BACKGROUND: Ergonomics in Cyprus is a rather neglected area of safety. The size of the
country, the lack of scientific expertise, the nature of the economy and the
nature of the majority of the enterprises make it a case, different from the
average.
OBJECTIVE: The aims of the survey were to examine the views and perceptions of
employees and owners/managers on safety issues of micro-firms in Cyprus, to
collect information on accidents and other aspects of safety performance in
micro-firms and to cross-check the above data with data collected from
safety inspectors for the above firms.
METHODS: The authors with the collaboration of the Department of Labour Inspection
of the Republic of Cyprus collected information from a relatively large
number of micro companies in a National survey. Information from employees,
employers and labour inspectors was drawn.
RESULTS: Particular emphasis is paid on the exploration of the relationship of the
non-use of personal protection equipment with a number of factors. Results
show the resistance of employees to the use of PPE (Personal Protective
Equipment) and GPM (General Protective Measures).
CONCLUSIONS: The results of the survey are in line with the relevant literature. Micro
firms illustrate several interesting findings that are discussed in detail
in the paper.
