Why it matters

A risk assessment is the plan behind every other safety measure on site. Done well, it tells you which jobs can hurt people, how badly, and what you will do about it. Done badly, it is a file nobody opens.

In Singapore it is also the law. Employers, self-employed persons and principals must assess the risks of their work and act on them. That includes contractors and subcontractors.

Get the right people

MOM says a risk assessment should be done by a team, not one person at a desk. Bring in the people who know the work. Supervisors, operators and maintenance staff belong on it, and so do contractors where they do the job.

The team leader should be trained in risk assessment. Small firms can hire a trained, experienced safety consultant instead. The workers who do the task will always spot things a manager misses.

Walk it, do not guess it

Do the hazard spotting on the floor, while the job runs. Watch a full cycle of the task, including set-up, cleaning and clearing faults.

The steps

Include non-routine work. MOM lists commissioning, repair and maintenance alongside routine jobs. These are the jobs where people get hurt.

  • Prepare. List the work activities. Break each into sub-activities. Gather incident records, inspection reports, SDS and manuals.
  • Identify hazards. For each sub-activity, note what could cause harm. Check physical, mechanical, electrical, chemical, biological and psychosocial hazards.
  • Evaluate the risk. Rate severity and likelihood, taking current controls into account.
  • Control the risk. Add controls until the risk is acceptable. Name a person and a due date for each one.
  • Approve, communicate, review. The area manager approves. The crew is briefed. The assessment is reviewed on schedule.

Using the 5x5 matrix

The WSH Council code recommends a 5x5 matrix, though firms may use others. Severity runs from 1 (negligible) to 5 (catastrophic, meaning death or multiple major injuries). Likelihood runs from 1 (rare) to 5 (almost certain). Multiply the two to get the risk prioritisation number (RPN).

Your firm decides which RPN bands count as low, medium and high. The code then sets the actions. Low risk is acceptable but still needs monitoring. Medium risk must be brought as low as reasonably practicable within a set time. High risk is not acceptable. It must drop to at least medium before work starts, with management review.

Do not lean on PPE for high risk

The code says high-risk controls should not depend heavily on PPE. If the hazard can be removed before work starts, remove it.

Order of controls

The code sets a clear order. Controls near the top work at the source and are more reliable.

  • Elimination. Remove the hazard. Prefabricate at ground level instead of working at height.
  • Substitution. Swap for something less hazardous, such as a water-based paint.
  • Engineering controls. Guards, guard-rails, local exhaust ventilation and noise enclosures.
  • Administrative controls. Safe work procedures, permits, training, signs and job rotation.
  • PPE. The last line. It only works if it fits, suits the hazard and is worn every time.

What the rules require

The WSH (Risk Management) Regulations apply to all workplaces in Singapore. The WSH Council's Code of Practice on Risk Management explains how to meet them.

The employer must make sure a risk assessment is done for every activity in the workplace. Foreseeable risks must be eliminated where reasonably practicable. Where they cannot be, control them in order: substitution, engineering, administrative, then PPE. Contractors given work must do their own risk assessment.

Records, including RA forms and control records, must be kept for at least three years from the approval date. The assessment must be reviewed at least once every three years. It must also be reviewed after any accident, incident, near miss or dangerous occurrence. A significant change in the work, or new information on the risks, triggers a review too.

Everyone exposed must be told about the risks. They must also hear the controls and safe work procedures in place, and how to reduce the risk.

Legal requirement

Review the risk assessment at least every three years, and after any incident or significant change. Keep RA records for at least three years. Source: WSH Council Code of Practice on WSH Risk Management, clauses 4.2.1.11 and 4.2.1.12.

Common mistakes

  • Copying last project's assessment without walking the new site.
  • Rating the risk with controls that are not actually in place.
  • Listing "be careful" or "wear PPE" as the main control for a high risk.
  • No named person or due date for the extra controls, so they never happen.
  • Never briefing the crew. The assessment sits in a folder.
  • Forgetting maintenance, cleaning and breakdown work.
The paper exercise

Ask a worker on the job what the top hazard is and how it is controlled. If they cannot tell you, the assessment has not reached the floor.

Keeping it alive

Put the assessment into the toolbox talk. Read out the high and medium risks for today's task and the controls for each. Ask the crew if anything has changed.

Use the risk register at WSH committee or site meetings. Track open actions until they close. When a near miss happens, pull out the assessment that day. Check whether the hazard was on it, and whether the control worked.

In other countries

Use it on site: the risk assessment checklist and the toolbox talk to brief your crew.

Sources

  1. Code of Practice on Workplace Safety and Health Risk Management (second revision), WSH Council.
  2. About Risk Management, WSH Council.
  3. Conducting risk assessments, WSH Council.
  4. Risk management, Ministry of Manpower.
  5. Guidelines for Hazard Identification, Risk Assessment and Risk Control (HIRARC) 2008, DOSH Malaysia.

This is practical guidance, not legal advice. Laws and codes of practice change; always check the current official text and your site's own procedures.