Hats off to Placer Dome

Management of the Turquoise Ridge gold mine in Nevada is to be commended for implementing an underground compensation package that relies solely on hourly wages, with incentives tied to mine safety. Unlike most other underground mines in North America, Turquoise Ridge pays no production bonus, turning its back on the traditional compensation route embraced by the industry for decades.

Typically, underground wages are driven by production bonuses — a reward system designed to motivate productivity so that targets or goals are met. Production bonuses are traditionally how underground miners make their money. But they can become an all-consuming obsession wherein each shift is treated as a race against the clock. Corners tend to be cut, sometimes with tragic consequences.

Although financial success is important, safety is the top priority for Placer Dome, the operator and 75%-owner of the Turquoise Ridge joint venture. When Placer resumed mining there in 2003, it was faced with a legacy of poor ground conditions and a mine that had claimed seven lives in the past. This was unacceptable for a company that in 2002 committed itself to eliminating workplace accidents altogether.

Turquoise Ridge uses safety incentives to motivate its workers, which currently number about 250. Safety incentives or bonuses are based on affirmative contributions by the employees to ensuring the ongoing safety of the project as a whole. Employees can earn their safety bonus by turning in incident and hazard reports and by making observations on fellow workers. The emphasis is not on whistle-blowing but on reinforcing positive behaviour.

Every employee, every day, is required to inspect his workplace, and this can happen several times a day. The risk is documented on the back of the daily workplace inspection card and turned in to supervisors. Risks are evaluated on a numerical scale. If the score is less than 100, the risk is something to be aware of; if it falls between 100 and 200, the employee needs to attend to the situation immediately. If the scored risk is greater than 200, the employee needs to barricade and leave the area until the danger is eliminated.

Placer Dome recognizes that people’s attitudes and behaviour are important in reducing accidents, and so new potential applicants are put through a careful screening process that includes an interview committee consisting of other employees.

Every new employee at Turquoise Ridge, whether he is a grizzled miner with twenty years’ experience or a green-hand more accustomed to flipping burgers, receives the same induction training. The month-long orientation begins with a five-day, in-class review of the mine’s procedures and policies. The next twenty-one days are spent in each of the mine’s departments, including shaft and hoist, dewatering, backfill, electrical, mobile shop, mining, assay and core lab, warehouse and water treatment. In the process, workers learn the responsibilities of each department and meet many of their co-workers.

Another motivational tool used by Turquoise Ridge is “scratch” or “scratchy” cards. It’s like a lottery ticket that is given out by supervisors to employees for exemplary safety behaviour. These scratch tickets are worth $50, $100 or $250 a pop.

Despite the lack of a production bonus, mine management believes they are competitive in recruiting miners at Turquoise Ridge. The best advertisement is word-of-mouth. Over the past year, there have been no lost-time injuries to employees.