Pro-Safety Education and Organizational Challenges in Building Sustainable Safety Culture in Polish Food Companies

Abstract

The aim of this study was to verify whether comprehensive and inclusive pro-safety education contributes to building a strong safety culture in food companies. The study was conducted in 612 Polish companies, where special attention was paid to modern forms of education during pro-safety education, as well as the frequency and duration of this education. The results of the study showed that safety culture is poorly developed, even when it is consciously and formally implemented in the company. One of the identified problems was the discrepancy between the company’s declared commitment to pro-safety education and the actual behavior of employees. This indicates that formal company strategies may not be effectively embedded in the attitudes and actions of employees. The research emphasizes the importance of adapting pro-safety efforts to the organizational culture in order to ensure significant results and avoid superficial implementation.

1. Introduction

1.1. Safety Culture and Its Context Around Sustainable Organization

Safety culture (SC) is a multidimensional concept that is ambiguously defined and understood in research reports [1]. The term first appeared in the context of the Chernobyl disaster in 1986, in the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency report from 1987 [2], and is currently considered an important aspect of modern workplace management, especially in sectors where the risk to employees is high. The importance of SC is growing due to the growing attention paid to human factors in the workplace and the need for the responsible management of occupational risks and health [3,4,5,6]. However, despite the large number of definitions in the literature [7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14,15,16,17,18,19,20,21,22,23], there is no uniform definition.

A comparative analysis of the most frequently cited definitions indicates the following recurring terms: behavior patterns, values, norms, attitudes, safety management, life and health protection measures, minimizing employee exposure, and human factors. For the purposes of this study, safety culture was defined as a set of behavior patterns, values, norms and attitudes shaped by human factors that influence the approach of both employees and management to work safety. An important result of this analysis is the indication of human factors as a key element of safety culture. Finally, the human factor manifests itself in such features of safety culture as behavior and values, which actually also influence behavior [24].

Human factors refer directly to individual characteristics that influence behaviour at work. In turn, individual characteristics mainly [25] include (i) physical factors like age, physical condition and health, (ii) emotional factors like beliefs, personality, emotions, expectations and mental health, and (iii) experience like work experience, education and culture. Considering that individual characteristic is a complex state, it is a huge challenge to implement SC based on creating the same or similar behaviour within disparate workers into organizations. Therefore, it is necessary to conduct in-depth and interdisciplinary research on how individual and collective factors shape SC in different organizational contexts [26,27].

Recent studies show that safety culture plays an important role not only in accident prevention, but also contributes to improving business efficiency, employee engagement and the achievement of social responsibility goals [28]. For example, Cooper [8] and Yorio et al. [29] have proven that a high level of safety culture in a company is associated with a lower accident rate, higher work productivity and lower employee turnover [30,31]. SC is also increasingly seen as a strategic resource that supports the long-term sustainable operation of an organization [32].

At the same time, SC and human behaviour as its key attributes, are embedded into more complex safety politics, namely sustainability [33]. The literature reports strong relationships between SC and the sustainable development (SD) of organizations [34]. The context of such a relationship points out safety culture as a very important factor that is considered, in general, as a reinforcing factor influencing the sustainability of an organization and, in particular, as the factor affecting the efficiency of sustainable production that brings tangible benefits for organizations [35]. Moreover, safety culture is considered a fundamental element of occupational safety and health (OSH), which concerns not only the prevention of accidents but also the promotion of employee well-being, job satisfaction and engagement [36,37,38,39,40].

Moreover, similar links between SD and OHS are increasingly highlighted in international policy frameworks, such as the eighth Sustainable Development Goal of the United Nations, which aims to promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment, and decent work for all [41]. Failures in the implementation of SD are often linked to a lack of effective training and leadership, indicating that a sustainable safety culture requires not only awareness but also structured educational activities and a clear accountability framework [42,43].

However, many researchers have demonstrated that without adequate training, management commitment, and a clear framework of responsibility within the company, the implementation of SC and SD does not yield the expected results [44,45]. Systematic safety education is now seen as a prerequisite for lasting change, especially when integrated with organizational learning processes and employee participation [46].

After conducting a literature review, despite the large amount of research conducted on SD, OHS and SD, there is still a noticeable research gap:

RG1: Many researchers analyze safety culture and sustainable development separately, with few examining the interactions between these elements, particularly in terms of modelling [31,47].

RG2: There is a lack of detailed analysis of the role of safety education in developing SC, especially in the food industry, where high turnover, staff diversity and strong regulations create particular challenges [32,48].

RG3: There is little empirical evidence to confirm whether the SC–SD relationship is unidirectional or reciprocal—that is, whether a strong safety culture supports sustainable development or vice versa [49].

This study aims to fill these gaps and is conducted in the Polish food industry, which is an important context due to the strict regulations placed on the analyzed enterprises, the high diversity of the workforce, as well as its exposure to biological and mechanical hazards.

1.2. Education as a Tool for Safety Culture Development

There is no doubt that the level of SC develops through broadly understood activities in education that are based on increasing employees’ awareness of safety and attitudes in the company. Striving for a high level of SC brings tangible effects not only to employees by reducing the accident rate, but also has a positive effect on the economic situation of a company [50]. The failures that have occurred in recent years were caused mainly by an insufficient level of SC [51]. Therefore, many industrial sectors have started to improve their SC in order to prevent major breakdowns and accidents related to the performance of routine tasks [52]. This has been achieved by shaping a sense of personal responsibility for not only one’s own health and life, but also that of other people, shaping the belief that every human being is responsible and has an influence on the state of safety [53].

Education is able to enhance safety in companies only if the educational process is effective. One of the main motives of adult learning is the willingness to put theoretical knowledge into practice in order to better deal with the demands of real life. The trainer must engage the participants and increase their awareness, which consists of creating a sense of responsibility for each activity they perform and arousing a willingness to create a culture of safety. Modern forms of education may become useful in the practice of adult education [54,55,56,57,58,59,60,61,62,63,64,65,66,67].

The main objective of this study is to identify the key elements of educational models in creating SC from the perspective of the role and behavior of humans in the organization. The study also explored potential bidirectional interactions between SC and SD.

Although previous studies have shown the relationship between SC, OHS and SD, few of them have provided practical guidelines for implementing pro-safety education in the context of specific sectors, such as food production. Additionally, the causal relationships between SC, OHS and SD remain under-researched. Therefore, this study is based on the following research questions and hypotheses. Therefore, two research questions were formulated:

RQ1. 

How does pro-safety education affect the development of safety culture in food enterprises?

RQ2. 

What are the two-way interactions between safety culture and the sustainable development of an organization?

Based on the above research questions, the following hypotheses were adopted:

H1. 

Pro-safety education significantly increases employees’ awareness of safety, which in turn strengthens the safety culture in the organization.

H2. 

A strong safety culture has a positive impact on the organization’s performance in terms of sustainable development.

H3. 

Incorporating the principles of sustainable development into the company’s strategy increases the effectiveness of pro-safety education and the development of safety culture.

2. Materials and Methods

The research involved two aspects: (1) a nationwide survey among Polish companies and (2) a case study in the food industry. The study used a mixed approach: a quantitative method (survey research) and the qualitative method (case study). Such triangulation of data made it possible to obtain a reliable picture of the awareness of safety culture in Polish companies, with a particular emphasis on the food industry.

As for the first research scope, a nationwide survey was conducted among Polish companies from the SME sector. Stratified random sampling was used; this took into account the industry (with particular emphasis on the food industry), the size of the company (according to the definition of SME) and the geographical location (province). The survey was conducted across 612 companies, of which 27 belonged to the food industry. The selection of this sample was based on availability, willingness to participate in the study, and diversity in terms of size and location. The research was conducted in the form of an online and telephone survey (mixed-mode method). People dealing with occupational health and safety or human resources management in companies were invited to participate in the research.

The survey questionnaire consisted of 12 questions (10 closed, 2 open), which were divided into 4 main thematic areas: company characteristics (industry, number of employees, location), OHS training practices, perception of safety culture in the organization, and the links between OHS activities and sustainable development policies. The assumption when formulating the questions was that training has a key impact on creating a culture of safety [57,58,59].

The survey questionnaire was subjected to content validation by 4 independent experts dealing with occupational health and safety in order to check whether all questions were relevant and understandable. The experts were selected based on their professional experience and scientific publications, which is consistent with the methods recommended in psychometric studies [68,69]. The experts assessed whether the questions in the questionnaire were relevant to the entire conceptual scope regarding safety culture and pro-safety education, and whether they contained substantive errors. Then, a reliability analysis was carried out, which showed high internal consistency (Cronbach’s α = 0.84 for the safety culture assessment scale). Then, the survey questionnaire was pilot tested in 8 companies to verify the comprehensibility of the questions and to adapt them to the specifics of the SME sector.

Based on the survey results, one company from the food industry (medium-sized) from the Silesian Voivodeship was selected for further analysis. The selection criteria were as follows: the active use of modern forms of OHS training (e.g., e-learning, gamification), a formal safety culture policy, willingness to cooperate in qualitative research, and respondents that indicated a high level of safety awareness in the survey. The study visit included an analysis of the company’s internal documents (OSH policies, procedures, audit reports), in-depth individual interviews with 10 employees of the company at various management levels (management, administration, OHS department, production), as well as observations of the work environment on the production floor (3 working days). Qualitative data was collected using video material, photos, notes. Then, the data was analyzed using the thematic analysis method, during which patterns, dependencies and barriers in the area of shaping and maintaining a safety culture were identified.

The selection of the research sample in the survey and the choice of case studies are in line with research best practices regarding safety culture and pro-safety education. The stratified random sampling method ensures the representativeness of the sample, and the 27 food companies, although limited, is adequate for preliminary analyses of the sector within the framework of a nationwide study [48]. Similar studies presented in the literature used comparable sample sizes and applied the triangulation of methods, combining quantitative and qualitative data [24,48,49].

A case study in a selected food company allows for an in-depth analysis and contextualisation of the survey results, and the selection criteria reflect the standards used in qualitative research, which is in line with methodological recommendations [44,45,48].

The research was conducted via a deductive approach, where a logical structure was used, moving from general theoretical premises to detailed empirical conclusions [55,56]. Data triangulation, involving surveys, interviews, documents, and observation, was used; thanks to this, the results were verified, which increased their credibility. Statistical tests were used, including correlation analysis (Pearson’s correlations) and descriptive analysis.

The research scheme illustrating the deductive way of thinking in five main points is presented in Figure 1.

3. Results

3.1. Safety Education in Polish Production Company

The survey was conducted across 612 SME companies located in Poland in 2020. Companies assessed the level of training innovativeness on a scale from 1 (no) to 5 (yes). The results of the research showed that the training is not at a high level generally in Poland—which suggests an alarming lack of tools that could shape the safety culture (taking into account the fact that training is the only effective tool for building safety awareness). Accordingly, the level of awareness is low. Moreover, the results of the research were confirmed on a narrow group of food companies.

Only 10% of the analyzed companies declare the use of modern forms of education (Figure 2).

Statistical analysis was performed using the Pearson correlation coefficient. The correlation between the use of modern forms of education during pro-safety training and the number of years of the company’s existence, the value of the annual balance sheet and the number of people employed in the company was examined.

Table 1. Pearson correlation coefficients—all enterprises.

No.	Using Modern Forms of Education During OHS Training	Result	The Strength of Correlation Relationships
1	the number of years of the company’s existence	−0.04874	weak correlation (practically no relationship)
2	the value of the annual balance sheet	0.08702	weak correlation
3	number of people employed in the company	−0.02079	weak correlation

shows the results of the studied correlations.

Interpreting the calculated correlation coefficients, it can be stated that there is no correlation between the use of modern forms of education during pro-safety training and the company’s age, the value of the annual balance sheet and the number of people employed at the company. This means that failure to use modern forms of education may be due to organizational barriers, low awareness among management staff or a lack of appropriate teaching tools, and not the structural specificity of the company.

3.2. Safety Education in Polish Companies in the Food Industry

An in-depth analysis was carried out for food industry enterprises. In total, 27 enterprises were identified, of which only three carry out pro-safety training based on innovative methods. The level of training in food industry companies does not differ from other companies in Poland. Figure 3 shows the percentage distribution of answers to the question regarding the use of modern forms of education during health and safety training in food industry companies.

As for the general results of the research for Polish companies, a statistical analysis was carried out using the Pearson correlation coefficient for food industry companies.

Table 2. Statistical analysis results.

No.	Using Modern Forms of Education During OHS Training	Result	The Strength of Correlation Relationships
1	the number of years of the company’s existence	−0.019195	very weak relationship
2	the value of the annual balance sheet	0.313425	weak relationship, but noticeable
3	number of people employed in the company	−0.11256	very weak relationship

shows the results of the studied correlations.

In food industry companies, a minimal correlation was observed between training innovation and the financial situation of the company (0.31), but this is not a value that allows us to draw clear conclusions. It should be noted, however, that in this industry there are additional requirements related to a high level of hygiene, employee turnover, and mandatory audits (HACCP, IFS, BRC), which makes the lack of implementation of modern forms of training particularly worrying.

3.3. Case Study

Detailed research was carried out in a Polish company from the SME sector that employs an average of 150 people and deals with the production of one-unit paper packaging that is used for direct contact with food products. Packages are produced both via the flexographic technique, i.e., printing from a roll of paper, and via the offset technique, i.e., printing on sheets. The plant has cutting machines, gluing machines and other finishing machines. The following systems are implemented in the company: Quality Management System according to ISO 9001: 2015 [71], Environmental Management System according to ISO 14001: 2015 [72] and Health and Safety Management System ISO 45001: 2018 [73].

The actions used to maintain a culture of safety in the company were (1) the identification and reporting of near miss incidents by employees themselves and (2) the organization of carefully scheduled different types of work safety trainings. Near miss incidents refer to events or adverse situations that occurred in connection with the work performed that may have (but did not) injured the worker or damaged the work tools. Therefore, there was a probability of the above-mentioned effects.

In 2022–2024, employees identified 702 near miss incident that could be categorized into four groups of factors: (1) management system, (2) human and organizational factor, (3) technical safety, namely the reliability of machines and devices, and (4) others. Figure 4 shows the occurrence of near miss incidents in relation to the above-mentioned group of factors. The nearest miss incidents occurred in relation to the human and organizational factor (48.86%) and included management mistakes or employee mistakes. These incidents had a direct impact on work safety. The second area in terms of the number of identified near miss incidents was technical safety (45.01%). The most commonly reported events in the area of technical safety included failures and non-compliance with the safety regulations of machinery and technical devices. The third area in terms of the number of identified near miss incidents was management system (2.41%), which includes the formalization of procedures and rules for work safety.

Undoubtedly, technical factors and employees’ management principles and skills are important in shaping the culture of safety, but the key areas for improvement relate to human and organizational factors. It is worth noting that the nearest miss incidents were identified in this area, which suggests the need for a detailed analysis of human and organizational factors and its influence on safety. Figure 5 shows a pie chart of the human and organizational factor, including the identification of management mistakes (24.49%) and employee mistakes (75.51%).

Incontestably, the management staff is responsible for organizational errors, and the employees are responsible for errors related to carelessness, which reflect a lack of commitment and awareness of safety. The role of the management staff is to understand the factors and conditions of the working environment in which employees work, and to know what the impact of the conditions of the working environment are on workers’ behaviour. Human factors and the inappropriate behaviour of employees are perceived as the main source of threats in the company, and these must be eliminated. We distinguish two means by which employees learn correct behaviours. One of them is the imposition of individual and collective sanctions for non-compliance with safety rules, which is negatively perceived by employees and not very effective. The way of thinking and behaviour of subordinates does not change, but is accompanied by fear and stress related to receiving a penalty. The second—positive—form of shaping correct behaviour among employees is the organization of trainings that change their way of thinking and, as a consequence, change their behaviour with regard to safety, which over time turns into the consolidation of positive habits.

In the analyzed company, the second form was chosen as a way of shaping correct behaviour among employees.

Table 3. Gradient matrix of qualitative analysis of management training.

Management Employee
Type of Training	Month												Scale	Total Time in a Year [Minutes]
	I	II	III	IV	V	VI	VII	VIII	IX	X	XI	XII
A good change														40
Meetings														23,400
Safety Steering Committee														720
Health and Safety Committee														240
Safety Leadership Audit														3120
Safety Day														120
Five minutes to be safe														0

Note: Colors indicate training intensity—darker boxes indicate greater frequency and time.

and

Table 4. Gradient matrix of qualitative analysis of production worker training.

Production Emplyee
Type of Training	Month												Scale	Total Time in a Year [Minutes]
	I	II	III	IV	V	VI	VII	VIII	IX	X	XI	XII
A good change														40
Meetings														520
Safety Steering Committee														0
Health and Safety Committee														0
Safety Leadership Audit														0
Safety Day														120
Five minutes to be safe														260

Note: Colors indicate training intensity—darker boxes indicate greater frequency and time.

present the gradient matrix of the qualitative analysis of training for management and production employees, in which the type and frequency of training in the field of safety development were identified. The intensity of the colours shows the frequency and duration of training. The darker the colour, the more time that is spent on creating a culture of safety among individual employee groups. It is worth noting that seven different types of training have been distinguished, which take place on a regular basis and concern issues related to safety and the improvement of working conditions.

The analysis shows large variations in terms of the frequency and duration of training between management and production employees. In the surveyed company, creating awareness is clearly focused on the management staff, whose training is less than thirty times the length of production workers’ training per year. To a large extent, it is management that reports near miss incidents, rather than production workers, who are the closest and most likely to be at risk when carrying out their work tasks. As a consequence, the main responsibility of shaping the safety culture falls on the management staff, where this responsibility ends. On the other hand, the production staff still has a low level of awareness of the safety culture. Figure 6 shows the number of near miss incidents reported by the management and production employees in each month. Extreme values that differ from the typical values of the features are omitted from the chart.

Both trend lines that define the model of the dependence of the number of near miss incident reports over time are linear functions, and the slope coefficients are positive values, which indicates an increase in the value in the following months. These trend lines confirm the hypothesis that the trainings increase employee’s awareness of safety. There is a positive correlation between the number and duration of safety trainings and the number of near miss incident reports. The trendline for management is high, which shows a significant increase in value over time, while the trend line for production workers is low, with values increasing slowly over time. The management’s incentive to report near miss incidents was associated with high cash bonuses, while the production staff did not receive any bonus. In addition, production workers received relatively low bonuses if there were no accidents in a given month compared to the management. Meanwhile, in enterprises, the largest group of employees is represented by production workers; therefore, shaping safe behaviour among them is a priority.

Taking into account the overall results of the research, and, in particular, the development of a culture of safety in Polish companies, it is possible to identify the development of occupational safety management. It consists of the uneven involvement of employees in shaping safe behaviours, favouring one group of employees, who are the management staff, and neglecting employees who directly affect the level of safety in the company. A high level of safety is related to a sense of responsibility for general safety in the company among all employees by taking action and supporting stakeholders in this regard.

In summary, the level of awareness of occupational safety depends on the level of management (ML), which is presented in the diagram below (Figure 7). The Pearson correlation coefficient indicates strong dependence (p = −0.664988) between employees’ awareness of safety and the degree of management (ML). The lower the level of management, the smaller the number and the shorter length of the training aimed at creating correct behaviour, which translates into a smaller number of reported near miss incidents, and, consequently, into a lower level of awareness of the safety culture.

The chart confirms the hypothesis that shaping awareness through training is a condition for building safety at all levels of work. Production workers are not involved in training as intensively as the management staff. They do not have adequate safety awareness, which is shown by the identification of a smaller number of near miss incidents and the creation of dangerous situations.

The research results show that noble intentions and financial support for creating a safety culture are not enough to effectively shape safety at work; these are activities focused on one group (management staff), thus marginalizing key participants in the production process.

A systemic approach to occupational health and safety management, compliant with ISO 45001 [73], should equally engage all employees, regardless of their position or management level. This means that every employee in the company should have the same access to education, and should also be covered by appropriate training. In addition, every employee should have the opportunity to actively participate in identifying threats, reporting irregularities and co-creating a safe work environment. Only through an integrated approach is it possible to build awareness and responsibility at all levels of management.

Further scientific research should include multiple regression or SEM models in order to better understand the cause–effect relationships in building a culture of safety.

4. Discussion

The development of SC in manufacturing companies largely depends on human factors that relate to the individual characteristics of employees and influence their behaviour. These include physical aspects such as age, physical condition and health, as well as emotional aspects, including beliefs, personality, emotions, expectations, mental health, professional experience, education, and personal culture [74]. Due to the complexity of human factors, implementing SC based on creating uniform behaviour among different employees in companies from different industries is a huge challenge. Studies that have already been conducted do not fully take into account the complexity of the factors that influence SC. For example, Reason’s research [10] included information on organizational risk management and human error. Similar research was conducted in Taiwan by Change and Chen [75], with the participation of OHS specialists, and it was determined that the most important factors shaping SC are knowledge of OHS regulations, employees’ knowledge of safety, performance analysis and communication skills. INSHIPO and IOSH [76] developed a set of characteristics shaping SC, which were divided into three main groups: technical, basic and behavioural. Although the research was originally conducted with safety specialists in mind, the results can be applied to other employees. Every employee should have basic knowledge and skills related to safe behaviour. In addition, research has also been conducted on preparing young people for work with regard to safety competencies, as they are at high risk [77]. One of the main reasons for the high number of accidents among young workers is a lack of safety knowledge and skills, which is caused by a lack of adequate training [78]. Young people often take risks due to their enthusiasm and lack of awareness of the dangers [79]. The ‘Safe, Skilled, Ready Workforce’ programme developed by NIOSH contains eight key points. In addition to knowledge and skills, young people must acquire the correct attitudes and behaviours to create a safe working environment. Early safety education through the introduction of appropriate content into the curriculum can help develop lasting habits.

In the context of food industry companies, where product and production processes safety directly affect consumer health, safety culture and employee behaviour play a particularly important role. The higher the SC level, the lower the number of incidents related to food quality and safety. The results of the presented study complement the literature on shaping a culture of safety by indicating that the effectiveness of activities in this area does not result solely from a formally adopted policy, but depends equally on the quality and methodology of the training provided and the genuine commitment of all levels of management. Nevertheless, there is still too little information on the effective planning and conducting of pro-safety training, especially in companies with high employee turnover and varying levels of education, which is characteristic of the food sector.

Although previous studies conducted by Parker et al. [80], among others, have emphasized the importance of formal training, there is a growing recognition of the need for more integrated and engaging educational methods. Examples of methods that activate training participants include Problem-Based Learning (PBL) and Learning by Developing (LbD). These methods are more effective in building lasting pro-safety attitudes [81,82] than traditional lectures. Interactive and practical teaching methods allow for the better adaptation of training to real working conditions and individual employee needs [35,83], which are in line with current educational trends. The contemporary approach to teaching is based on learning through experience and teamwork, as well as engaging and diverse forms of information transfer that correspond to the learning style and shortened attention span of young people.

Based on research conducted in Polish food industry companies, there is a low level of innovation in training and a limited knowledge of safety among employees. The case study analysis shows that an excessive focus on training management staff, while marginalizing production workers, leads to the uneven implementation of SC. The key conclusion of the research is that financial support and action plans are not enough if they do not cover all levels of management in the company. In addition, the limitations of the study, due to the use of a single case study and its placement in the cultural context of Poland, may limit the possibility of generalizing the results. It is therefore desirable to conduct further comparative studies covering various industries and countries in order to verify the observed relationships.

The research results may also constitute a basis for developing actions related to shaping policies in the enterprise or the management system—particularly in the area of introducing mandatory training programs according to a proactive formula (e.g., PBL) and taking into account the specificity of the sector and the needs of employees. It is also recommended that a framework of SC competences is developed in the food sector, in order to assess the effectiveness of pro-safety actions and support the development of a systemic approach to safety management.

Therefore, the article contributes significantly to the literature on occupational safety in the food sector, as it emphasizes the importance of the human factor and the need to develop effective SC educational models that take into account individual differences and industry realities. These results provide a basis for further research, particularly in areas related to quality management, occupational hygiene and training in the food industry.

5. Conclusions

Safety culture reflects the organizational culture and the value system related to occupational safety. There is no single universal SC model—each organization must adapt solutions to its industry, structural and cultural specificity. Building an effective safety culture in enterprises requires a systemic approach that takes into account the management of human, organizational and educational factors.

The results of the conducted research confirm hypothesis H1—’appropriately designed pro-safety education significantly increases employee awareness of safety, which translates into the strengthening of SC’. On the other hand, the condition for the effectiveness of these activities is the even involvement of all employees at various levels of management (LM), without favoring management staff at the expense of operational employees.

In turn, hypothesis H2, namely ‘a strong safety culture has a positive impact on the organization’s results in the field of sustainable development’, is reflected in observational studies by reducing the number of incidents, improving working conditions and employment stability. This means that SC not only protects people’s health and life, but also builds social responsibility in the enterprise.

In relation to H3, the integration of sustainable development principles with the company’s policy strengthens the effectiveness of pro-safety training and deepens the internalization of SC values among employees. This means that the relationship between SC and SD is bidirectional—which corresponds to research question RQ2.

Therefore, the study answers research questions RQ1 and RQ2 and indicates that pro-safety education is a key tool for shaping SC, and indicates that its effectiveness increases when it is conducted in the spirit of sustainable development.

We recommend implementing a hybrid SC model based on participatory management that takes into account the balanced participation of employees at various levels of management.

From a practical point of view, companies should treat pro-safety education not as a formal obligation, but as an investment in human capital, as well as in the sustainable development of the company.

The conclusions of this study identify a research gap—especially in the area of designing pro-safety education models that take into account the specificity of industries, diverse work environments and the growing requirements of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG).