Common Workplace Accidents and Prevention Measures

28 Mr Desmond Choo asked the Minister for Manpower in view of the recent spate of workplace fatal accidents (a) whether there are common causes of the accidents; (b) which are the sectors where such accidents are more prevalent; (c) whether the current framework of measures is adequate; and (d) what new measures may be needed to prevent industrial accidents in future.

29 Mr Melvin Yong Yik Chye asked the Minister for Manpower (a) what is the number of construction-related workplace fatalities for the past five years; (b) what is the local-foreign worker ratio of these fatalities; and (c) what is the Ministry's plan to further reduce the number of construction-related workplace fatalities.

The Minister of State for Manpower (Mr Zaqy Mohamad) (for the Minister for Manpower): Mr Speaker, in the first half of 2018, there were 20 workplace fatalities. This is slightly more than the 19 cases in the same period last year.

Besides the construction sector, recent fatal accidents were also prevalent in the manufacturing sector and in commercial diving.

One common cause of the fatalities was the use of improper work methods. To address this, the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) works with companies to raise awareness of accident risks in their workplaces. Besides engaging industry associations like the Singapore Contractors Association Limited and the Commercial Diving Association of Singapore, we also issue regular alerts to share learning points from recent accidents. For example, we have notified companies on the dangers of improper use of material hoists, which led to a fatal accident in a food factory. We issued reminders on the proper procedures for doing construction work, especially at heights, as falls have accounted for about half of construction fatalities this year.

Overall, workplace fatalities in the construction sector have declined over the last five years, from 34 in 2013 to 12 in 2017. On average, foreigners constituted 88% of the fatalities, even though they comprised 75% of the construction workforce.

To guard against complacency, and to prevent injuries to both local and foreign workers, MOM has ramped up enforcement operations at construction sites. By the end of the year, MOM would have inspected about 70% of all active construction sites.

We will continue to adopt a mix of targeted enforcement while raising awareness on safety lapses. To achieve sustained improvements in workplace safety and health (WSH), we convened the WSH2028 Tripartite Strategy Committee to recommend new approaches. It will share its preliminary recommendations at the Singapore WSH Conference later this month.

Mr Speaker: I take it that the Minister of State is taking Question No 29 as well?

Mr Zaqy Mohamad: Yes, Mr Speaker.

Mr Speaker: Mr Desmond Choo.

Mr Desmond Choo (Tampines): I would like to thank the Minister of State for his comprehensive answer and for MOM's efforts to tackle fatalities. But I note that the number of fatalities has been higher in the first part of 2018 compared to that the year before. I would like to ask the Minister of State whether the current framework and the current penalties are sufficient to send a deterrent message to errant employers and what further action may be taken against companies, especially those with repeated infringements.

Mr Zaqy Mohamad: I thank the Member for his supplementary questions. Certainly, this year, we saw an increase and largely driven by the construction sector. In May, I announced that we are conducting additional inspections, about 500 inspections, and we also extended another 250 when we saw fatalities in the construction sector still increasing. We have completed about 80% of the extended inspections. What we have done so far is to issue six stop-work orders and 164 composition fines amounting to $188,750. We hope that this will send a strong message to the construction sector to be more vigilant, especially since they have contributed a significant amount of fatalities to the workplaces this year.

But it is not just the construction sector that we are working on. We have also been working with the manufacturing and commercial diving sector as well, which have also contributed some amount of fatalities this year. So, it is an area that we are constantly working on, but we hope that employers make conscious decisions to mitigate risks at the worksites to reduce fatalities.

Mr Speaker: Mr Melvin Yong.

Mr Melvin Yong Yik Chye (Tanjong Pagar): I thank the Minister of State for the answer. I note that there are higher incidences of foreign workers in construction worksites falling victim to workplace accidents. I think the Minister of State's reply says that the fatality rate is higher for the foreign workers. Are there any plans by MOM to focus on education and raising awareness among this group of foreign workers?

Mr Zaqy Mohamad: I thank the Member for his questions. MOM and WSH Council both reach out to workers through various means, such as roadshows, events at dormitories and on weekends, to convey these messages to foreign workers. I think it is also important that as they settle in, especially for those working in construction, to be trained in terms of safety aspects since they come from different backgrounds.

We also ensure that WSH collaterals are printed in different languages so that workers from different nationalities are also able to benefit from the different advice.