More members of the public becoming whistle-blowers on workplace safety breaches: MOM

SINGAPORE - The number of people flagging workplace safety breaches via whistle-blower channels has increased, as Singapore’s workplace fatality and major injury rate

dropped to a record low in 2023.

There were 1,505 reports made via the Ministry of Manpower’s (MOM) SnapSAFE portal in 2023, a 26 per cent jump from 1,194 reports in 2022.

SnapSAFE is MOM’s online workplace safety reporting platform, which can be accessed via a web link.

An MOM spokesperson told The Straits Times that the increase in reports was likely due to higher awareness of reporting unsafe practices following measures to strengthen a better workplace safety culture.

More than nine in 10 reports made in 2022 and 2023 were from members of the public.

One of them, who wanted to be known only as Mr Alessandro, 52, once saw workers without safety harnesses at a construction site while he was on his way to work in May 2023.

Mr Alessandro, who works in the data centre industry, called the construction project manager, who assured him they would address the issue immediately.

But the unsafe practices continued, and he reported the matter via SnapSAFE. MOM acknowledged his report and said it would be forwarded to the case inspector for assessment.

In June 2023, Ms Nurqurratua’yun Mohamed Abdul Wahab, 26, an environmental, health and safety engineer, sent a report to SnapSAFE when she saw a worker working at height without a harness. Similarly, MOM acknowledged her report and kept her updated about the case.

In both cases, MOM issued a composition fine or notice of non-compliance against the errant employers.

Mr Alessandro and Ms Nurqurratua’yun each received a certificate of commendation from the commissioner for workplace safety and health for their actions.

On why she reported the incident, Ms Nurqurratua’yun told ST in an e-mail: “I cannot imagine if, because of the lapses, a family could be grieving due to a lost family member. Children might lose their father, parents could lose their son.”

The MOM spokesperson said that most of the reports involved higher-risk sectors such as the construction, manufacturing, and transportation and storage industries.

These were the three industries with the most workplace fatalities and major injuries in 2023.

The spokesperson said: “This underscores the critical role of reporting unsafe practices in potentially saving lives.”

For workers, MOM encourages them to report issues through their companies’ internal reporting systems or to their supervisors and union leaders. If there is no action, they can escalate the issue via SnapSAFE.

The National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) held a

“Spot, Stop and Report” campaign

from September to December 2023 to make the reporting of safety breaches easier and to educate workers on common workplace hazards.

NTUC assistant secretary-general Melvin Yong said participating companies saw more reports received at the company level during those four months.

Mr R. Saravanan, 45, the lead workplace safety and health coordinator at a construction company, once reported a slippery walkway at one of his company’s worksites, beside some excavation work after a rainy day.

He was worried someone might slip and fall, and also reported it via his company’s internal reporting system.

On Oct 23, 2023, MOM had said that since 2014, slips, trips and falls have been the top cause of workplace major injuries, and there were more of such cases.

After Mr Saravanan’s report, the site supervisor cleaned the area with water and installed pipes to channel the rainwater.

Mr Saravanan said he did not fear punishment for reporting the issue as the company’s internal reporting system allows everyone, from supervisors to engineers and subcontractors, to flag potential hazards.

He said: “If action is not taken in response to a report, questions are raised regarding the status and what actions will be taken.”

Mr Yong said that if workers experience retaliation for reporting workplace safety issues, they can approach the union, which will initiate discussions with the company’s management to ensure workers’ rights are protected.

Some examples of retaliation include unfair dismissal and the withholding of bonuses, the union said in an article about workplace safety reporting on its website in September 2023.

Under the Workplace Safety and Health Act, employers who dismiss or threaten to dismiss an employee after they have made a report on unsafe situations can be fined up to $5,000 or jailed for up to six months, or both.

The MOM spokesperson said reports to the ministry are kept confidential, and it investigates all reports received.

So far, MOM has not received any report of wrongful dismissal due to the reporting of workplace safety issues.

As for company management, the Workplace Safety and Health (WSH) Council encourages them to empower workers to speak up on unsafe situations.

At GE Repair Solutions Singapore, a gas turbine component repair centre in Pioneer, workers can report safety breaches by pressing a button at their work station. This prompts a supervisor to resolve the issue immediately.

Mr Dominic Ang, executive plant director, said commonly reported issues include external contractors working at height without safety equipment or using power tools without protective equipment like safety goggles.

The company gives monetary awards to workers who raise helpful reports or propose ideas for productivity and reducing workplace risks.

Mr Ang said about 25 per cent of its 400 workers get such awards each quarter.

He said: “We need to embrace the candour and transparency to tell people that (reporting safety issues) is very right behaviour. (The worker) gets an award because he is doing the right thing.”