What is occupational health and safety?
Occupational health and safety (OHS) is the systematic work done to prevent accidents and occupational illnesses caused by hazards in the workplace. Put simply: making sure people arrive at work healthy and go home healthy.
Part of OHS is engineering and technical controls: machine guards, guardrails, ventilation. Part of it is training and behaviour: safe working methods and correct use of personal protective equipment. And part of it is management: planning, records, responsibility and follow-up. If any of these is missing, the system doesn't work.
The objectives of OHS
- Protecting employees from accidents and occupational illness
- Keeping work running smoothly and productively
- Protecting the business from financial, legal and criminal risk
- Making the workplace healthier for everyone
- Building a lasting safety culture
The legal framework in North Cyprus
In North Cyprus, occupational health and safety is governed by the Occupational Health and Safety Law and the regulations made under it. Separate regulations cover minimum health and safety requirements at work, the use of personal protective equipment and health and safety in construction work.
The law is built on risk assessment, training and informing employees, employee participation and making OHS part of how a business runs day to day. Inspections are carried out by labour inspectors of the relevant ministry.
Key employer duties
- Carry out (or commission) a risk assessment and keep it up to date
- Remove risks at source wherever possible, and minimise them where not
- Train employees before they start work and at regular intervals
- Provide suitable personal protective equipment free of charge and check it's used
- Prepare an emergency plan, appoint teams and hold drills
- Have equipment inspected periodically
- Record accidents and occupational illness and report them to the authorities
- Consult employees and involve them in health and safety
Using an external provider does not remove the employer's responsibility. But a well-built OHS system makes that responsibility manageable and predictable.
Employee responsibilities
- Apply what they learn in training
- Use and look after personal protective equipment correctly
- Use machinery and equipment as intended and never disable guards
- Report hazards and near misses straight away
Sources of workplace hazards
| Type | Examples |
|---|---|
| Physical | Noise, vibration, poor lighting, extreme heat or cold, electricity |
| Chemical | Cleaning agents, solvents, paint, dust, fumes and gases |
| Biological | Bacteria, viruses and mould, especially in kitchens, laundries and healthcare |
| Ergonomic | Heavy lifting, repetitive movement, long hours standing or at a screen |
| Psychosocial | Shift and night work, high workload, violence and harassment at work |
| Mechanical & structural | Work at height, falling objects, moving machine parts, heavy plant |
How is a risk assessment done?
- Identify hazards: walk the site, talk to employees, review past incidents.
- Decide who might be harmed and how: employees, contractors, guests, visitors.
- Evaluate the risk: consider likelihood and severity together.
- Decide on control measures and prioritise them.
- Record it, and give every action an owner and a deadline.
- Follow up, and review after changes or incidents.
Order matters when choosing controls: eliminate the hazard; if you can't, substitute something less dangerous; then use engineering controls; then safe working methods and training. Personal protective equipment is the last line of defence, not the first.
Accidents, near misses and occupational illness
A workplace accident is an event that happens at work, or because of work, and harms an employee physically or mentally.
A near miss is an event where nobody was hurt and nothing was damaged, but could have been: a tool slips and misses everyone, an open edge is spotted at the last second. Serious accidents are usually preceded by many near misses. Reporting and investigating them is the cheapest and most effective way to prevent the accident.
Occupational illness develops through long-term exposure: noise-induced hearing loss, respiratory illness from dust and chemicals, back and joint problems from heavy or repetitive work.
The real cost of accidents
The visible cost of an accident is treatment, compensation and fines. The hidden cost is often bigger: work stops, deadlines slip, someone has to be hired and trained, team morale drops and reputation suffers.
Prevention is always cheaper. But it isn't really about money: some losses can never be made good.
Key risks by sector
| Sector | Main risks |
|---|---|
| Construction | Falls from height, scaffolding, trench collapse, cranes and plant, electricity |
| Hotels & hospitality | Kitchen cuts and burns, slips, cleaning chemicals, pools, fire and evacuation |
| Casinos & entertainment | Night shifts, crowd management, fire load, emergency exits, psychosocial risks |
| Industry & manufacturing | Machine entrapment, forklifts, noise, chemicals, manual handling |
How Robust helps
From risk assessment and training to emergency planning and tracking periodic inspections, we set up your health and safety programme for you and follow it up on site. You focus on your business; we keep your workplace safety in view.
This guide is for general information and is not legal advice. For the current text of the legislation, refer to the Official Gazette of North Cyprus or get in touch with us.