Emerging Risks, Safer Workplaces: Protecting Workers as Singapore’s Workplaces and the Workforce Evolve
Speech by NTUC President, K. Thanaletchimi
Minister of State for Manpower, Brother Dinesh Vasu Dash, distinguished guests, sisters and brothers. Thank you for joining us at the NTUC U Safe Awards for 2026.
Once again, let me congratulate our 12 U Safe Award recipients. Across the Advocate, Champion and Star categories, we see three key themes.
First, strong leadership. Across our unions, safety is being embedded into decision-making. Unions such as BATU and NTWU are strengthening WSH governance by embedding union leaders in committees and championing safety on the ground. At HDBSU, for example, union representatives sit on WSH steering committees, helping to identify risks and follow through on feedback.
Second, a culture of care and enabling our workers’ voice. Across sectors, from healthcare to the built environment, our winners are strengthening reporting, engagement and worker support. For instance, HSEU is advancing efforts to support the mental well-being of healthcare workers and strengthen protections against abuse. Our U Safe Star recipients – Brother Freeman from SIASU, Sister Susan from BATU and Brother Rasabalan from SEU — are driving real change on the ground by engaging workers and improving daily work conditions. For example, Sister Sukartini from UWEEI – supported automation initiatives under her company’s CTC Operation and Technology Roadmap to reduce physical strain and enhance productivity for workers.
Third, staying ahead of risks. Companies are not just reacting — they are preventing. SMRT Buses, for example, uses data to identify risks and has introduced fatigue-monitoring technologies to support safer operations. These are just some examples, but every effort makes a difference in keeping our workers safe. Another round of applause for our award winners.
This year marks a significant milestone – 20 years since the Workplace Safety and Health Act was introduced in 2006. The Act signalled a shift from reactive enforcement to proactive risk management across all workplaces.
Since then, we have made strong progress. Our workplace fatal injury rate has fallen from 3.1 per 100,000 workers in 2006[1] to 0.96 in 2025[2]. Today, Singapore ranks among the top-performing countries globally in workplace safety[3]. But even as we make progress, we must never forget that behind every incident is a worker. Every workplace death – a tragedy. And almost all are preventable.
Twenty years on, our workplaces, workforce and risks have all evolved. The question before us is clear: how do we keep our WSH framework future-ready?
Climate change is intensifying environmental risks. The green transition is introducing new hazards. Longer careers also mean prolonged exposure to workplace risks. And AI is reshaping how work is done, with implications for worker well-being. Our response must be to anticipate these evolving risks early and strengthen safeguards before harm occurs.
Climate change is driving more frequent and intense adverse weather – increasing risks, especially for outdoor workers. We have seen strong efforts in aviation, where CAAS and NEA, working with unions, and employers to strengthen weather monitoring and operational safety at airports[4]. But similar preparedness can be extended to sectors such as construction and marine.
Employers must strengthen site-specific response plans, implement clear stop-work protocols, and equip workers to recognise and respond to risks. Climate resilience must be embedded into everyday safety management. NTUC will continue working with MOM and the WSH Council to ensure our safety standards stay ahead of evolving climate risks.
Singapore’s energy transition also poses new WSH challenges. As we adopt low-carbon fuels and expand electric vehicle use, workers are increasingly exposed to fire and explosion hazards, as well as potential toxic exposures from alternative fuels and lithium-ion batteries.
These new energy solutions must be rigorously studied as adoption scales. Workers must be equipped to recognise and respond to unfamiliar hazards, and their ground feedback should inform safer operations. A progressive green transition must also be a safe transition.
More workers are staying in employment for longer, but this also means greater cumulative exposure to workplace hazards, increasing risks to occupational disease.
Workplaces must adapt. Employers and safety professionals must take the lead, and work with unions in strengthening preventive measures, redesigning jobs to reduce physical strain, and managing long-term health risks.
We must also do more to support workers returning after injury or illness, through effective workplace accommodations developed in close partnership with unions who are attuned to workers’ needs.
Because supporting career longevity is not just about keeping workers employed – it is about ensuring they can work safely, healthily, and with dignity.
AI is accelerating change across sectors. While much of the focus is on productivity, efficiency does not always mean reduced workload. In some cases, AI can intensify work – increasing pace, expectations and pressure[5]. This can lead to fatigue, stress and reduced ability to disengage. These are emerging psychosocial risks that we must take seriously.
Employers must take the lead in designing jobs and AI systems that are sustainable, with clear boundaries on workload and expectations. Safety professionals should monitor fatigue and stress risks as part of workplace risk management. Unions play a critical role in surfacing worker feedback and ensuring that these systems remain fair and workable on the ground.
AI should augment human capability, not erode human well-being.
Lastly, I am deeply concerned by the rise in road-related accidents. Traffic accidents increased by 7.2%, from 7,053 in 2024 to 7,560 in 2025, with fatalities also rising from 139 to 147 cases[6]. For many workers, our roads are their workplace – from vocational drivers to private hire drivers, taxi drivers and couriers. All deserve to work safely when on the road, just as we expect in any other workplace.
Addressing this requires a collective effort. Employers must strengthen training and manage fatigue risks. Platform operators must ensure their systems support safe driving, with fair and transparent fare structures. Workers, too, must remain vigilant and prioritise safety on the road.
To remain a forward-looking Labour Movement and stay ahead of emerging risks, NTUC will mobilise our unions to drive company- and branch-level initiatives on the ground. We will be launching a new WSH campaign, “Emerging Risks, Safer Workplaces.” Through this campaign, union leaders and industrial relations professionals will work closely with safety officers and employers to identify emerging risks and develop sector- and company-specific WSH workplans. These workplans will translate into practical actions at the workplace level, focusing on climate-related risks, new energy solutions, age-friendly workplace design, workers’ health and well-being, and stronger protection for vulnerable workers, including contractors and platform workers.
I encourage all companies and partners to come on board and work with our unions in this effort. Together, we can anticipate risks early, take action on the ground, and build safer, healthier and more resilient workplaces. Together, we can stay ahead of emerging risks and keep our WSH framework future ready.
Because every worker has the right to go home safe at the end of the day.
Because every worker matters.
[2] 36 workplace deaths in Singapore in 2025, AI cameras to be trialled at 14 construction sites - CNA
[3] WSH Advisory for Fatal Accidents in First Half of 2025
[4] https://www.nea.gov.sg/media/news/news/index/spore-to-tackle-effects-of-weather-on-aviation
