SINGAPORE — A Bangladeshi worker has died after he fell four storeys from scaffolding which collapsed early yesterday morning, barely a day after the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) had called on employers and workers to ensure that safety and health are never compromised at the workplace.

Another worker, a Bangladeshi national, was also injured in the accident at Low Keng Huat (Singapore)’s worksite at Paya Lebar Road, the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) said.

Preliminary findings showed four workers were tasked to carry out concreting work for the supporting columns and beams of a skylight on a commercial building under construction. They were working on the structure supporting the concreting work, located at the fourth storey of the building, when it collapsed. Two of the workers managed to move to safety, but a third suffered leg injuries as he left the collapsing structure.

“A fourth worker, also a Bangladeshi national, fell together with the structure to the first storey of the building and was pronounced dead at the scene,” said an MOM spokesperson. “Investigations are ongoing and MOM has instructed the occupier to stop all work at the worksite.”

The ministry yesterday strongly urged all contractors and occupiers to carry out proper risk assessments and ensure that scaffolds are erected in accordance with a professional engineer’s design where required. The failure to do so is an offence under the Workplace Safety and Health Act and carries a fine of up to S$500,000.

NTUC Workplace Safety and Health director Yeo Guat Kwang had said on Monday that both employers and workers had a duty to ensure workplace safety, as he noted the recent spate of accidents that claimed five lives and injured one person within the past two weeks. Tiara Hamarian