Government accepts recommendations to strengthen workplace safety and health

The government has accepted the eight key recommendations made by an International Advisory Panel (IAP), on strengthening workplace safety and health (WSH). These recommendations aim to reduce workplace incidents, mitigate the WSH risks arising from climate change and green technology, and guide the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) and stakeholders towards achieving the WSH 2028 goals. They include sustained reduction in workplace injury rates, minimising hazards that lead to occupational disease, promoting good workforce health and pervasive adoption of the Vision Zero culture.

The eighth IAP convened from 17 to 19 January 2023, and was held in conjunction with the second Multi-Agency Workplace Safety Taskforce (MAST) meeting. The MAST comprises representatives from Ministry of Manpower, Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment, Ministry of Transport, Ministry of National Development and Ministry of Trade and Industry. The sessions brought together industry experts who provided ground insights from their respective industries.

WSH challenges in Singapore

Year 2022 saw a spate of workplace fatalities, largely due to basic safety lapses, such as inadequate safety planning and control measures, and non-compliance with safety measures. There is a need to prevent such workplace incidents from happening. In the longer term, Singapore also needs to better support its ageing workforce and be prepared for potential WSH hazards that may arise with the use of new technologies.

For example, installation of solar panels exposes more workers to working at height risks. Adoption of other green technologies such as converting waste into alternative energy sources may also pose hazards such as from combustible dust. Servicing, repair, maintenance and recovery of electric and hybrid vehicles can expose workers to unfamiliar hazards, such as electric shocks; and fires and explosions, from the storage of energy fuels and release of liquids and gases from damaged batteries.

Key recommendations

To attain a sustainable WSH culture, stakeholders must have both the motivation – be it commercial, reputational or personal interests – as well as the knowledge. To generate stronger motivation for companies and workers to embrace WSH, the IAP recommended the following:

• Placing strong emphasis on top management’s responsibility for WSH. Top management must foster a safe operations culture, where safety considerations are embedded into all aspects.

• Extending WSH oversight to contractors in the whole supply chain.

• Bring the interest of business into greater alignment with WSH.

• Building workplaces where workers feel safe to speak up.

At the same time, the IAP recognised the need to strengthen the knowledge and awareness of stakeholders, to better manage WSH risks. It also recommended:

• Inculcating a more pervasive training culture, beyond foundational training and levelling up WSH practices.

• Improving the WSH know-how of small-to-medium enterprises.

• Promoting age-friendly workplace safety practices and designs.

• Pre-emptively addressing WSH risks arising from climate change and green technology.

WSH as a priority

Having accepted the IAP’s recommendations, MOM will study the details and work with stakeholders as well as sectoral agencies, to implement appropriate measures to ensure that WSH remains a priority for employers and workers. MOM will continue its commitment to the WSH 2028 goals of building safer workplaces for workers and a more productive workforce for businesses.

Pond built on Jurong Island to enhance flood resilience

JTC, in collaboration with the National Parks Board and national water agency PUB, has built a retention pond at Jurong Island’s western Meranti area, that can hold up to 125,000 m3 of rainwater, which is equivalent to the capacity of 50 Olympic-sized swimming pools. This nature-based solution is designed to enhance the island’s flood resilience against projections of more intense and frequent storms, in the future, due to climate change.

The 8.9-hectare pond is built above an underground body of water-retaining permeable sand, known as an aquifer. During an extreme storm event, rainwater channelled into the pond will reduce the possibility of flooding in the surrounding areas. The rainwater will seep through the pond’s porous base over time into the aquifer, which eventually discharges into the surrounding sea. This allows the pond to hold rainwater again.

The entire process of retaining and releasing rainwater takes place naturally without pipes, pumps and mechanical drainage systems.