Evaluation of occupational health and safety awareness of employees in less hazardous jobs: A case of public institution employees

The purpose of Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) is to detect all the elements that may endanger the health and safety of the employees before an accident occurs, to take the necessary precautions about them and to establish an environment that provides health and safety for the employees. OHS awareness, on the other hand, refers to the internalization of the concept of OHS and the redesign of people's perceptions and attitudes with a systemic transformation, as well as developing the phenomenon of safe behavior in people. This study is carried out by making a questionnaire to the personnel working in a public institution in order to examine the OHS awareness in a public institution. It is analyzed whether the employees make a difference according to the variables of gender, age, education level, experience, occupational accident status, and the status of receiving OHS training. As a result of the analyzes made of "IBM SPSS Statistics", it is concluded that the OHS awareness of the participants does not make a difference according to gender and having had a work accident, while the hypotheses established accordingly were accepted; based on the variables of OHS training, age, experience and education level that there is a significant difference in occupational health and safety awareness. According to considering the variables that make a significant difference for occupational health and safety awareness, in order to develop OHS awareness, OHS trainings at the beginning and at certain intervals after starting work, and inclusion of OHS in the training curriculum, at least at a basic level, to take it as a course in the education life of people, within the scope of OHS will be the cornerstone in creating an awareness and in creating a consciousness in this framework. If the desired occupational health and safety awareness is established, occupational health and safety is established as a culture, and this concept is adopted and internalized by all parties, a healthy and safe working environment that should be established for employees will be provided and employees will be protected from work accidents and occupational diseases at the highest possible level.