Background and aims: Occupational accidents have usually associated directly or indirectly with unsafe acts, as well as various personal and occupational factors have a role in the creation of unsafe behaviors. In one hand, personal and occupational characteristics of the employees who experience occupational accidents may differ from the employees who did not experience such events.

Methods: The required data for this cross-sectional study gathered from 200 employees who worked in tar paper manufacturing companies of Delijan using questionnaire that included demographic, occupational accident experience, information about safety and occupational accidents, and safety behavior. Then, the relation between different variables assessed.

Results: The findings of this study showed that 35 % of the participants had experienced at least one occupational accident in the past. The employees who experienced occupational accidents had a lower awareness about safety rules (P < 0.01), and a lower usage of personal protective equipment (P < 0.05) than the employees who did not experience occupational accidents. The attitude of the employees who did not experience occupational accidents to accident prevention was also better than the employees who experienced occupational accidents (P < 0.05).

Conclusion: Results of this study revealed that experience of occupational accident by employees does not have a positive effect on increasing the employee’s awareness about safety and accident prevention, as well as it does not induce an augment in safety behaviors of them.