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WORKPLACE SAFETY

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(Update on progress): **

17.

Mr Ong Ah Heng asked the Acting Minister for Manpower (a) whether the Ministry's objective of developing a culture of workplace safety has been achieved so far; (b) how will the Ministry ensure that the large number of transient workers in Singapore are properly and duly trained in safety measures; and (c) what extra measures have been taken to address the high number of fatalities in the marine and construction industries.

Mr Gan Kim Yong: Since the launch of the new Workplace Safety and Health (WSH) framework in 2005, we have made good progress in promoting the culture of safety in the workplace. Today, there is greater awareness and ownership by the industry on workplace safety. These efforts have contributed to a significant reduction in workplace fatality rate from 4.9 deaths per 100,000 workers in 2004 to 2.9 in 2007.

MOM and the newly formed WSH Council will continue in its efforts to further strengthen workplace safety culture. We want to nurture a culture where individuals recognise their responsibility in protecting not only their own health and safety, but that of others working with them. We also want safety and health to become a way of life such that every worker naturally and routinely thinks about safety as they go about their work.

We have set a new target to lower our workplace fatality rate to below 1.8 fatalities per 100,000 workers by 2018 and bring our safety record on par with the best in the world. To achieve this, we have revised our national WSH strategy, known as WSH 2018.

Mr Ong has also expressed concerns over the training of foreign workers in workplace safety. All new workers working in any high-risk sector such as the construction, marine, metalworking, and oil and petrochemical industry must attend their respective mandatory Safety Orientation Courses and pass the relevant tests before they can commence work. To ensure that they fully understand the safety rules, these courses and tests are conducted in their native languages. Existing workers are also required to be re-certified every few years to remind them of the safety rules and ensure that they continue to observe good safety practices at their workplaces.

The safety situation in the construction and marine sectors has always been a priority area of focus in MOM. We have achieved some successes in raising the safety standards in the larger construction worksites and shipyards. We have now turned our attention to the smaller and medium sized worksites and shipyards. Since June last year, enforcement officers from MOM have stepped up its inspections on all such workplaces leading to more than 90 stop work orders issued to worksites and shipyards that had failed to put in place adequate safety measures. MOM will continue to monitor closely the safety performance of the construction and marine industries as well as the other high-risk sectors.

In addition to enhanced enforcement, the WSH Council has held more dedicated industry forums and outreach programmes with senior management staff, industry practitioners, supervisors and rank and file workers. Industry bodies have also proactively

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taken greater ownership of safety outcomes. For example, the Association of Singapore Marine Industries (ASMI) had initiated an industry-wide safety "time-out" from work in July last year, to review the safety processes in shipyards, following a series of accidents in the marine sector. Under WSH 2018, MOM and the WSH Council will also be developing sector-specific strategies and performance targets to raise WSH performance of key industries.

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