Promoting Safer Workplace Culture given Spate of Worker Deaths

Assoc Prof Fatimah Lateef asked the Minister for Manpower what are the root causes of the recent cases of workplace injuries and death and whether there are strategic and targeted interventions planned.

MOM is concerned with the deteriorating Workplace Safety and Health (WSH) situation.

In the first half of 2016, there were already 42 fatalities, 12 more compared to the same period last year1. The construction sector remains the top contributor with 18 fatalities. This is an 80% increase from last year, where we had 10 from the construction sector.

Our preliminary investigation findings indicate that the fatalities had multiple factors as root causes. Many cases were due to inadequate risk assessments carried out by the companies, lack of planning and coordination and insufficient safety awareness among the workers. On the whole, it points to an absence of a robust WSH management system in the companies involved.

MOM has earlier outlined a four-pronged strategy to take targeted interventions to improve WSH raising awareness, building WSH capability, strengthening enforcement and imposing harsher penalties. Stiffer penalties against errant companies which flout safety regulations were introduced in May. Since then2, 25 extended Stop Work Orders were issued against worksites with rampant unsafe conditions. We have also stepped up our enforcement presence, targeting high-risk sectors undertaking activities with high incidences of work injuries, such as work at heights, crane operations and formwork structures.

This heightened regulatory stance by MOM is complemented with stepped up assistance provided by the WSH Council. The Safety Compliance Assistance Visits Plus (SCAV+) programme was launched in June to help companies identify WSH lapses and improve risk assessment capabilities. This supplements existing WSH capability and culture building efforts, such as the WSH Council's bizSAFE and CultureSAFE programmes. The Council also produced a series of pictograms showing WSH Dos and Don'ts of common work situations. These are being distributed to construction sites and foreign worker dormitories as visual reminders to increase the safety consciousness of our workers.

We are heartened that the industry also stepped up efforts to increase WSH awareness. In April, more than 100 project sites in the construction and marine sectors participated in a Safety Time Out to review the safety procedures for their work activities. Last month, over 70 worksites participated in safety awareness activities involving CEOs of the Singapore Contractors Association (SCAL) member companies. This is important to demonstrate leadership commitment to WSH. SCAL also collaborated with the Real Estate Developers' Association of Singapore (REDAS) and the WSH Council to develop more user-friendly WSH training materials for construction workers.

At the structural level, the Design for Safety (DfS) Regulations will come into effect on 1 August 2016. Under the Regulations, developers and designers will have responsibility for the safety and health of workers in the construction sector. The Regulations will foster greater industry ownership and facilitate information sharing among all stakeholders to improve the identification and management of WSH risks throughout all phases of the building project.

It is important to reiterate that WSH is, ultimately, everyone's responsibility. All stakeholders – employers, supervisors and workers – must take proactive ownership in WSH in order to improve our situation. MOM will continue to work closely with the WSH Council and industry partners to raise WSH standards and foster safe work habits.