Labour movement highlights need for better workplace safety

A worker was checking a machine when his glove got caught in the motor's belt and pulley, and he sustained a crushed index finger, broken third finger and severed ring finger.

This incident, which happened a few years ago, was highlighted in a blog post by Mr Melvin Yong, secretary for the NTUC Workplace Safety and Health (WSH) Committee. He called for better workplace safety.

The blog post, referencing the American horror film - SAW Singapore edition: Not for the faint-hearted - was published on the NTUC's labour movement blog yesterday.

Quoting the WSH Report 2016 published by the WSH Institute, the blog post said the amputation cases from workplace accidents had gone up from 117 in 2015 to 143 last year, a 22 per cent jump.

This means that a worker lost a body part due to a workplace accident every three days last year.

Mr Yong expressed concern over the rising number of amputation cases.

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Raising WSH standards is a collective effort among all relevant stakeholders. Mr Melvin Yong, secretary for the NTUC Workplace Safety and Health Committee

In an e-mail to The New Paper, he said: "Raising WSH standards is a collective effort among all relevant stakeholders.

"This requires continuous and progressive efforts in a journey where WSH becomes ingrained not just into the minds and habits of our workers but also into the strategic and operational mindsets of organisations."

Minister of State for Manpower Sam Tan had highlighted the prevention of amputation injuries as one of three priority areas for the Programme-Based Engagement (ProBE) Plus Forum in April.

The other two areas are falls prevention and on-site vehicular safety.

Mr Yong also shared a "3Es" strategy to prevent accidents in his post - to "enlighten" workers on safety procedures, "enable" workers to identify dangers and "empower" them to prioritise safety in the workplace.

He added: "Next time you think of SAW, think of safety at work."

Meanwhile, NTUC is developing a guidebook to provide workers with knowledge on common causes of accidents and how to prevent them.

It will be published at the end of the year and distributed to both workers and supervisors.

wongxym@sph.com.sg