Newmont held global Health and Safety Summits in Nevada and Australia this year to address the question, "How do we mine safely?" Each two-day summit provided an open environment for communication, sharing of ideas and educational opportunities. It focused on three themes: Newmont's Safety Journey, developing our people and operational risk management.
Solid turnout The nearly 400 people attending the two summits represented operations in Ghana, Australia, Indonesia, South America, Canada, Denver and Nevada, along with exploration projects in other parts of the world."When you get key people from around the world in one spot, you get an interchange of different cultures," said Michael Byrne, vice president of health and safety. "The response has been overwhelmingly positive, challenging us all to raise the bar in making safety personal in everything we do."
Investing in safety Newmont invested significant funds to talk about safety globally, develop our people in pursuit of excellence and reaffirm the company's commitment to our core Values.
"The message from our Board is that we want people to attend, be fully engaged and when they go back, talk to the people and engage them in the excitement of what this is all about," he said. "Safety saves lives, and it is important from a business standpoint. When you get the safety part right, you get the business part right. You become a very efficient company."
Byrne believes that safety at Newmont involves a journey to reach the point of integration of safety into business decisions. One of Newmont's goals is for its employees to know where they are on their Safety Journey.
Sharing expertise Newmont invited crisis communications expert Vincent Covello, director of the Center for Risk Communications, to speak about effectively communicating about risks during a crisis at the Summits.
"At a time when people are worried and frightened, such as during the current swine flu crisis, authorities should respond to questions at a level people understand," he said. "A rule of thumb for communicators at times of crisis is to keep responses short and clear and deliver them with empathy."
Covello said advance preparation for handling a crisis can make a difference.
"The World Health Organization and health departments have been preparing for this for years and years," he said.
Another guest speaker, Chad Hymas, brought passion and emotion from a farming accident that left him a quadriplegic more than 8 years ago. He described his journey from a career-ending injury to being recognized as one of the 10 most inspirational speakers in the world by the Wall Street Journal.
"The most precious gift you can give a person is your time," Hymas said.
