The effect of moderated mediation to the relationship of transformational leadership on safety performance in Malaysia heavy industry companies

Abstract

Safety management has received a considerable attention as it affects organization’s performance and survival. Technical solution per se is irrelevant as many studies have found that workplace issues are frequently associated with workplace accidents. In this study, workplace issues refer to transformational leadership, safety training practices and safety climate. The main purpose of this study is to identify the impact of moderated mediation to the relationship of transformational leadership on safety performance in Malaysia’s heavy industry companies. A total of 696 employees from three automotive manufacturing and assembly plants were selected as the respondents for this study. The measurement tools undertaken in the data collection include Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire, Safety Climate Scale and Safety Performance Scale. The data of the study were analyzed using the descriptive and inferential analysis. It comprised of t-test, oneway analysis of variance (ANOVA), canonical correlation, simple linear regression and multiple regression. The finding of the study indicates that safety climate acts as the moderator to the relationship of transformational leadership on safety training practices. The result also demonstrates that safety training practices play a significant role as the mediator to the relationship of transformational leadership on safety performance. The utmost finding of the study reveals that safety training practices which is moderated by safety climate acts as the mediator to the relationship of transformational leadership on safety performance. Lastly, recommendations were also given for future research