Health & Safety
Health and Safety – Our Commitment
Creating a safe work environment is a part of the commitment and pledge we make to each and every employee. In 2007, Yamana conducted almost 3,000 safety interactions and conversations with employees every month. We have rigorous processes in place to manage health and safety protocols and we continue to make the investments to enhance the safety precautions in our operations to protect our people. We strive to go beyond compliance and ensure the prevention of accidents at our sites through the implementation of best practices in health and safety management. Yamana has extended our human resource standards to the newly acquired mining sites at Minera Florida and El Peñón.
We welcome our people, from the field to management, to suggest new ideas and protocols for safety measures. PEACE, which stands for Think, Study, Analyze and Execute in Portuguese, is a safety program that enables each employee to analyze a task in order to execute it safely. It reinforces those five key actions employees should focus on regarding any potential risk.
Prior to the start of a day’s work, the Daily Safety Dialogue (DDS) is conducted at all of our mining operations to cover specific issues related to safety, health and environmental guidelines. In 2007, a new training program in risk evaluation was fundamental to ensuring the safety of our people.
The overall health of our employees is vital to the success of Yamana. We continue to focus on the health of our employees through our vaccinations and injections programs to prevent occupational diseases. We continue to seek new measures for reducing noise pollution at work sites. While many mining firms see putting in place health and safety measures and programs as an obligation, at Yamana it is taken to the level of respect for our employees and fundamental to being a great place to work.
Yamana reports all injuries classified as lost time, first aid, restricted work and medical treatment. Yamana has created a safety statistic monitoring system where it showcases the safety performance. We continue to strive to lower the Lost Time Injury Frequency Rate (LTIFR) at our mines. We conduct an investigation of every accident, incident and related infringements.
For Yamana, health and safety is the responsibility of everyone. Our management team has made a commitment to ensure proactive attitudes toward safety in all of our operations. As Yamana focuses on goals for 2010, we have set in place year-over-year targets to consistently and proactively implement programs and measures to reduce accidents and injuries. Our employees are engaged through training, and are empowered to provide input into new practices for our operations.
Yamana strives to meet and exceed occupational safety standards in our industry.
The Safety, Health and Environmental Principles of Yamana
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To continuously employ in our activities and products, environmental advancements that reduce pollution and health and safety risks while adhering to applicable environmental, health and safety laws and legislation.
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To prioritize the development of more efficient, safer and pollution-minimizing technology, and adopt technology that improves processes, products and the services of suppliers and contractors so as to maximize environmental protection.
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To train, educate and motivate employees and contractors to execute their tasks and duties in a safe and environmentally responsible manner.
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To foster a healthy and safe working environment as the responsibility of all employees.
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To establish and review environmental, health and safety objectives and goals, and to work and consult with stakeholders and communities to ensure we are meeting those objectives.
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To make recommendations to our suppliers and contractors in the management of environmental, health and safety policies, and sustainability with the consideration and input of stakeholders.
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To build and operate facilities according to applicable international standards for environmental management and compliance.