What’s Slowly Cooking in the Pressure Cooker? Safety Culture Contradictions in Atlantic Canada’s Offshore Oil Sector

Abstract

Business owners and senior management recognize that poor safety practices have a direct impact on profitability. Safety is critical in the offshore oil sector, and oil rigs operating in the North Atlantic face perilous conditions. We use a case study of an oil rig disaster to examine the role that safety culture played in this event. This paper examines the findings of a government inquiry into this disaster and explores workers’ perceptions of the sector’s commitment to fostering a safe work environment in the years subsequent to the disaster. Significant tragic accidents continue to occur in the offshore oil sector.