Mining and metals advocacy group the ICMM has published its ‘Tools for Psychological Health and Safety’ guide to support mining and metals companies to embed strong psychological health and safety practices into daily operations and organisational culture.

The ICMM says the tools aim to reduce risk and help companies strengthen safety cultures to ultimately prevent harm.

Across the sector, the focus on safety has led to major advances in how physical risks are managed, the group states, adding, however, that as operational environments become more complex, and as expectations around workplace culture and care continue to evolve, psychological health and safety has emerged as a critical, and still underdeveloped, frontier.

Fatigue, isolation, job strain, bullying and trauma exposure continue to affect workers at rates that outpace other sectors, it notes.

If left unaddressed, the ICMM warns, these issues can impact the health and safety of workers, in addition to wider impacts on workforce stability, operational performance, and the industry’s ability to attract and retain talent.

The 'Tools for Psychological Health and Safety' guide provide a practical foundation for corporate leadership in psychological health and safety in the mining and metals industry, spanning the full mental health continuum.

The group says it builds on the ICMM’s 'Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Tools' guide published last year, supporting companies to prevent harm by embedding psychosocial risk management into business systems and designing mentally healthy work; intervene early to identify issues before they escalate, through leadership training, safe reporting pathways and integrated monitoring; respond to injury or illness using trauma-informed approaches, workplace adjustments and return-to-work plans; promote positive work experiences that foster connection, meaning and engagement.

“There is no higher priority for ICMM members than keeping people safe and healthy at work. These new tools will accelerate critically needed progress on strengthening safety cultures and supporting workers’ psychological health and safety that will help to reduce harm and fatalities which are unfortunately still far too common in the industry,” says ICMM president and CEO Rohitesh Dhawan.

Dhawan argues that better psychological safety leads to better physical safety.

“When people feel able to speak up, take responsibility, and bring their whole selves to work, they help to prevent the kinds of incidents that lead to serious harm, and they contribute to a culture that attracts and retains the skilled people we need”.

He says the ICMM’s new tools support progress at both local and organisational levels to build workplaces where people are not only protected, but supported to do their best work – in environments that are safer and more sustainable.

Canadian miner Teck Resources president and CEO Jonathan Price adds that Teck supported and contributed to the development of the Tools for Psychological Health and Safety because a psychologically safe workplace leads to better safety outcomes, and also helps to improve performance, innovation and inclusivity across companies.

“Teck has made psychological safety a priority for a number of years, fostering a culture of continuous learning, high performance and workforce engagement.”

Based on a modular and scalable model, he explains that the ICMM’s tools enable companies to adapt their implementation based on operational maturity, site context and culture.

It also supports the integration of psychological health and safety across multiple internal functions, including within existing risk management systems and linked to the same processes and accountabilities that underpin physical health and safety.

The ICMM says its members are committed to continual improvement in health and safety, as they work to eliminate fatalities towards a goal of zero harm.