Written Answer to PQ on Voluntary Safety Time-Out in June 2025

NOTICE PAPER NO. 38 OF 2025 FOR THE SITTING ON OR AFTER 23 SEP 2025
QUESTION NO. 277 FOR ORAL ANSWER

MP: Mr Melvin Yong Yik Chye

To ask the Minister for Manpower in light of the five recorded workplace fatalities in May 2025 (a) whether the Government has information on the number of companies that participated in the June 2025 voluntary safety timeout; (b) if so, what is the number; (c) how many Ministry inspections and enforcement actions were conducted during this period; and (d) what were the common safety lapses identified.

Answer:

Following the five workplace fatalities in May 2025, the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) called on companies across all industries to conduct voluntary Safety Time-Outs between 12 and 26 June, with an emphasis on work activities involving vehicular safety and work at height. MOM did not track participation in the exercise.

2 MOM also ramped up our workplace safety and health inspections with more than 500 inspections conducted between April and June 2025 in high-risk sectors such as Construction, Manufacturing and Marine. Three stop-work orders and 110 fines were issued to companies and individuals for safety breaches. Common breaches found included the lack of control measures for working-at-height hazards such as unguarded open sides and inadequate guardrails, and for vehicular hazards such as not having traffic management plans.