Work value as a mediator between safety culture and safety attitude

The Fourth Industrial Revolution (Industry 4.0) has ushered in significant changes to manufacturing sector operations, steering them towards computerization and automation technologies. These changes have also given rise to various occupational safety and health issues, particularly in the chemical industry, involving numerous injuries, fatalities, property damage, and adverse effects on the environment. Many organizations in this industry strive to maintain workplace safety performance by reassessing safety cultures that influence employees' safety attitudes and values. This study aims to examine the relationship between safety culture and safety attitudes, as well as to test job values as a mediator between safety culture and safety attitudes. The Self-Efficacy Theory is employed to elucidate the relationships between variables in this study. To test hypotheses, the statistical technique of Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) is used to analyze survey data collected from 385 chemical industry workers in Selangor, Malaysia. The study findings indicate that safety culture has a positive relationship with safety attitudes. However, job values could not be confirmed as a mediator between safety culture and safety attitudes. Theoretically, this study contributes to the field by emphasizing the importance of safety culture in influencing safety attitudes. Practically, the research suggests that the government, as policy makers, and organizational management, as implementers, should enhance workplace safety cultures to improve safety management practices in the workplace.