Guide to the Workplace Safety and Health (Workplace Safety and Health Officers) Regulations 2007

Introduction
1. The Workplace Safety and Health (Workplace Safety and Health Officers) Regulations 2007 replaced the three Factories subsidiary legislations1 governing the WSH Officers. In line with the main Workplace Safety and Health Act, this new Regulations shift away from the prescriptive approach and instead adopted a more performance-based style of legislation. This is in line with the principle of giving industry greater ownership of safety and health outcomes at the workplace. 2. This guide is intended to provide more detailed explanation on the provisions in the Regulations so as to allow industry stakeholders to better understand the Regulations.

Becoming a Workplace Safety and Health Officer

3. Under section 32 of the Workplace Safety and Health Act, no person shall act as a Workplace Safety and Health Officer unless he is approved by the Commissioner for Workplace Safety and Health. A person thus has to apply to the Commissioner for approval to become a WSH Officer (Application for registration can be done via OSHD Online at http://www.mom.gov.sg/publish/momportal/en/communities/workplace_safety_and _health.html). Upon approval and payment of $110 (see Reg 4(1) and First Schedule), the Commissioner will issue the applicant with a Certificate of Approval. 4. The Certificate of Approval is valid for 2 years (unless otherwise stated). Upon expiry of the certificate, the WSH Officer is expected to renew his certificate if he intends to continue practicing as a WSH Officer. He must make his application to the Commissioner and pay a fee of $60 for the renewal of his Certificate of Approval.

Pre-requisite of a Workplace Safety and Health Officer

5. Under the previous Factories (Qualifications and Training of Safety Officers) Notification, the qualifications of any person who wishes to become a WSH Officer were prescribed in the law. However in this new Regulations, a more generic approach had been
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A person may be granted approval to act as a workplace safety and health officer if he satisfies the Commissioner that he is sufficiently competent and is, in all other respects, a fit and proper person, to be entrusted to carry out the work of a workplace safety and health officer. WSH Officers Regulation 3

Factories (Qualifications and Training of Safety Officers) Notification, the Factories (Registration and Duties of Safety Officers) Regulations and the Factories (Safety Officers) Order.

adopted where the candidate must demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Commissioner that he is sufficiently competent and is, in all other respects, a fit and proper person, to be entrusted to carry out the work of a workplace safety and health officer before approval is granted.

What is meant by sufficiently competent?

6. The competency of the WSH Officer is critical as he plays a vital role in helping his employer manage workplace safety and health. As such, any person who wishes to become a WSH Officer must : a) possess at least a degree or diploma in engineering, occupational safety, occupational health, occupational hygiene, ergonomics, psychology, physics, chemistry, biochemistry or other topics relevant to occupational safety and health; and b) have successfully completed a course in relation to WSH Officer (i.e. Safety Officer Training Course); and c) possess at least 2 years of practical work experience in the field of occupational safety and health, e.g. working under the guidance of a WSH Officer. 7. Any person who does not have the relevant degree or diploma as mentioned in paragraph 5(a) but has attained the WSQ equivalent or satisfies the Commissioner that he has such qualifications and practical work experience as to be suitable for registration may also be considered for approval to be a WSH Officer.

What is meant by fit and proper?

8. Besides possessing the relevant training and experience, the WSH Officer must also demonstrate other important attributes so that he can be entrusted with the duties imposed on him. Such attributes include : a) Being physically fit. A WSH Officer must not be so physically handicapped as to render him unable to discharge his duties. For instance, a WSH Officer in a worksite needs to be sufficiently fit to climb several flights of stairs in order to conduct rounds of inspections. b) Being mentally fit. A WSHO should be in a stable mental state so as to be able to exercise sound judgment to identify safety and health risks, and recommend relevant control measures. Additionally, the WSHO should not be under the influence of drugs or alcohol while on duty as it would adversely affect his judgment. c) Over and above that, the WSHO should be someone with integrity and of good character. A corrupt WSH Officer could significantly undermine the trust and integrity of the entire profession.

Continuous Training and Development for Workplace Safety and Health Officers
9. It is imperative that practicing WSH Officers continue to keep The Commissioner may require a themselves updated and relevant in the workplace safety and health officer field of workplace safety and health. to attend training courses which, in the opinion of the Commissioner, This is the broad intention behind are relevant to the work of a regulation 5 which provides the workplace safety and health officer. Commissioner the power to require the WSH Officers Regulation 5(1) WSH Officers to attend training courses. In practice, this is manifested through the Safety Professional Units (SDU) scheme where WSH Officers can accumulate SDU points after attending seminars, conferences or workshops on relevant (safety and health) topics in order to qualify for renewal of their certificate.

Duties of Workplace Safety and Health Officers

10. The primary responsibility of ensuring workers safety and health lies with the occupier or employer as enshrined in the main WSH Act. The primary role of the WSH Officer is to assist their employers to discharge their statutory duties, particularly in the area of identification of workplace safety and health risks and in recommending control measures. Hence, the duties of the WSH Officers have been revamped to focus on this aspect of risk management rather than functional duties such as acting as secretary to the safety and health committee. It is to be noted that the revamped duties should not be construed as a delegation of responsibility from the occupier / employer to the WSH Officers. 11. The phrase to assist used in regulation 7 could refer to advice, suggestions, or conducting the risk assessment as instructed by the occupier. It could also include training other employees on risks assessment or the control measures. The WSH Officer is expected to exercise due diligence in the assessment of risks and recommendation of appropriate control measures particularly for blatant safety and health risks. While the WSH Officers can assist in the implementation of the control measures, the occupier ought to provide him with the corresponding authority and resources for him to carry out his work properly.

Workplaces that are required to appoint a Workplace Safety and Health Officer
12. Under the Second Schedule of the Regulations, the following workplaces are required to appoint a Workplace Safety and Health Officer : a) Shipyards in which any ships, tankers and other vessels are constructed, reconstructed, repaired, refitted, finished or broken up; b) Factories used for processing petroleum or petroleum products;

c) Factories in which building operations or works of engineering construction of a contract sum of $10 million or more are carried out; and d) Any other factories in which 100 or more persons are employed, except those which are used for manufacturing garments. 13. Previously under the Factories (Safety Officers) Order, the above workplaces were required to appoint either a part-time or full-time WSH Officers, but this distinction has been removed in the new Regulations. The workplaces listed above can decide on the extent of appointment (i.e. either part time or full time) based on their operational needs. This is in line with the performance-based regime to engender greater industry ownership. Under the new framework, companies are expected to evaluate their workplace safety and health risks and decide for themselves the best measures to control those risks. This includes going even beyond the minimum legislative requirement to appoint more than one WSH Officer to assist in managing the risks. This is especially pertinent for larger workplaces. 14. In addition, besides the approval from the Commissioner, occupiers or employers are also strongly encourage to appoint WSH Officers with the relevant experience for the job so as to add value to the organisation. Occupiers or employers should take into consideration factors such as the relevancy of previous training, as well as the extent of the candidates familiarity and experience to the intended scope of work (e.g. deep excavation or heavy lifting).

Concluding Remarks
15. WSH Officers play a vital role in helping to raise the overall WSH standard and performance of industry. However, it must be recognised that ensuring workplace safety and health is not the sole responsibility of the WSH Officer. In order to have a safe and healthy workplace, all stakeholders in the value chain must contribute towards the goal of protecting themselves and others.

Prepared jointly by: MOM, WSHAC, SCAL, ASMI and SISO