Jurong Shipyard Pte Ltd fined $400,000 under the Workplace Safety and Health Act

1. Jurong Shipyard Private Limited (“JSPL”) was fined $400,000 today under Section 14(1)(c) of the WSH Act for failing in its duty as a Principal to take reasonable measures necessary to ensure the safety and health of employees employed by contractors of the Noble Regina Allen (“NRA”), an oil rig under construction.
   
   Case Details
2. On 3 Dec 2012 at about 10.30am, an oil rig under construction, the NRA, tilted suddenly during testing of the jack-up system (“jack up trials”). About 1,000 workers from various subcontractors engaged by JSPL on board the NRA had to evacuate through only one escape gangway. As a result, some workers had to jump into the sea to escape. A large number of workers suffered injuries, with 89 workers conveyed to various hospitals for treatment.
   
   MOM Investigation Findings
3. MOM’s Occupational Safety and Health Division’s (“OSHD”) investigation revealed that the sudden tilt of the rig was due to the forward leg motor not being able to hold the weight of the hull when the brakes were released. In addition, the jacking control system was not designed to be fail-safe.
4. JSPL had failed to take adequate safety measures for the testing of the jack-up system of the oil rig, by:
   i) Not undertaking an adequate risk assessment;
   ii) Not implementing control measures in safe work procedure; and
   iii) Not providing adequate means of egress and escape.
5. Mr Chan Yew Kwong, MOM’s Director of Occupational Safety and Health Inspectorate, “As the principal contractor, Jurong Shipyard had the duty to plan, manage and monitor the construction of projects to ensure work was performed in a safe manner. This included emergency arrangements and procedures. The heavy fine reflected the very serious safety breaches by Jurong Shipyard that had put at risk the lives of 1,000 workers on board the oil rig at the time of the accident.”