OSHD 2013 WORK
OVERVIEW
OSHD Annual Report 2013
STRATEGY 3 –
PROMOTE
THE BENEFITS
OF WSH AND
RECOGNISE
BEST PRACTICES
Outreach & Engagement
To encourage businesses to adopt good Workplace Safety and
Health (WSH) practices, it is important they recognise that
good WSH practices will enhance business competitiveness.
Businesses should be made aware that good WSH practices can
bring benefits such as a good corporate image, cost savings in
terms of higher productivity, and fewer disruptions to work due
to accidents. It is also necessary to reach out to the workforce
and encourage workers to adopt good WSH practices.
Guest of Honour Dr Amy
Khor, Senior Minister
of State for Health and
Manpower, congratulated
the
winners
and
highlighted the need for
change to raise WSH
standards. She noted that
it was time to put equal
emphasis on workplace
health as well as workplace
safety to better protect
the ageing workforce.
In addition, we should continue to recognise employers
and workers who demonstrate good WSH practices and
behaviours, and encourage them to share their experiences
with the industry. Such sharing of best practices will further
encourage cross-learning and facilitate the environment of
continuous improvement. This will help build a strong safety
and healthy culture, which will eventually elevate Singapore’s
state of WSH development.
We adopt a robust public outreach strategy with
multiple touchpoints to promote the benefits of
WSH and to share the latest in WSH developments.
From WSH-related conventions, forums to clinics,
there were numerous opportunities in 2013 for
businesses to discuss and deliberate on how best
to enhance their WSH management system and
improve WSH standards.
Workplace Safety and
Health Awards 2013
The Workplace Safety and Health (WSH) Awards
celebrate and recognise companies and individuals
on a national level for excellence in WSH. Jointly
organised by the WSH Council and the Ministry of
Manpower (MOM), the Awards ceremony was held
on 30 July 2013 at Marina Bay Sands. 192 award
winners were honoured at the ceremony.
In his welcome address, Mr Lee Tzu Yang,
Chairman, WSH Council, continued using the
theme of “Change” to chart the history of the
Council. The Chairman also reflected on the work
to be done. “We can all take pride in the progress
but our journey is far from over,” he concluded.
bizSAFE Convention 2013
The bizSAFE Convention 2013 was held on 22 February 2013 at the
Grand Copthorne Waterfront Hotel. Themed “Invest in WSH for Business
Success,” the Convention provided opportunities to Small and MediumSized Enterprises (SMEs) to learn from the bizSAFE community about
their successful WSH journeys.
The Convention opened with a plenary session with Mr Tan ChuanJin, Minister for Manpower, as the Guest of Honour. While explaining
how safety can contribute to business success through productivity,
operational efficiency and reputation, he urged business leaders and
supervisors to focus on safety because every worker has the right to go
home safely and it is the right thing to do.
bizSAFE Awards 2013 were presented to 11 bizSAFE companies
to recognise their commitment and effort in creating a safe and
healthy environment at their workplaces through sound and effective
management of WSH risks. Close to 800 participants attended the
Convention, of whom more than 50% were non-bizSAFE members. This
was testament to the industries’ continuous commitment to WSH and
the growing WSH awareness among newer industries.
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OSHD 2013 WORK
OVERVIEW
OSHD Annual Report 2013
Promote Awareness and Adoption of
Design for Safety
Programme-Based
Engagement Plus
Design for Safety (DfS) is a holistic and multi-disciplinary approach to
integrate safe construction, safe maintenance and safe demolition at
the start of the project from conceptual design stage onwards. 2013
saw a number of joint industry events to promote awareness and
adoption of ‘DfS’ so that risks identified from the design stage and
during construction are recorded and transparent to all relevant parties
involved in the project. Two key industry events included:
“Targetting Where It Matters” is a key driver for
developing the programmes and initiatives. The
national Programme-Based Engagement Plus
(ProBE Plus) is a national intervention programme
by MOM and WSH Council that aims to reduce
the key contributors of workplace fatalities and
injuries, which is validated through calibrated
enforcement and engagement with industry.
(I) International Conference on WSH for Construction Industry
The 2nd International Conference on WSH for the Construction Industry
was held at BCA Academy on 13 and 14 August 2013. This conference was
organised by Institution of Occupational Safety and Health Singapore in
collaboration with BCA Academy and WSH Council, with DfS as one of
the main themes.
Guest of Honour Mr Tan Chuan-Jin, Minister for Manpower, also gave
out the DfS Mark to representatives from Land Transport Authority,
the 2013 winner of DfS Mark in Singapore. The DfS Mark is part of the
DfS Recognition Scheme initiated by the WSH Council to recognise
projects and competent DfS teams which had adopted DfS to reduce
risks in the design of buildings and structures.
(II)WSH Workshop on DfS of Skyrise Greenery
The WSH Workshop on DfS of Skyrise Greenery was well attended by
more than 200 stakeholders from the building, facilities management
and landscape sectors. Organised by WSH Council and National
Parks Board, the event was part of the International Skyrise Greenery
Conference 2013, which was held from 07-09 November 2013 alongside
GreenUrbanScape Asia. A local project, Treehouse, was featured
followed by a workshop conducted by Dr Michael Behm, Associate
Professor, Occupational Safety, East Carolina University.
The ProBE Plus framework also supported and
operationalised key programmes and initiatives
under the industry-led national WAH and Crane
Safety Taskforces respectively. Key initiatives under
the National Taskforces operationalised through
ProBE included various industry forums and
enforcement operations with media coverage so as
to share findings and amplify desired key messages.
The ProBE Plus framework consists of three
phases:
Phase 1 – Intel: Leveraging
on technology and working
closely with key partners to
identify key ground issues.
Phase 2 – Engagement and
Communication: Extending
e n g a g e m e nt ef fo r t s to
promulgate ProBE initiatives.
Phase 3 – Enforcement and
Monitoring: Allow review
and reinforcement process
for ProBE target groups and
outcomes
For 2013, ProBE Plus
has identified Work at
Heights (WAH) and
Crane Safety as its key
focus areas based on
key accident trends in
the previous year.
Safety Compliance
Assistance Visits
The Safety Compliance Assistance Visits (SCAV)
programme is a key initiative under the National
WAH Safety Taskforce, which involved appointed
WSH professionals to visit and provide onsite
compliance assistance to small worksites.
In 2013, SCAV conducted 800 worksites visits by
WSH professionals. These provided invaluable
opportunities for accident prevention. The
SCAV specifically intervened at 61 worksites
that exhibited imminent danger that could have
resulted in serious injury and/or fatalities.
These intervened worksites would be advised to
stop work immediately and carry out the necessary
rectifications. The respective occupiers were then
given one working day (after the visit) to revert
back to SCAV on the progress of rectifications.
Worksites that ignored SCAV’s advice were given
reminders before referral to OSH Inspectorate for
further intervention.
Mobile Elevating Working Platform Safety
Engineering Safety Branch from OSH Specialist Department collaborated
actively with WSH Council and the industry to organise many outreach
events which served as a good platform for our Specialists to share with
the industry on OSHD’s efforts in promoting safety and the benefits of
WSH best practices. For instance, Engineering Safety Branch regularly
worked with International Powered Access Federation (IPAF), which is
a non-profit organisation that promotes the safe and effective use of
powered access equipment worldwide. Its head office is based in the
United Kingdom and IPAF has played a key role in promoting many of
the design, safety and test procedures that are now established in the
powered access industry. Some of such outreach events were:
i)Forum on Mobile Elevated Work Platforms
Held on 30 April 2013, this forum was jointly organised by Singapore
Institution of Safety Officers (SISO) and IPAF with support from MOM.
The objective of this forum was to provide a platform for sharing of
safety perspectives for all users and stakeholders in the Mobile Elevated
Work Platforms (MEWP) industry. Presentations covered key critical
factors such as pre-use inspections, maintenance, specifications of
the equipment and the safe use of MEWP. Mr Go Heng Huat, Deputy
Director (Major Hazard Installation) delivered the opening address.
Under WAH, ProBE
Plus focused on a) Falls
from Roofs, b) Falls
from Structures, c) Falls
from Mobile Elevated
Work Platforms and
Scaffolds and d) Falls
from Ladders.
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OSHD 2013 WORK
OVERVIEW
ii) IPAF Asia Conference
The second IPAF Asia Conference was held
on 02 August 2013. This full-day conference
featured international industry speakers sharing
their expertise on how MEWP can be used to
improve safety and productivity, including case
studies from manufacturers, rental companies
and users. Er Mohd Ismadi, then Deputy
Director (Engineering Safety) shared a paper
on “Powered Access Safety – Maintaining
the right Balance between Regulations and
Engagement”. The conference was attended
by over 140 international participants from 14
countries comprising representatives from
manufacturers, rental companies, contractors,
safety authorities and delegates.
OSHD Annual Report 2013
Involvement in Outreach Seminars
and Forums
Fostering a Trusted Work
Injury Compensation System
Throughout 2013, many outreach seminars and forums were jointly
organised by WSH Council, MOM and the industry, academia and
professional organisations. Such seminars and forums served as a good
platform to raise awareness and share with the industry the Ministry’s
efforts in promoting the benefits of WSH best practices. Some of such
outreach seminars and forums were:
One other focus for the year for the Work Injury
Compensation Department (WICD) was to correct
misconceptions and foster trust in the Work Injury
Compensation (WIC) system. For instance, one
misconception is that some workers perceive that
a lawyer is required in order to claim work injury
compensation, while some are not clear on the
assistance that the Ministry provides to file an
injury claim under the Work Injury Compensation
Act (WICA). To strengthen the understanding
of WICA , various education and outreach
programmes were rolled out to reach out to
workers and their employers on WICA rights and
obligations, and that they should approach MOM
on their WIC issues.
26 January 2013
09 May 2013
Seminar on Developments in
Workplace Health –
Challenges and Opportunities
WSH Facilities Management
Forum
07 September 2013
23 September 2013
WSH Forum for the Landscape
Industry
ProBE Plus Work at Heights
Forum on Roof Work Safety
24 September 2013
02 October 2013
• Dedicated interpreter
Dedicated interpreters are also provided onsite so that any issue that
the foreign worker may face can be better understood for resolution.
• Comic Strip
MOM has produced
the following comic
strip to illustrate, in
a light-hearted way,
the message that
MOM is there to help
with employees’ work
injury compensation
claims for free.
• WIC Guidebooks for Employees in 8 languages
In particular for the segment of foreign workers
who may not be conversant in English, WICD has
translated its WICA materials into various native
languages. In addition to the English version,
the employees’ guide has been translated
into 7 languages common among the foreign
community within Singapore. These include
Chinese, Malay, Tamil, Bengali, Hindi, Myanmese
and Thai.
• Monthly WSH Bulletins
To educate employers on their work injury compensation issues, WICD
also leverage on WSH Council's monthly WSH Bulletins. Presented
in a condensed, easy-to-understand manner, the bulletins cover a
wide range of issues including
employer’s obligations to ensure
the safety and well-being of
their employees, claim process
and case studies of prosecution
under the WICA.
Issued on 27 May 2013
Work Injury Compensation (WIC) Tips for Employers 4: Common misunderstandings about
Incident Reporting vis-a-vis Compensation
WSH Forum for Improving
WSH Performance through
Process Safety and People
WSH Forum for Manufacturing
Sector on Safe Hands
25 October 2013
19 November 2013

As an employer, you are required under the law to report an incident to MOM
under the following scenarios:
English
Chinese

An employee died in a work accident

An employee sustained a work-related injury or contracted a disease due to
work exposure to biological / chemical agent and
Hospitalized for at least 24 hours or
Given MC for more than 3 consecutive calendar days

An employee contracted an Occupational Disease
Malay
Issued on 17 Apr 2013
Work Injury Compensation Tips for Employers 2: Pay MC Wages and Medical Expenses for your Injured
Worker
MOM
DO YOU KNOW…?
As an employer, you are responsible for medical leave wages and
medical expenses of your worker injured at work, even if they have
been dismissed.
I am liable to pay
compensation for my employee’s
injury or illness once I file an incident
report to MOM.
Incident
Reporting
does
not
automatically
qualify
employees
for
compensation. When in doubt, you should still
report and indicate your doubts. MOM will then
investigate the admissibility of the claim.
Pay medical leave (MC) wages to your employee
•
•
•
Singapore Veterinary
Conference
Jurong Gateway Safety Group
Workers’ Outreach
20 November 2013
28 November 2013
ProBE Plus Work at Heights
Forum
62
WSH Forum for the Hospitality
and Entertainment Industry –
"ABCs of Kitchen Safety"
Tamil
Bengali
Hindi
No later than the usual pay day.
Even if worker has left the company or work permit has been cancelled.
Even before the insurer pays.
Please ensure that your workers are promptly treated for their work injuries or work-related
conditions. Delays in treatment may result in permanent incapacity or even death. As long as the
medical treatments are linked to the work accident and considered necessary by the medical
practitioner, you need to pay medical expenses up to a cap of $30,000 (as required under WICA)
directly to the hospital or clinic. This includes for example, providing a Letter of Guarantee (LOG) to
the hospital as a guarantee of payment.
For failing to make prompt payment of medical leave wages and medical expenses for their injured
employees, four companies have been blacklisted by the Ministry of Manpower this year and not
allowed to apply for work passes. The restrictions were lifted only after the companies rectified the
lapses and paid up the compensation amounts, as well as put in measures to prevent similar
recurrence in the future.
For more information about WICA and the claim process, you can download a copy of our latest guides
here.
Myanmese
Thai
I have bought Work Injury
Compensation Insurance. I have
already informed my insurer about
the accident who will follow up on the
claim.
Compensation is not
required for non-reportable
accidents.
You are required to report the
accident to MOM even if you have informed
the insurer. Do not assume insurers will follow
up on all aspects of a claim. Please update
MOM on any further developments such as
additional MC days and information on WIC
insurance policy.
Employers are still required to
compensate injured workers for non-reportable
but work-related incidents (e.g. employee
given 2 days’ MC). Please ensure your policy
covers all your potential liabilities under WICA.
For more information on WICA, please visit our website at http://www.mom.gov.sg/wic.
WSH Bulletin is a free electronic newsletter published by WSH
Council. Emailed to subscribers 2 to 3 times weekly, the WSH Bulletin
keeps WSH professionals and interested stakeholders updated on
local and international WSH-related matters and developments.
To subscribe, visit: https://www.wshc.sg/
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OSHD 2013 WORK
OVERVIEW
OSHD Annual Report 2013
Research, Studies and Learning
To achieve our vision of being a country renowned
for best practices in Workplace Safety and Health
(WSH), OSHD will continue to drive our research
endeavours so that Singapore can be at the
forefront of WSH developments in the world.
departments, employer associations and companies and service
providers, including occupational health providers.
International Conference
on Fall Prevention and
Protection
Mr Tan Boon Kiat, Senior Manager of WSH
Institute attended the International Conference
on Fall Prevention and Protection 2013 held at
the National Institute of Occupational Safety
and Health (JNIOSH), Tokyo, Japan from 23 – 25
October 2013. Organised by the International
Ergonomics Association Technical Committee on
Slips Trips and Falls and JNIOSH, the conference
provided a technical forum on various aspects of
fall prevention and protection including slips, trips.
Following the conference, Mr Tan was attached to
the Construction Safety Research Group for one
week to learn more about JNIOSH’s research work.
Study Trip to the UK on
Holistic Management of
Workplace Health
From 23 – 27 September 2013, Dr Lee Hock
Siang, Director OSH Specialist, and Dr Lucy
Leong, Principal Specialist, participated in a
study trip to the United Kingdom to study the
implementation of a more holistic approach to
improve the health of the working population.
This was led by Dr Amy Khor, Senior Minister of
State, Health and Manpower. Other delegates
included representatives from the Ministry of
Health, Health Promotion Board and the National
University of Singapore. The study trip looked
into the integration of Workplace Safety and
Health across public agencies, best practices in
health and well being, fit for work service and the
delivery of holistic occupational health services.
Visits were made to ministries and governmental
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SCIC – MOM Dialogue Session
The SCIC–MOM Dialogue session is an annual
exchange session where important WSH messages
and OSHD initiatives are shared. For 2013, the
Dialogue was held on 20 August and attended
by about 50 SCIC members from the chemical
industry. The Dialogue included updates on the
revision of SS506 Part 3, the Globally Harmonised
System and the revocation of Factories (PersonsIn-charge) Regulations and Factories (Certificate
of Competency - Examinations) Regulations as
well as the sharing of the findings of the Major
Hazard Installation Study Mission to Europe in May
2013. The Dialogue further strengthened OSHD’s
working relationship with the chemical industry.
“Learning from Incident” Sharing Session
Engineering Safety Branch Technical
Training Series
Practising engineers value lifelong learning skills and the importance of
continual learning. Engineering Safety Branch (ESB) Technical Training
Series is launched so that we can provide OSHD engineers with up-todate training and knowledge on advances of technology in their areas
of expertise. Thus, ESB in OSH Specialist Department organised several
customised technical training and practical workshops for our OSHD
engineers in 2013.
i)1-Day Mobile Elevating Work Platform Course for MOM Inspectors
25 OSHD Engineers attended this 1-day customised course which was
conducted by a renowned overseas trainer from International Powered
Access Federation (IPAF). This 1-day comprehensive and rigorous
course served to equip our Engineers with technical and practical
knowledge of Mobile Elevating Work Platforms (MEWP) and updates on
international standards and technological developments. The course
was well-received by the attendees with many positive feedbacks that
the session was informative and beneficial to their works.
The sharing session on 20 March 2013 was jointly organised by Singapore
Chemical Industries Council (SCIC), Shell and MOM with the objective
of sharing the Shell Bukom pump house fire incident through casual
learning principles, using the bowtie concept as an insight into process
safety and starting the dialogue on existing practices and how process
safety can be improved.
The session featured a video produced by Shell showing the
circumstances leading to the fire, followed by small group discussions
facilitated by Shell and a plenary sharing. Participants discussed how the
fire could have been avoided and safe methods of removing flammable
residual from pipelines. The discussion also deliberated how companies
can ensure safety measures remain effective in the workplace. This event
was very well received, with participants commending Shell’s openness
in sharing with the industry what went wrong and their improvements
after the fire. This session was a first and a major step forward for this
industry; raising expectations and paving the way for others to share
openly for the purposes of improving WSH standards in the industry.
ii) 1-Day MEWP Manager Course
The 2nd Hazards Asia Pacific
Symposium
This was a 1-day course for personnel who plan, supervise and
manage the use of MEWP in the workplace. Attendees received
instruction and training to prepare for and safely coordinate the use
of MEWP.
On April 2013, Ms Jacqueline Liew and Mr Oh
Hong Jia from OSH Specialist Department
attended the 2nd Hazards Asia Pacific Symposium
2013 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Hazards Asia
Pacific Symposium 2013 is a bi-annual conference
focusing on the latest developments in chemical
process safety and sharing of best practices
with special emphasis placed on the challenges
f a ce d by o p e r a to r s
i n th e A s i a P a cif i c
region. The Symposium
incorporated plenar y
sessio ns supp o r te d
by
a
twin
track
technical programme
containing more than
40
pe e r- reviewe d
papers with keynotes
speakers consisting of
international renowned
figures from the process
safety industry.
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OSHD 2013 WORK
OVERVIEW
OSHD Annual Report 2013
Engineering Safety Branch
Technical Visits
Specialist Learning Club
Series
Engineering Safety Branch (ESB) of Specialist
Department regularly conducts visits to Equipment
Manufacturers or Suppliers’ workshops to learn
more about the current practices on the ground
for safety matters as well as to learn more about
the maintenance and inspection regime for such
equipment. This is imperative for our continuous
effort for ground sensing and on site practical
learning. We would also time-to-time meet up
with Manufactures to know about the latest
technological developments of these equipments.
Some of these visits for 2013 included:
OSH Specialist Department regularly conducts
Learning Sessions where External Speakers are
invited to speak on various topics of interest to our
Specialists. Where appropriate, the programme is
also extended to other OSHDians depending on
the relevance of the subject matter.
WSH Research Commissioned
To date, the WSH Institute has 8 on-going RFP
projects. In 2013, The WSH Institute has awarded
a total of 6 RFP (Request for Proposal) research
projects with Institute of Higher Learning and WSH
consultancy firms. Details of the projects awarded in
2013 are summarised below.
OWLinks is a free electronic newsletter published by the WSH Institute.
Emailed to subscribers monthly, OWLinks reviews and recommends
articles on safety and health issues from around the world. Through these
articles, readers could gather insights on new WSH ideas and solutions,
emerging issues and potential changes in our future landscape.
To subscribe, visit: http://www.wshi.gov.sg/
Some of the Specialist Learning Club Series
sessions that were conducted for 2013 include:
° Attaining Certified Industrial Hygienist
• Mobile Elevating Work Platform
° Industrial Dust Explosion Risk Management
i. National University of Singapore
Prototype Fall Protection System
Wizard: A design support system
to improve the selection and design
of personal fall protection system
ii.National University of Singapore
Intelligent review of Design for Safety
using safety knowledge-based
building information modelling
iii.National University of Singapore
Intelligent system for determining
productivity and safety index using
building information modelling
iv.Nanyang Technological University
Behaviour-centred,
communications-reinforced
approach to workplace safety
v.Institute of Occupational Medicine Potential occupational exposure
to nanoparticles in Singapore
(Nanomaterial Value Chain Assessment
also known as NanoEXS project)
vi.Institute of Occupational Medicine
Occupational ill-health in the
Singapore Construction Sector
which includes cancer and nonmalignant respiratory diseases
• Mini Outrigger Crawler Crane
WSH Institute Forums
WSH Institute
Forum on “Maximising
Returns through WSH
Innovations”
WSH Train-theTrainers (T3) Risk
Management
Training Forum
° Recognising and Managing Work-Related Stress
• Suspended Scaffold
The WSH Institute organised a forum, entitled “Maximising Returns
through WSH Innovations”, at the NTU@One North Campus on 30
January 2013. About 200 participants attended the event. Participants,
mainly WSH professionals, were updated on WSH Innovations to help
them work more effectively and efficiently.
Speakers included:
• Mr Richard Webster from Safe Work Australia – He shared that the cost
of work-related injuries and illnesses amounts to 4.8% of the Australian
GDP.
• Ms Heidi Tan from Tan Tock Seng Hospital – She shared the
importance of an ergonomics program within an organisation as
well as some tips on maintaining good postures at work.
Other highlights included presentations on two mobile applications:
- SNAP@MOM by Ms Patricia Chen from MOM
- ergo@WSH by Ms Peggy Heng from WSH Institute.
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The WSH Institute organised a half-day WSH Trainthe-Trainers (T 3 ) Forum on Risk Management
Training on 22 March 2013. The forum was targeted
for WSH trainers who conduct training on WSH
risk management. More than 180 participants
attended the forum, including WSH trainers and
practitioners from various industries. The forum
was very well-received by the audience. Real
time feedback was collected using the Institute’s
Audience Response Devices issued at the end of
the forum and they indicated that they looked
forward to more of such forums in the future.
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