3 Management has established in writing the Commun4 Written circulars elaborated and
functions of commitment and participation meetings organised to inform workers
and the responsibilities in safety questions about risks associated with their work
of all organisation members and how to prevent accidents
(continued on next page)
990 B. Fernndez-Muiz et al. / Safety Science 47 (2009) 980991

Appendix
Appendix A
A (continued)
(continued) Appendix A
Appendix A (continued)
Preventive planning Perform7 Customer satisfaction
Planning1 Firm has systems to identify risks in all job Perform8 Reputation
positions. Perform9 Innovation
Planning2 Systems in place to evaluate risks detected Economic-nancial
in all job positions. performance
Planning3 Prevention plans formulated setting Perform10 Financial protability
measures to take on basis of information Perform11 Growth in market share
provided by evaluation of risks in all job Perform12 Growth in prots
positions. Perform13 Prot/sales
Planning4 Prevention plans clearly specify person
responsible for carrying out action
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