New safety rules should kick in sooner, many say
By Ng Kai Ling & Daryl Chin
The Straits Times
Jun 23, 2010
Reproduced photo caption: Many lorries can be spotted on roads here ferrying workers under potentially unsafe conditions - like this lorry seen above, which had its tailgate half open. -- ST PHOTO: ALPHONSUS CHERNWITH three workers killed and more than a dozen injured in yesterday's accident, questions have once again been raised about the adequacy of the measures taken to ensure their safety to and from their worksites.
Members of Parliament and representatives of worker-welfare groups, when reacting to news of the accident, asked, for example, why employers who transport their workers on the backs of lorries should be given until 2012 to comply with the stepped-up safety measures.
In fact, Madam Halimah Yacob - who chairs the Government Parliamentary Committee (GPC) for Manpower - wants to know why employers should even be allowed to use lorries, which are goods vehicles.
It is not as if the issue is new.
Accidents resulting in death and injury among workers have been extensively reported on in the last three years. Last year, one person died and 77 were hurt in accidents involving open lorries or pick-ups, making a total of 78 casualties, up from 69 in 2005.
In response, the authorities have run campaigns to educate employers on their responsibilities to their workers - as well as stiffened the penalties for flouting these regulations. Between last September and April this year, the Land Transport Authority issued 5,128 summonses to errant lorry drivers and owners.
The authorities also rolled out a slew of regulations last August - to be implemented over the next few years - to make it safer for workers to ride on these lorries.
For example, lorries registered from this year have to be fitted with higher side railings and canopies. Owners of older lorries have until 2012 to comply with this, to give them time to get their vehicles retrofitted.
In the meantime, stop-gap measures such as requiring workers to be seated no more than 1.1m higher than the cargo deck are in place.
Agreeing with Madam Halimah that there is no need to wait until 2012 for higher railings to become compulsory, migrant worker advocacy group Transient Workers Count Too (TWC2) president John Gee said what stands out clearly for him is the danger of using an open-backed vehicle to transport workers - instead of using, say, a mini bus.
He said: 'We all knew that extra measures are being put in place to protect these workers, but the question is, would these changes, if implemented, be enough to save these workers?'
Dr Lim Wee Kiak, the chairman of the GPC for Transport, said it may be time to review the rules and, if need be, expedite their enforcement.
Madam Amanda Kwan, who learnt about the accident earlier yesterday from The Straits Times' website, immediately shot a letter to the paper to say that the accident raised the question of whether what has been done so far is enough.
Aside from what the authorities can enforce, some employers - individuals with the most direct influence on their workers' safety - have been resisting change, especially that which costs them money.
Mr Simon Lee, the executive director of the Singapore Contractors Association, said bigger companies may have already planned safer modes of transport for their workers, but for smaller firms, doing this may not make financial sense. This is because these firms spread their workers over a few projects, so to have a mini bus trailing a lorry carrying equipment would balloon costs.
Mr Neo Tiam Beng, who heads the Singapore School & Private Hire Bus Owners Association, when asked how much it would cost to hire a mini bus, said it depends on the kind of bus and distance, but prices start at $20 a trip.
Straits Times reader Madam Kwan wrote: 'One root cause of such accidents is the law that allows the transportation of workers like goods in open pick-up trucks and lorries.'
Madam Halimah agreed, saying workers should be treated better: 'I feel that the best way is to transport them in buses... I still see workers crouching in the corner of lorries when it rains, using plastic bags or newspapers to shield themselves. I think that is appalling.'
Improving safety of workers on lorries
THE following measures have been, or will be, implemented to enhance the safety of workers ferried to and from their worksites in lorries:
FROM SEPT 1, 2009
- The maximum height a worker can be seated was lowered to prevent falls off the back of the lorry. No part of a seated worker should be more than 1.1m above the carriage deck.
- Passenger seats in the lorry's cabin must be filled up before workers can occupy the rear carriage.
- Penalties for non-compliance with safety regulations were stiffened.
- Enforcement action was stepped up.
- Hotline to report non-compliance with safety regulations was set up. Members of the public may call 1800-225-5582 (1800-CALL LTA) to report breaches of the safety rules.
- Public-education programmes on employers' responsibilities and best practices in safety and worker welfare were run.
FROM JAN 1, 2010
- Lorries registered from Jan 1, 2010 and used for carrying workers on the carriage deck must be fitted with higher protective side railings. Such railings must stand at least 700mm (up from 550 mm) from the carriage deck, and at least 300mm (up from 150mm) from the top of the sideboards.
- Lorries which ferry passengers on the carriage deck must be fitted with canopies to protect the passengers from inclement weather.
FROM SEPT 1, 2012
- Every worker must have at least 8 sq ft of deck space to himself, up from 4 sq ft.
- All lorries must have higher railings and canopies.
EXISTING MEASURES TO BE COMPLIED WITH:
- Lorries must not exceed the speed limit or 60kmh, whichever is lower.
- A label stating the maximum passenger capacity must be displayed on the right side of the rear tailboard.
- Goods being transported must be properly secured so that they do not endanger the workers being carried or other road users.
