SINGAPORE - A man who used a forged safety course certificate to get work was sentenced to six weeks in jail on Thursday (Feb 24).

Hanif Miah Md Nurul Islam, 39, had pleaded guilty to knowingly using the forged certificate to get employed as a formwork supervisor, said the Ministry of Manpower (MOM).

The job involves ensuring that temporary moulds used for casting concrete structures are constructed, maintained and dismantled properly.

The ministry said in a statement that Hanif obtained a forged Formwork Safety Course for Supervisors certificate for a fee in 2015.

Between September and December 2020, he was appointed a formwork supervisor on at least four occasions based on the forged certificate.

"In doing so, he falsely represented that he had completed the course, when he did not undergo the necessary training to be a formwork supervisor," said MOM.

The ministry also said that it started investigations in February last year after a sub-contractor approached it to verify the authenticity of Hanif's certificates.

It added: "Investigations revealed that Hanif had not received any safety and health training that was required for him to be familiar with the hazards associated with the construction, erection, alteration or dismantling of formwork.

"Formwork operations are complex and dangerous, and poor installation or dismantling of formwork may result in the collapse of the entire formwork structure.

"Hanif's actions thus placed himself, workers under his supervision, and other workers at the worksite, at risk of serious harm."

He had also obtained forged certificates for a metal scaffolding erection course and a supervision of metal scaffolding erection course, said MOM.

Mr Sebastian Tan, director of MOM's occupational safety and health inspectorate, said: "Hanif showed a blatant disregard for the law and the importance of training.

"Although it is fortunate that no harm arose from his actions, his lack of training could have led to very serious accidents."

He added that the ministry will not hesitate to prosecute offenders who forge their safety credentials and endanger others.

In July last year, two Indian nationals were jailed, one for one week and the other for four weeks, over falsely declaring qualifications from Indian school Manav Bharti University in their work pass applications.

They were among more than 20 foreigners who were being investigated for the offence.

Another 19 were permanently barred from future employment in Singapore.