| Document ID (ISN) | 75394 |
| CIS number |
00-1422 |
| ISSN - Serial title |
0925-7535 - Safety Science |
| Year |
1999 |
| Convention or series no. |
|
| Author(s) |
Hopkins A. |
| Title |
For whom does safety pay? The case of major accidents |
| Bibliographic information |
July-Aug. 1999, Vol.32, No.2-3, p.143-153. 15 ref. |
| Abstract |
Government agencies regularly use the argument that "safety pays" as a way of motivating employees to attend to occupational health and safety. This paper looks at the effectiveness of this argument in the case of catastrophic hazards. It suggests that, while it may be true that safety pays in an abstract sense, this is irrelevant unless it can be shown that safety pays for relevant decision makers. All too often it does not. The article illustrates its claims by drawing on the literature on the Zeebrugge, Bhopal and Piper Alpha disasters, as well as on a study of a mine disaster in Australia. |
| Descriptors (primary) |
cost of safety; disasters; major hazards |
| Descriptors (secondary) |
responsibilities of employers; human behaviour; cost-benefit analysis; economic aspects; compensation of occupational accidents; motivation |
| Document type |
D - Periodical articles |
| Country / State or Province | Australia |
| Subject(s) |
Generalities
|
| Broad subject area(s) |
Fires, explosions and major hazards
|
| Browse category(ies) |
Major hazards
Economic aspects
|
