Safety remains the biggest challenge for 2012

The year 2011 was characterized by further improvements in key indicators of safety and accident rates in OKD (including employees of our contractors). "It shows that prevention and extra safety investments make sense and heading in the right direction. But this is not, what should satisfy us. Memento for all must be the fate of five of our colleagues, who never returned from work last year," Leo Bayer, OKD Chief Operating Officer summed up last year.

Number of registered accidents at work has decreased by 8.9 percent from 271 in 2010 to 248. The company expected that with the emphasis on safety the decrease would be even more aggressive. The negative impact on this balance was caused by mine bumps where 21 employees were injured. The causes of work accidents remain in poorly or inadequately estimated risk or in violations of labor discipline, unpredictable risk at work or human fail. However, five fatalities had an impact on the positive trend, three of our own employees and two employees of our contractors.

Recently, we heard that some seniors did not allow people under the threat of various sanctions to report an accident at work." Our corporate ombudsman has received such as information. If this is true, it's immoral for us not only act this way, but also the violation of
internal rules, and that is why we started an internal audit, which purpose is to investigate this situation and possibly take effective action," said Bayer.

Prevention pays off

During the first quarter of 2011 was held in cooperation with Revírní bratrská pokladna, health insurance company in selected professions, 4^th stage of so called “vitaminizing”. The result was a reduction in absence due to illness. Last year the company has gradually deployed a total of 12 sets of contactless tracking of people (BSL) in the faces included in the third degree of bumps on mines in Darkov, Karviná and ČSM. Also continued the construction of VFSK5 signaling and communication system, which is designed for wireless signal and voice communication between the transport container and the operation of mining machines.

A significant percentage of injuries occur when walking, and especially in this area we put new technical precautions. Steel grating walkway has been built, the escape route has been marked in case of poor visibility and new light has been placed in places where with an increased risk of injury. There is also preparation for testing and subsequent implementation of traffic control communication with the mine workers and the implementation of automatic spray controllers CONFLOW CODE 100 for dust suppression at conveyor belts.

In contact with the world

Safety at work is still highest priority for OKD. It's not just about regular safety meetings, which are held every month in cooperation with trade unions and participation of top management. The clear evidence of management's intentions is the recent deployment of new world-class mining technologies and continuous implementation of new and modern protective equipment and measuring and indicating equipment.

Everything is connected with the work of experts in OKD management, who constantly monitor the results and experience in occupational safety and operations in other countries with developed mining industry (USA, Poland, Germany) and tries to apply the beneficial news in OKD mines.

The results oblige

Positive results of all our mines in the area of ​​safety are obliged. For OKD this is the challenge for the year 2012, in which we have in many ways at all levels to change our approach to safety at work and health protection of all of us.

Our goal is to reach a state where we will prevent accidents and not solve them and justify the reasons if they happen. At the same time we increase the emphasis on personal responsibility for safe operation, because this is the only way we can achieve better results in this area.

Safety bonus

Based on the safety results of the past year, the CEO decided about the payment of extraordinary bonuses - Safety bonus. The amount of bonus for mine workers (technical management with section competence and mine workers) was 2300 CZK and bonus for employees on
the surface, including the Center of service (technical management with section competence and mine workers) was in the amount of 1100 CZK. Extraordinary bonus payment will be made in the regular pay period for the month of December 2011.

Safety bonus will be paid to the employees of contractors, providing mine-construction work at the workplaces in OKD.