Public Consultation on Proposed WSH Work at Heights Regulations

Ministry of Manpower - Occupational Safety and Health Division

Consultation Period: 13 Sep 2012 - 10 Oct 2012

Status: Closed

Summary

The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) is inviting members of the public to give feedback on the proposed Workplace Safety and Health (Work at Heights) Regulations.

Detailed Description

AIM
            The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) is inviting members of the public to give feedback on the proposed Workplace Safety and Health (Work at Heights) Regulations.
 
BACKGROUND

2.         Workplace fatalities due to falls from heights (FFH) have always been a key area of concern for workplace safety in Singapore. FFH has been the top contributor to workplace fatalities in Singapore, causing an average of more than one-third of all workplace fatalities over the last five years.

3.         MOM has rolled out a series of initiatives to engage the industry on work at heights (WAH) safety.  One of the key initiatives was the formation of an industry-led National Work at Heights (WAH) Safety Taskforce in Aug 2009 to address the concern of falls from heights at workplaces.  The National WAH Taskforce recommended a three-pronged approach, namely (i) building strong capabilities, (ii) promoting the benefits of WAH safety and (iii) enhancing the intervention framework for WAH, to reduce fatalities and injury rates.  The planned enhancements to the Regulations fall under the third approach.

4.         While the initiatives brought about improvements, they did not produce sustained results, as evident in the stagnation of WAH fatalities in the year 2011.  Thus a review was conducted by MOM to bring about further progress in WAH safety.  The review found that in comparison to other countries, current legislation on WAH does not adequately cover areas such as  organization and planning requirements to ensure WAH safety, authorization to carry out WAH activities, requirements for competent WAH personnel and work using an industrial rope access system.  

5.         In April and May 2012, MOM engaged the members of the National WAH Safety Taskforce and the WSH Council Industry Committees to tap on their industry experience and gather feedback and suggestions on the legislative requirements for WAH.  The proposed Regulations were then drafted based on the current legislative requirements for WAH and taking into consideration the feedback and suggestions received from the engagement exercise.

6.         Prior to this consultation, MOM had also conducted a focus group discussion session to gather feedback on the draft Regulations. Over 50 professional bodies and industry stakeholders participated in the discussion.  The feedback received was also used to refine the proposed Regulations.

7.         The Ministry is now seeking public feedback to further refine the proposed Regulations.

THE PROPOSED WSH (WORK AT HEIGHTS) REGULATIONS

8.         The key elements of the proposed Regulations are as follows:

Coverage of the proposed Regulations

9.         When the proposed Regulations come into effect in April 2013, they will cover only factories, as specified in the Fourth Schedule of the Workplace Safety and Health Act.  The Regulations will be extended to cover all workplaces from April 2014, i.e. a year after they come into effect, to allow sufficient lead time for employers/principals in non-factory premises to build up their capability.

Fall Prevention Plan (FPP)

10.       Proper planning and risk management are crucial to WAH safety. A proper FPP needs to be developed and implemented for WAH activities which are carried out in or at a factory where 50 or more persons are at work.

Permit-to-Work (PTW) system

11.       A PTW system is an effective and useful means to ensure WAH activities are carried out safely.  The proposed Regulations require the employer/principal to establish and implement a PTW system where a person needs to carry out WAH activities and is liable to fall a distance of more than two metres.  This requirement will only come into effect in April 2014 to allow sufficient lead time for employers/principals to train their staff to competently implement the PTW system.

Industrial Rope Access System

12.       Work using the industrial rope access system is an emerging area of concern.  Due to its high-risk nature, rope access should be considered the last resort when carrying out WAH activities.  When rope access needs to be used, the rope access system must be designed by a professional engineer (PE).  MOM proposes to impose the following duties on the PE designing the industrial rope access system:

    (a)   to take reasonably practicable measures to ensure that his design can be executed safely by any person who installs or uses the industrial rope access system according to his design; and

    (b)   to provide to any person who installs the industrial rope access system, all design documentation (including all relevant calculations, drawings and construction procedures) as is necessary to facilitate the proper installation of the industrial rope access system according to his design.

13.       The draft Regulations are attached below in Annex A.
 
PERIOD OF CONSULTATION

14.       MOM hereby invites members of public to participate in this consultation.  The consultation exercise will last for four weeks, from 13 September to 10 October 2012.

FEEDBACK CHANNEL 

15.       We seek your support to ensure that the consultation exercise is productive and focused. We would like to request that respondents follow these guidelines:

    (a)   identify yourself and the organisation you represent (if any), to assist in our understanding of the impact of the proposed changes to different stakeholder groups;

    (b)   make your comments clear and concise;

    (c)   focus your comments on how the provisions and features can be improved or made clearer; and

    (d)   as far as possible, explain your points with illustrations and examples.
 
16.       Your feedback is important to us. To enable your feedback to reach us faster and speed up the process of consultation, we strongly encourage you to submit your feedback through this email address: mom_oshd_consultation@mom.gov.sg, with the subject heading “Consultation on WSH (Work at Heights) Regulations”.
 
17.       Alternatively, you can also send your comments via any of the following methods:
    (a)   Fax:      6317 1261
    (b)   Post:    Ministry of Manpower
                         Occupational Safety and Health Division
                         18, Havelock Road #05-00
                          Singapore 059764
                          Attn: Mr Abdul Rahman

SUMMARY OF RESPONSES

18.       We regret that we will not be able to individually address or acknowledge every comment we receive.  However, we will consolidate and publish a summary of the key comments received, together with our responses, on the REACH website following the close of the consultation exercise.  The summary will not disclose the identity of person(s) providing the feedback, to maintain confidentiality of the feedback received.

DOCUMENTS TO DOWNLOAD

19.       For your convenience, the relevant documents relating to this public consultation exercise can be downloaded for further reference.

Annex A - WSH (Work at Heights) Regulations [PDF, 77 KB]

Annex B - Template for submission of feedback [DOCX, 15 KB]

SUMMARY OF RESPONSE TO KEY FEEDBACK FROM PUBLIC CONSULTATION ON THE PROPOSED WORKPLACE SAFETY AND HEALTH (WORK AT HEIGHTS) REGULATIONS [PDF, 47 KB]