Occupational Health and Safety Management in the Extractive Industry: An Exploratory Study of the Ghanaian Oil and Gas Industry

Abstract

Occupational health and safety (OHS) risks in the oil and gas industry are inevitable, hence the need for occupational health and safety management in the extractive industry. Moreover, studies indicate that oil and gas companies in Ghana tend to adopt their own occupational health and safety management practices to guide their operations. The present study, thus, sought to explore what occupational health and safety management is being practised in Ghana’s oil and gas sector ten years on, with special emphasis on the extractive segment of the industry. Further, findings indicate that the most important occupational health and safety management practices in Ghana’s oil and gas extraction industry were the use of PPEs, workplace health and safety, training for capacity building, safety training, standardized tools and equipment and the taking of precautionary measures, and duty of care. OHS Policies and their execution were identified as the bedrocks of OHS management. Like the safety first policy, it is recommended that oil and gas firms endeavour to make occupational safety and health a central part of their organizational culture.