SINGAPORE - A renovation firm was fined $8,000 after an inspection by the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) found it had flouted several workplace safety rules.

In a Facebook post on Wednesday, the ministry said it conducted the inspection at a two-storey shophouse in Eng Kong Terrace in Bukit Batok on June 8, following public feedback about unsafe work-at-height activities.

Workers at the site were on the roof without any fall protection or barricades to prevent them from falling off and there were no guard rails on the scaffolds, among other violations.

On top of that, essential documents including the risk assessment and fall prevention plans were unavailable.

The occupier, J & C Renovation Enterprise, was directed to stop work immediately as the safety lapses posed an immediate danger to workers.

MOM’s director of occupational safety and health inspectorate, Mr Sebastian Tan, said: “It was clear from our inspection that the safety of the workers was not a priority for J & C Renovation Enterprise.”

Thanking the person who alerted the ministry to the unsafe practices being carried out, he said reporting such actions could save lives.

“When everyone plays their part in looking out for the safety and health of workers, we can collectively raise Singapore’s workplace safety and health standards and prevent workplace incidents from happening.”

Workplace safety has been in the spotlight since 2022, when there were 46 workplace deaths – the highest number since 2016, when there were 66 such deaths.

The rise in fatalities led to MOM imposing a heightened safety period on Sept 1, 2022. It was originally meant to end on Feb 28, 2023, but was extended to May 31 to curb the trend.

As at last Wednesday, there have been 14 workplace deaths, with the latest involving a 20-year-old worker from India who was pinned under 2m of debris after part of the Fuji Xerox Towers building in Tanjong Pagar collapsed during demolition works.