The relationship between occupational accidents and occupational diseases in cement factories and workplace safety culture Medcem Mining Cement Factory example

In this field application, basic steps in the occupational health and safety acitivites which are carried out in the cement sector will be taken to establish occupational safety dimension with the employer and employee culturally in order to prevent occupational accidents and occupational diseases of the employees in occupational health and safety activities carried out in the cement sector. Throughout history, many laws and corporate rules have been embodied to prevent possible accidents and create a healthy environment for employees. Although these rules and precautions exist, many accidents still occur at the workplaces. This case demonstrates that it does not only depend on technical procedures, but also the importance of the employees arises here and therefore, reveals the importance of the concept of safety culture. Employees' values, perceptions, beliefs and attitudes, which altogether creates the safety culture, are important in order for creating a healthy and safe working environment. Therefore, arrangements and activities should be made to prevent accidents. The trainings made at the beginning of the work, the process from knowing the personal protective equipments, using them, adapting them to the system which develops regularly, and to the steps that the employer will take to ensure the business and the safety culture of the employee while conducting its activities will enable it to provide in the literature of the current Occupational Health and Safety Law. Taking the distribution by geographic region into consideration in Turkey, Mediterranean region takes place on the top with 1270 people among the cement factories which are classified as A in the risk group of the employees in Turkey in 2017. Since Medcem Cement Plant is an integrated factory, the relationship between the safety culture conducted in the workplace to prevent occupational disease and occupational accident factors in Occupational Health and Safety is one of the workplaces to be seen more clearly. In this context, a social research-based qualitative method was used rather than conventional quantitative methods in the OHS field by evaluating the OHS Management System applied in the factory in the light of the data which are obtained. This study provides that the existing data will be compared with the practices and preventive policies will be developed and will contribute to the establishment of a preventive and permanent situation in occupational accidents and diseases that may occur in other workplaces.