Legislation Workshop on the WSH (Work at Heights) Regulations and the WSH (Confined Spaces) Regulations
WSH legislation requires various stakeholders in workplaces to “ensure” or “require” that safety and health standards are met. In order to achieve so, it is important to understand the provisions in the legislation, their intents and applications. This workshop will cover the WSH (Work at Heights) Regulations and the WSH (Confined Spaces) Regulations. It will be led by Mr Lee Kah Bee, an ex-MOM officer who was in-charge of overseeing and drafting of WSH legislation. He will go through the Regulations and explain the provisions, their intents and applications. At the same time, he will highlight the common safety lapses uncovered by MOM inspectors during their inspections and special operations. He will also share some past accident cases related to the regulations. Some common misconceptions and key court decisions will also be discussed. Participants will be doing case studies based on simulated WSH issues and applying what they had learnt in the workshop.
WSH (Work at Heights) Regulations
Fatalities while working at heights, specifically due to falling from heights (FFH), have been the top contributors of workplace fatalities and a major concern over many years in Singapore. As part of ongoing efforts to address the concern of falls from heights and improve safe work at heights, the National Work at Heights Safety Taskforce had introduced strategies to address the increasing trend. These strategies include 1) creating greater awareness on FFH; building strong capabilities on work at heights safety; and 3) enhancing work at heights regulatory framework. This resulted in the enactment of the WSH (Work at Heights) Regulations in May 2013.
WSH (Confined Spaces) Regulations
Work in confined spaces is one of the hazardous activities identified as it presents a myriad of dangers to the workers. Accidents which occur in confined spaces can result in multiple injuries and fatalities. Given the unfavorable climate of frequent occurrence of serious accidents involving confined spaces and the limitation in legislative controls offered, MOM enacted a new and dedicated set of Regulations governing confined space safety in November 2009. This provides the necessary legislative and enforcement oversight on such works.
At the end of this workshop, participants will be able to:
- Understand the provisions of the Regulations and their intents
- Understand how the provisions are being applied in their workplaces
- Know how to comply with the provisions in the Regulations
- Know the common safety lapses uncovered during inspections
- Contribute effectively to the improvement of safety and health at the workplace.
WSH Practitioners, Engineers, Business owners, contractors, and anyone who is interested in understanding more about the WSH Regulations
Mr Lee Kah Bee has extensive experiences in workplace safety and health (WSH). He retired from the Civil Service in 2014, after serving 34 years in the Occupational Safety and Health Division, Ministry of Manpower (MOM). While working in MOM, he held various positions as a Factory Inspector, Investigating Officer, Policy Analyst, Prosecuting Officer and Assistant Director. His last position in MOM was Assistant Director in the Policy and Legislation Branch where he oversaw the review and formulation of WSH policies and legislation. Mr Lee Kah Bee was involved in overseeing the formulation, drafting and the gazette of all WSH legislation in Singapore.
During his time in MOM, he conducted investigation into fatal/serious accidents, complaints and dangerous occurrences and inspecting workplaces for compliance with WSH legislation. Mr Lee Kah Bee has more than 15 years of experience conducting court proceedings on WSH violations. He had presented many papers in conferences, seminars, etc. Currently, he is an Associate Lecturer at Ngee Ann Polytechnic.
SISO Academy
167 Jalan Bukit Merah,
#02-16 Connection One, Tower 4,
Singapore 150167
7 SDUs (Pending)
*Fee includes GST and e-training materials