3 workers' deaths in 2 work sites: Contractors to review safety measures before being allowed to resume work

The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) has issued Stop Work Orders (SWOs) to the contractors involved in the recent incidents where two workers died at Lentor Avenue and another worker died at Resorts World Sentosa.

These orders require the contractors to review their workplace safety measures before the SWOs can be lifted, according to Minister for Manpower Tan See Leng in a written parliamentary response.

Non-constituency Member of Parliament (NCMP) Hazel Poa asked the minister whether safety procedures would be reviewed to strengthen worksite safety further following the recent incidents.

Tan responded that investigations into the two incidents are ongoing, and MOM will determine if additional safety measures are necessary after investigations have concluded.

Investigations ongoing

The contractors involved must also conduct risk assessments for workplace activities and audits of their safety and health management systems, Tan said.

They are also required to submit plans to MOM to address the audit recommendations.

MOM will determine if additional safety measures are necessary for all worksites, after investigations have concluded, Tan said.

Recent measures

The Multi-Agency Workplace Safety and Health Taskforce (MAST) has continued to roll out measures to strengthen the Workplace Safety and Health (WSH) standards in the construction sector, Tan said.

These include the enhanced WSH requirements for public sector construction and construction-related projects introduced in April 2024 and the mandatory Video Surveillance System for construction worksites with contract values of S$5 million and above introduced in June 2024.

These measures complement the suite of measures that MAST has implemented since the Heightened Safety Period in 2022, Tan added, which has led to improvements in WSH performance for 2023 and the first half of 2024.

He also noted that the workplace fatal and major injury rate for the construction sector declined from 41.3 per 100,000 workers for the first half of 2022 to 30.5 for the first half of 2024.

Lentor incident

A group of workers were working at a construction worksite along Lentor Avenue on Sep. 17 afternoon when a winch drum suddenly slid off.

In total, four workers were struck by the winch drum that was temporarily seated on two concrete blocks.

A 39-year-old Bangladeshi construction worker was pronounced dead at the scene by a Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) paramedic, SCDF told Mothership.

A 38-year-old local site engineer subsequently succumbed to his injuries after he was conveyed to Khoo Teck Puat Hospital along with two other injured workers.

Resorts World incident

A 44-year-old man died in an accident at a worksite next to Resorts World Sentosa's S.E.A Aquarium on Sep. 29, 2024.

A spokesperson for Resort World Singapore (RWS) said the accident occurred at a worksite that was formerly the Maritime Experiential Museum, an area that is not accessible to the public.

"The contractor and RWS are supporting the authorities in their investigation," the spokesperson added.

MOM had said then that the worker was struck by a steel structure that collapsed during lifting operations.

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