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| Illustration by Ai |
Occupational safety performance among workers in the palm oil processing industry is strongly influenced by the safety climate established within the workplace. This finding was revealed by Thalia Ika Putri Siregar, Umi Salmah, and Eka Lestari Mahyuni from the University of North Sumatra (Universitas Sumatera Utara/USU) in a study published in June 2026 in the Jurnal Multidisiplin Madani (MUDIMA). The research highlights how management commitment, safety communication, safety practices, and safety training contribute to shaping workers’ safe behavior at the Rambutan Palm Oil Mill (POM) in North Sumatra.
The findings are particularly important because the palm oil
processing industry is one of the sectors with a high risk of occupational
accidents. Production activities involve high-pressure machinery, extreme heat,
noise exposure, and various other hazards that require workers to consistently
comply with safety procedures.
According to the researchers, the existence of safety
regulations and facilities alone is not sufficient to ensure safe worker
behavior. A more decisive factor is how employees perceive the company’s
commitment to safety and how safety culture is implemented in daily operations.
The study was conducted at the Rambutan Palm Oil Mill
operated by PT Perkebunan Nusantara IV Regional I in Tebing Tinggi, North
Sumatra. Research activities began in March 2026 and involved 88 workers from
the processing, sorting, and engineering departments, all of which are
considered high-risk work areas. Data were collected through observations,
interviews, and questionnaires, and were analyzed using statistical methods to
assess the relationship between safety climate and occupational safety performance.
The results indicate that workplace safety conditions at the
study site still face several challenges. Approximately 58 percent of
respondents rated the workplace safety climate as poor, while 56.8 percent of
workers were categorized as having poor safety performance.
The researchers found that all major components of safety
climate were significantly associated with workers’ safety performance. Key
findings include:
- Management
commitment significantly affected occupational safety performance (p =
0.036).
- Safety
communication significantly affected occupational safety performance (p =
0.002).
- Safety
practices significantly affected occupational safety performance (p =
0.001).
- Safety
training significantly affected occupational safety performance (p <
0.001).
- Overall,
safety climate had a highly significant influence on workers’ safety
performance (p < 0.001).
Among all variables examined, safety training emerged as the
most dominant factor. Regression analysis showed that workers who received
inadequate safety training were 4.575 times more likely to demonstrate poor
safety performance compared with workers who received adequate training.
Safety communication also had a strong influence. Workers
exposed to ineffective safety communication were 3.487 times more likely to
have poor safety performance. Meanwhile, inadequate safety practices increased
the risk of poor safety performance by 2.780 times.
The study identified several workplace conditions that
require improvement. These include inconsistent supervision of personal
protective equipment (PPE) usage, safety communication limited to morning
briefings without in-depth discussions of workplace risks, insufficient
specialized safety training, and low reporting rates of near-miss incidents
among workers.
According to Thalia Ika Putri Siregar and her colleagues
from the University of North Sumatra, improving workplace safety requires more
than simply providing regulations and safety facilities. Companies need to
build a strong safety culture through open communication, continuous training,
consistent supervision, and active worker participation in safety programs.
The study also found that workers who received effective
safety communication, consistent safety practices, and adequate safety training
had an 85.3 percent probability of achieving good safety performance. This
finding demonstrates that investment in workplace safety not only reduces
accident risks but also enhances the overall quality of the working
environment.
For the palm oil industry and other manufacturing sectors,
the research delivers a clear message: building a strong workplace safety
culture must become a top priority. A safe work environment not only protects
workers but also supports productivity, business sustainability, and the
achievement of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly those related
to decent work and economic growth.
Author Profiles
Thalia Ika Putri Siregar is a researcher from the
University of North Sumatra specializing in occupational health and safety
(OHS), workplace safety behavior, and industrial risk management.
Dr. Umi Salmah is an academic at the University of
North Sumatra with expertise in public health, occupational safety and health,
and occupational health policy development.
Dr. Eka Lestari Mahyuni is a lecturer and researcher
at the University of North Sumatra whose research focuses on environmental
health, occupational health, and industrial safety.
Research Source
Article Title: Safety Climate as a Determinant of
Occupational Safety Performance among Rambutan Palm Oil Mill Workers
Authors: Thalia Ika Putri Siregar, Umi Salmah, and
Eka Lestari Mahyuni
Affiliation: University of North Sumatra (Universitas
Sumatera Utara)
Journal: Jurnal Multidisiplin Madani (MUDIMA)
Volume & Issue: Vol. 6 No. 6, June 2026
Pages: 938–954
DOI: 10.55927/mudima.v6i6.94
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