The University’s Role in Raising the Nation’s
Safety and Health Standards
As Singapore seeks to reduce its accident
statistics, the focus has shifted to safety training of
professionals and workers as one of the four key thrusts to
be addressed. (Ref: Workplace safety panel sets keys aims:
Straits Times, Sat. 27th May 2006)
So, when should safety training start - during staff
induction or at the shop floor? Or should it begin even
earlier at school? We strongly believe that the safety
training should start as early as possible. The time when a
person starts his or her professional development in the
university would be an ideal time.
Our students will eventually become professionals, business
leaders and leaders in other fields in the service of the
nation. Many of them, because of their job nature, will have
to incorporate safety considerations into their work and
this could range from designing or building of equipment, to
manufacturing of products or even designing and construction
of buildings. Moreover, they will have to lead by example by
demonstrating good safety practices to their subordinates.
As they take on managerial responsibility, they have to
provide the management support to their staff who are
required to adhere to safety and health regulations or their
company's safety and health policies.
So, emphasizing safety and health to our students goes
beyond improving safety and health in NUS. It has a far
greater effect. Through your active participation, NUS can
help improve safety and health standards in Singapore.
This view is shared by the Chairman of the Workplace Safety
and Health Advisory Committee, Mr Lee Tzu Yang, who is also
a member of NUS Board of Trustee. As reported in the Straits
Times, he highlighted the need to overhaul safety training
for professionals and workers as part of a framework of
"coherent and comprehensive programmes and systems".
University students reading Engineering and Architecture may
be among the first to have a safety module in their core
curriculum.
One of the key aims outlined by
the Workplace Safety and Health Advisory
Committee is to "Overhaul
safety training for both professionals and workers, which could
start with modules on safety for students in the universities' engineering and
architecture faculties;"
NUS recognizes the importance of safety training in the
university curriculum. All laboratory-based postgraduate
students are required to attend a one day training session
on laboratory safety, at the end of which there is an
assessment. Students are also subjected to safety briefings
within the department and they are given hands-on safety
training during their time in the laboratories. Some of our
departments have incorporated safety training into the
curriculum. For example, the Department of Civil Engineering
gives modular credits to students for attending safety
related seminars.
However there is a need to do more. OSHE is currently
studying the feasibility of introducing a module on
occupational health and safety at the undergraduate level
for certain faculties. Such a module would introduce safety
management concepts and industrial best practices to our
students.
With the Workplace Safety and Health Act, companies can ill
afford to have staff with a careless attitude for safety as
they become a liability to the company. Accidents would
result in work stoppages, loss in productivity and affecting
morale. Staff who are negligent are also penalized. For
example three senior Nishimatsu executives were fined up to
$160,000 for their lack of professionalism that contributed
to the collapse of the Nichol Highway.
NUS is definitely looking forward in its role in raising
national safety and health standards by equipping our
graduates with the right safety mindset/culture for the
industries. You can do your part by creating a safety and
healthy environment in your respective workplace in NUS.
