Who and where the Act covers
The Workplace Safety and Health Act 2006 came into force on 1 March 2006. It replaced the old Factories Act. Section 2 applies it to all workplaces, unless the Act itself says otherwise. You can read the current text on Singapore Statutes Online.
A workplace is any premises where a person works, is to work or usually works (s.5). Premises is a wide word. It covers any place, enclosed or open, including buildings, vehicles, vessels and tents. Some workplaces are also factories under s.5(2): places where processes such as manufacturing, storing hazardous substances, ship repair, building work or utility operations happen, as listed in the Fourth Schedule. Factories carry extra rules.
The Act also binds the Government for its own workplaces and building works, though the Government cannot be prosecuted (s.3). A contractor working for the Government can be.
Volunteers who work on a regular basis, trainees and people on work experience count as employees (s.6). So do loaned workers, for the person they are loaned to.
Since 1 January 2025, the Act also protects platform workers, as defined in the Platform Workers Act 2024. That Act added a duty for platform operators (s.12A).
Duties of each party
Most duties are qualified by the words "so far as is reasonably practicable". One person can hold several roles at once, and the same duty can fall on several people (s.10). If you are charged, you must prove you could not reasonably have done more (s.47).
| Who | Main duty |
|---|---|
| Occupier (s.11) | Keep the workplace, its access and exits, and the machinery and substances kept there safe for everyone on the premises. |
| Employer (s.12) | Protect your employees at work, and others affected by your work. That means a safe work environment, safe machinery and processes, emergency procedures, and enough instruction, training and supervision. |
| Platform operator (s.12A) | The same set of duties, owed to your platform workers. In force since 1 January 2025. |
| Self-employed person (s.13) | Protect other people who may be affected by your work. |
| Principal (s.14, s.14A) | Protect contractors, subcontractors and their workers who work under your direction. Check that each contractor has the expertise, training and licences for the job, and has done a risk assessment. A contract clause alone is not a defence. |
| Manufacturer or supplier (s.16) | Make machinery, equipment and hazardous substances listed in the Fifth Schedule safe when properly used. Test them, and give buyers the safety and health information. |
| Installer, owner or hirer of machinery (s.17) | Install or modify equipment so it is safe. Owners (or hirers and maintenance contractors, by contract) keep powered machinery in a safe condition. |
| Occupier of common areas (s.19) | In a building with workplaces, the occupier of the common area, often the management corporation, looks after its lifts, generators, plant and access routes. |
Employers may not charge workers or deduct pay for safety measures the Act requires (s.18). The occupier keeps MOM documents and safety reports at the workplace for at least 5 years.
Workers' duties and protection
- Every person at work must use the safety equipment and PPE provided, in the way it is meant to be used, and cooperate with the employer, principal or platform operator (s.15(1)). The fine is up to $1,000, or $2,000 for a repeat.
- You must not misuse or interfere with safety equipment (s.15(2)).
- A reckless or wilful act that endangers yourself or others is an offence (s.15(3)). The police or an authorised inspector can arrest you without a warrant for it (s.49).
- A negligent act that endangers people is also an offence. The penalty is a fine of up to $30,000, up to 2 years in jail, or both (s.15(4)).
- An employer must not dismiss or threaten a worker for helping an inspector, reporting a safety issue in good faith, serving on a safety committee or obeying an order (s.18(2)). The penalty is a fine of up to $5,000, up to 6 months in jail, or both.
Workers and the public can report unsafe work to MOM through SnapSAFE, the QR code on construction site signboards or the MOM safety hotline. Migrant workers can also use the FWMOMCare app (MOM).
Directors and managers (s.48)
When a company commits an offence under the Act, its officers are guilty of the same offence. Officer means a director, partner, chief executive, manager, company secretary or anyone in a similar role. It includes people who claim to act in that role.
An officer escapes liability only by proving two things:
- the offence happened without their consent or connivance; and
- they used all the diligence their role and the circumstances called for to prevent it.
The burden is on the officer. The same rule covers partners in a partnership and committee members of an association. In practice, a director should be able to show how they set safety goals, gave resources, checked the risk controls and acted on reports.
Since 1 March 2024, companies in construction, manufacturing, marine, and transport and storage must have at least one chief executive, executive director or similar officer who has completed the Top Executive WSH Programme. A new business has 3 months to comply. The fine is up to $20,000 (General Provisions Regulations, reg. 38B).
Key regulations
Most of the detail sits in regulations made under the Act. MOM keeps the full list. The ones most sites meet:
| Regulations | What they require |
|---|---|
| General Provisions | Baseline rules for all workplaces: ventilation, lighting, sanitation, machinery guarding, lock-out, lifting gear, pressure vessels, fire, toxic substances and exposure limits. Since 2024 it also requires video surveillance on larger worksites and a top executive safety course in high-risk industries. |
| Risk Management | Employers, the self-employed, principals and platform operators must assess risks, remove them or control them, keep records for 3 years and tell affected people. Review at least every 3 years, and after an injury or a big change in work. |
| Incident Reporting | Who notifies and reports deaths, injuries, dangerous occurrences and occupational diseases, and by when. See the next section. |
| WSH Officers | A registered WSH officer is needed in shipyards, petroleum factories, worksites with a contract sum of $10 million or more, and other factories with 100 or more employees (garment factories excepted). |
| WSH Committees 2008 | Every factory with 50 or more people ordinarily at work needs a safety committee. It meets and inspects the factory at least once a month. |
| Construction 2007 | Worksites: site coordination, permit-to-work for high-risk construction work, electrical safety, formwork, demolition and debris removal. |
| Work at Heights 2013 | Avoid work at height where you can. Train and supervise workers, guard open sides of more than 2 metres, and run a permit-to-work system for hazardous work at height in factories (falls of more than 3 metres). Worksites, shipyards and other listed workplaces need a fall prevention plan. |
| Confined Spaces 2009 | Rules for entry into and work in confined spaces, applying to all workplaces. |
| First Aid | First aid arrangements, applying to all workplaces. |
The video rule (reg. 36B, from 1 June 2024) covers worksites where the occupier's construction contract is worth $5 million or more. Cameras must cover the locations the regulations list, record in at least 1080p, and keep footage for 30 days, or 180 days after a reportable incident.
Reporting incidents
Reports go to MOM online through iReport, as the Incident Reporting Regulations set out. The deadlines:
| What happened | Who acts | When |
|---|---|---|
| An employee dies in a work accident | Employer | Notify the Commissioner as soon as reasonably practicable. Submit a report within 10 days of the accident. |
| A platform worker dies in a work accident | Platform operator | Notify as soon as reasonably practicable. Report within 10 days. |
| A member of the public or a self-employed person dies at a workplace | Occupier | Notify as soon as reasonably practicable. Report within 10 days. |
| An employee is given medical leave, hospitalised or put on light duty after a work accident | Employer | Report within 10 days of first notice of the accident. If the worker later dies, notify the Commissioner as soon as reasonably practicable. |
| A member of the public or a self-employed person is taken to hospital | Occupier | Notify as soon as reasonably practicable. |
| A dangerous occurrence, such as a crane toppling, even if nobody is hurt | Occupier | Notify as soon as reasonably practicable. Report within 10 days. |
| An occupational disease | Employer (or platform operator) and the doctor, separately | Employer: within 10 days of learning of the diagnosis. Doctor: within 10 days of certifying it. |
Keep a copy of every report for 3 years. If you miss a deadline, report anyway and give the reason for the delay (MOM). Not reporting costs up to $10,000, or $20,000 and up to 6 months in jail for a repeat offender (MOM).
From 1 December 2025 the list of occupational diseases changed. It now has 38 diseases and matches the list under the Work Injury Compensation Act. It covers all work-related musculoskeletal disorders, not just those of the upper limb, and more infectious diseases in healthcare and laboratory work (MOM).
Penalties
| Offence | Maximum penalty |
|---|---|
| General penalty, individual (s.50) | $200,000, 2 years in jail, or both. Plus $2,000 a day if the breach continues after conviction. |
| General penalty, company (s.50) | $500,000. Plus $5,000 a day if the breach continues. |
| Repeat offence causing another death (s.51) | Individual: $400,000, on top of any jail term. Company: $1 million. |
| Ignoring a remedial order (s.21(6)) | $50,000, 12 months in jail, or both. Plus $5,000 a day. |
| Ignoring a stop-work order (s.21(7)) | $500,000, 12 months in jail, or both. Plus $20,000 a day. |
| Worker's negligent act endangering others (s.15(4)) | $30,000, 2 years in jail, or both. |
| Forged certificates or false records (s.53) | $5,000, 6 months in jail, or both. |
The doubled fines in s.51 apply when a person already convicted of an offence that caused a death is convicted of the same offence causing another death. The Act has no separate offence of causing death. A District Court can impose the full penalty (s.54). A court can also order you to fix the cause of the breach (s.52). MOM sets out the same figures on its penalties page.
Regulations carry their own fines. For example, failing to assess risks under the Risk Management Regulations can cost up to $50,000, 2 years in jail, or both.
Orders, composition fines and MOM's other tools
- Remedial order (s.21): the Commissioner can order you to fix a danger or a breach within a set time. It can go to whoever controls the work, owes the duty or creates the risk.
- Stop-work order (s.21): stops the work at once, either for good or until the danger is fixed. You can appeal to the Minister within 14 days (s.22). A stop-work order stays in force during the appeal; a remedial order does not.
- Composition (s.56): for offences listed as compoundable, MOM can accept a fine instead of going to court. The sum is capped at half the maximum fine or $5,000, whichever is lower.
- Demerit points: construction and manufacturing companies get points for breaches. A composition fine is 1 point, a partial stop-work order 5, a full one 10, and a prosecution for a death or major injury 25. Points last 18 months. At 25 points, the company cannot hire new migrant workers for 3 months. Higher totals bring longer bans, up to 2 years (MOM).
- Business Under Surveillance: companies with fatal accidents, repeated injuries, stop-work orders or demerit points may be put on this programme. They must carry out an action plan under close MOM inspection until their safety management improves (MOM).
Quick check for your site
- A written risk assessment for every routine and non-routine job, reviewed in the last 3 years and after any injury.
- Contractors checked for competence, licences and their own risk assessments before they start.
- A WSH officer, a safety committee or a site coordinator if your workplace type and size call for one.
- A fall prevention plan if you run a worksite, shipyard or other listed workplace with work at height.
- Everyone knows how to notify MOM of a death or dangerous occurrence at once, and to file the iReport within 10 days.
- Directors can show what they did to prevent breaches, not just that they had a policy.
Sources
- Workplace Safety and Health Act 2006 (current version), Attorney-General's Chambers (Singapore Statutes Online).
- Workplace Safety and Health (General Provisions) Regulations, Attorney-General's Chambers (Singapore Statutes Online).
- Workplace Safety and Health (Incident Reporting) Regulations, Attorney-General's Chambers (Singapore Statutes Online).
- Workplace Safety and Health (Risk Management) Regulations, Attorney-General's Chambers (Singapore Statutes Online).
- Workplace Safety and Health (Workplace Safety and Health Officers) Regulations, Attorney-General's Chambers (Singapore Statutes Online).
- Workplace Safety and Health (Workplace Safety and Health Committees) Regulations 2008, Attorney-General's Chambers (Singapore Statutes Online).
- Workplace Safety and Health (Work at Heights) Regulations 2013, Attorney-General's Chambers (Singapore Statutes Online).
- Legislation for workplace safety and health, Ministry of Manpower.
- WSH Act: liabilities and penalties, Ministry of Manpower.
- Work-related accidents: what and when to report, Ministry of Manpower.
- Report a work-related accident, Ministry of Manpower.
- Updated coverage of occupational diseases under WSHA and WICA, Ministry of Manpower.
- Demerit point system for construction and manufacturing sectors, Ministry of Manpower.
- Business Under Surveillance programme, Ministry of Manpower.
- Empowering workers and members of public to raise WSH issues, Ministry of Manpower.
This is practical guidance, not legal advice. Check the current official text and your site's own procedures.
