Making Sense of Sensemaking in Safety Culture Development: A Romanian Company Experience

Abstract Safety culture is a topic that has been debated for too little time in Romania. Especially in multinational companies, there are numerous programs implemented in order to develop the safety culture among employees. Since in Romania a framework, a culture, which favors the full understanding of the concept of safety at work is not developed, still, in most companies, the term safety at work is assimilated to the set of cumbersome laws and government decisions, instructions and procedures, inspections, helmet and boots. Romania is at the bottom of the list of countries in terms of the number of occupational accidents with incapacity for work, but it is at the top of the list of countries with the most fatal accidents. A paradox, a reality concealed by economic operators by not reporting work accidents with work incapacity, which means that an investigation of the root causes is not carried out, thus leading to accidents that result in death. Accident reporting shows the maturity of the safety culture. The following article discusses the steps taken by Port Operator CHIMPEX to make the transition from a company based on indicators, systems and profit to a company based on people, in this case during implementing and developing an organizational culture based on leadership.