A Comparative Study between Human Development Index and Work Accidents in Turkey and the EU Member Countries

Abstract

Abstract: Today work accidents constitute a major public health problem in the world. For the last two decades, Turkey has been suffering from the death toll resulting from work accidents and occupational diseases. In this study, the analysis of human development's dimensions gives the picture of reasons why Turkey is ranked as the first in Europe in terms of the number of fatal work accidents. Authors suggest that Turkey should increase the expected years of schooling and put safety and health education/training in school curricula. This will in turn reduce accidents at work and absenteeism caused by health problems; and yield increased productivity, higher quality of work, increased workforce morale and reduced employee turnover.