Workplace injury cases rose in Singapore in 2016, The Independent has learned.
The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) under whose purview rests the organisation and administration of work related issues said over its website, “the number of workplace injury cases increased by 5.4%, from 12,351 cases in 2015 to 13,014 in 2016”.
Workplace fatalities for 2016 held constant at 597 compared to 2015. Major injuries improved moderately and stood at 594 cases in 2016 compared to 2015 figures of 597. Even dangerous occurrences – something the MOM did not articulate what that actually means – amounted to 45 such instances in 2016, a negligible improvement from 2015 statistics.
Though the number of fatalities sank to 66 workplace fatalities resulting in a fatal injury rate of 1.9 per 100,000 employed persons, similar to 2015, the number of fatalities had actually indeed dropped from 42 in 1H2016 to 24 in 2H2016 – a 43% reduction the website declared.
All the findings must surely come as cool comfort from a ministry tasked with overseeing the safety and security of Singaporeans and foreigners across workplaces in Singapore. On 6th February, Minister for Manpower Lim Swee Say in parliamentary question and answer session said the number of uninsured claims involving employers covered under mandatory Workplace Injury Compensation (WIC) insurance claims dropped to 59 in 2016 from 83 in 2015. A total of 15,679 cases of Workplace Injury claims were awarded in 2016.
The announcement did not say what kind of inquiries it held or how it helped in inquest hearings concerning fatalities.
But it give an overview of the state of mishaps terming the construction, marine, Manufacturing and Transportation and Storage sectors as accounting for 76% (50 cases) of all workplace fatalities in 2016.
All in the Construction sector remained the top contributor of workplace fatalities. However, the number of fatalities fell from 27 in 2015 to 24 in 2016. The fatal injury rate also decreased to 4.9 per 100,000 employed persons, the lowest since 2007.
The marine sector, too saw an increase in fatalities from 4 in 2015 to 6 in 2016 whilst it was the same with the manufacturing sector where fatalities rose from 9 in 2016 compared to just 6 in 2015.