Browsing by Author "Ledwaba, Solomon"

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    The perception of the impact of the Fourth Industrial Revolution on the production in South African mines
    (University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2022) Ledwaba, Solomon
    The aim of the study was to explore the perception of Fourth Industrial Revolution(4IR) strategies and practices in relation to production process performance in the mining industries at selected mines in South Africa. The study followed a quantitative research methodology, and a sample of 110 employees at the selected mines in South Africa, consisting of 60 mine workers, 10 information technology employees, 10 middle managers, 10 operations managers, 10 health and safety personnel, and 10 executive officers were drawn using a simple random sampling approach. Primary data was collected using a questionnaire with a 5-point Likert Scale. Data were analysed using the SPSS version 4.1. Findings from the study reveal that employee level of awareness of the concept of 4IR and associated technologies had a significant impact on how employees perceived the current 4IR strategies. Though findings show that a high percentage of employees were involved in the 4IR strategy development process, most believe that the current 4IR strategies and practices did not fully represent the interests of all stakeholders. While some were of the perception that the strategies and practices were designed to improve productivity and reduce employment costs, others believe that it puts workers’ jobs at risk, as mines had started replacing humans with 4IR technologies such as robots and drones. However, findings reveal that the adoption of the 4IR technologies according to the perception of employees, has improved health and safety within the mines