SINGAPORE - More people have died from fall-from-height incidents at workplaces in the first 10 months this year, compared with the whole of 2014.

From January to October, 16 people died and 87 others sustained major injuries after they fell from a height. Last year, 10 died, with 88 others sustaining major injuries.

Minister of State (Manpower) Sam Tan, who was speaking at the launch of the annual Falls Prevention Campaign on Thursday, called these statistics "worrying and unacceptable" and said the Manpower Ministry wants to bring these numbers back down.

"Workplace safety and health is a journey without end. We must stay vigilant at all times to ensure each and everyone of us goes home safely to our loved ones at the end of the day," he said.

Mr Tan also reminded companies to look out for fall risks at work, especially with the festive season coming up "when we tend to let our guard down".

Ministry officers have checked more than 300 work sites and factories for unsafe work practices including work-at-height, crane safety and traffic management since mid-October.

It plans to check 200 more next month.