masthead about health

About APRIL

Creating livelihoods and building the nation responsibly

Health & Safety

As an operator of forestry plantations and a large industrial facility, safety is of the utmost importance and is reflected in our commitment to achieving a Total Safety Culture.

Working in the forestry sector can be dirty, dangerous and dusty, where each of these elements pose a potential health and safety risk to employees. These risks are often exacerbated by the remoteness of plantations. APRIL Group’s Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) policy promotes the maintenance of a safe, healthy and secure work environment for all employees, contractors, customers and visitors. The policy is a holistic framework supported by 6 pillars: training, inspection, internal audit, OSH, external audit and monitoring.

APRIL Group - Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) policy

Each pillar reinforces a commitment to continuous improvement across our operations. The training pillar is critical in ensuring employees are equipped with knowledge related to safety and compliance, but also the health, social and cultural aspects of their employment. Inspection, audit and monitoring ensure we stay focused on continuous improvement.

As well as reducing the potential for injury, the OHS includes strategies to reduce illness and improve the wellbeing of employees, while also monitoring facilities and water quality for human use and consumption. It ensures that every site is supported by an ambulance, doctor and nurses as well as emergency medical evacuation capability. We have also implemented more stringent preventive measures by employing a Hazard Identification, Risk Assessment and Determining Control (HIRADC) system.

Health & Safety

This holistic approach to health and safety has been successful. Our Total Case Incident Rate – an internal benchmark that measures workplace injuries and absence through injury over total man-hours – has decreased markedly by 79% since 2010, as shown in Figure 1. Significant improvements have been made for a healthier work force with the provision of clean water, improvements in housing and infrastructure facilities and field visits by the company doctor to educate our employees on health and hygiene. As shown in Figure 2, there has been a drastic reduction in the percentage of our employees contracting upper respiratory tract infection, dyspepsia syndrome and gastritis and malaria. The incidence rate for the three illness decreased 38%, 31% and 93% respectively since 2011.

Health & Safety

APRIL Group’s plantation and mill operations were certified under the Health & Safety Management System OHSAS 18001 in 2005, requiring a three yearly audit. We are also reviewed under Indonesia’s principle Occupational Health and Safety system, Sistem Management Keselamantan Kesehatan Kerja (SMK3). In 2011, APRIL Group successfully passed its three yearly OHSAS audit and in 2013, was awarded a “Golden Flag” and certificate under SMK3 recognising the successful implementation of over 90% of the SMK3 criteria. 

Health & Safety