One of the most frequently repeated phrases in the occupational health and safety field in Türkiye is "it'll get by." Even if a machine's guard is missing, it'll get by. Even if marking in a section is insufficient, it'll get by. Even if the actions in the risk assessment aren't closed, it'll get by. Even if trainings only appear complete on paper, it'll get by. Even if the entry procedures for subcontractors are weak, it'll get by. This expression is often not just a sentence; it's a culture. It's a management reflex embedded within the enterprise.

This culture becomes most visible during audit periods. When an audit approaches, everyone takes on the same role: temporarily fixing deficiencies, completing paperwork, organizing shelves, completing signatures, and applying "makeup" between the reality on the ground and the picture visible on audit day. Once the audit passes, relief comes and life returns to its old ways. In other words, the system's goal is not to manage risk, but to avoid trouble. This is precisely where the fundamental reason for OHS operating only on paper in Türkiye lies.

This article analyzes why the "just get by" culture rises during audit periods in Türkiye; what psychological, economic, and structural reasons feed this; how it produces invisible but heavy costs for enterprises; and how this cycle can be broken.

In Türkiye, for most enterprises, audits are not perceived as a mechanism that "tests the system," but as a moment of "avoiding penalties." This perception contradicts the purpose of OHS. Because the purpose of OHS is not to avoid penalties, but to prevent accidents. However, the reflex of enterprises when an audit approaches is this: "Let's prepare whatever will be asked." The natural result of this approach is OHS ceasing to be a system and turning into a paperwork race.

The most important factor feeding the "just get by" game in audits is that audits in Türkiye are generally conducted document-focused. Of course, physical inspections are done on-site, non-conformities are observed. However, enterprises know this: documents are primarily asked during audits. Is there a risk assessment? Are there training records? Is there an emergency plan? Are there committee minutes? Are the instructions posted? As the weight of these questions increases, the enterprise tends toward completing documents rather than reducing risks on the ground. Because this is the success criterion visible in audits.

Yet this situation produces the most dangerous illusion of OHS: "If documents exist, safety exists." This illusion is very strong in Türkiye. In fact, in some enterprises, safety is measured by paperwork before physical improvement. For this reason, when an audit approaches, the order of files becomes a priority, not the real actions on the ground.

The second reason for playing "just get by" in audits is time pressure and production reality. In manufacturing enterprises in Türkiye, the most important sentence is "the work must be completed." This pressure increases even more during audit periods. Because both production will continue and audit preparation will be done. Actually eliminating deficiencies takes time. Sometimes it requires investment, sometimes it requires stopping production. At this point, the enterprise chooses the shortcut: temporary solution. Temporary solution means it'll get by.

The third reason is the weakness of the organization's responsibility chain. When an audit approaches, everyone runs around, but actually no one is fully responsible. For this reason, audit preparation turns into a "tidying up" process. Tidying up produces appearance, not order. If there were a system, there wouldn't be a separate period called audit preparation. There would be no difference between audit day and an ordinary day.

The fourth reason is the practical limitations of the OJHS (Occupational Joint Health and Safety) model. In outsourced OHS service, the expert comes to the site, makes findings, reports. However, closing the reports depends on the enterprise's internal mechanism. Since many enterprises in Türkiye see OJHS as a "liability solver," ownership doesn't form internally. When this happens, the non-conformities written in reports don't close, they accumulate. When an audit approaches, accumulated deficiencies become visible. There's no time to permanently resolve accumulated deficiencies. So the shortcut is chosen: it'll get by.

The most dangerous result of playing "just get by" in audits is this: risks aren't resolved, only postponed. And postponed risk grows. A non-conformity you let get by today produces an accident tomorrow. When an accident happens, the sentence "we passed the audit" doesn't save the enterprise. Because the audit is a photo of that day. The accident is the result of the actual situation. For this reason, getting by in audits provides short-term relief to the enterprise but produces costs in the medium term.

The heaviest part of this cost in Türkiye is the "cost of not learning." If an enterprise experiences the same deficiencies in every audit, this shows that the enterprise hasn't built a system. Because no system is built, the same actions are discussed again and again. These repetitions are a waste of time and energy. This is exactly where OHS becomes inefficient: repeating deficiencies become normalized. And normalized deficiency prepares the ground for accidents.

The reason everyone plays "just get by" during audits in Türkiye is that OHS is seen as a tool, not a goal. When audits become a day of preparation to avoid penalties rather than a day when the system is tested, OHS gets stuck in documents. OHS stuck in documents doesn't reduce risk on the ground. If risk doesn't decrease, the "get by" culture grows. As the "get by" culture grows, risks are postponed, and postponed risks turn into costs.

The way to break this cycle is to remove audits from being the target. The target is: closing risks, reducing repetitions, completing actions on time, and management monitoring the field based on data. This is only possible with a system. The system eliminates the "audit preparation" period; because it makes it possible to work at audit standards every day.

EGEROBOT ISG-SIS® provides enterprises with a real control backbone at this point. It links non-conformities to actions, clarifies responsibilities, establishes closure verification, and makes repeating risks visible. Thus, the enterprise transforms from one that scrambles with panic during audit periods to a structure that works with discipline independent of audits. The real OHS transformation in Türkiye is exactly this: being able to say "we have control" instead of "it'll get by."