Senior managers could be taken to task for workplace safety violations

The authorities are considering spelling out by law the clear role of corporate officers in ensuring workplace safety, Minister of State (Manpower) Sam Tan announced in Parliament yesterday.

Speaking during the debate on the budget of the Ministry of Manpower (MOM), Mr Tan said that MOM investigators would also look more closely into the role of senior management in firms to ensure compliance.

“MOM will take action not only (against) the company but also hold the senior management responsible and accountable if their actions breach the WSH (Workplace Safety and Health) Act,” he said.

To help injured workers return to work quickly and provide early intervention, the tripartite partners, which include the Government and unions, will roll out a Return to Work programme later this year to help these workers and their firms. The programme’s facilitators will, for example, help firms make adjustments to their workplaces and jobs during the injured worker’s rehabilitation.

Presently, more than eight in 10 injured workers are able to return to work after accidents, Mr Tan said, and the ministry wants to do more to help them “recover faster and also return to work earlier”. Not only would workers stand to gain, employers will also benefit from retaining their experienced workers and save on the costs of re-hiring and retraining new ones.

Last year, 66 workers lost their lives on the job, and about six in 10 of them died in the first half of the year. In the first two months of this year, there were two workplace fatalities.

While this is a slight improvement, Mr Tan said that “every fatality is still a tragedy that can be prevented”.

Pointing out that the construction industry remained the biggest contributor to workplace fatalities last year, Mr Tan added that the Government would tighten the WSH regulations pertaining to construction sites, to tackle concerns such as the lack of proper supervision, communication and coordination of work activity that led to accidents. KENNETH CHENG