MOM Latest News for October 2023: Outdoor Workers - Workplace Safety and Health Act

Posted on 30 October 2023 in Business | Suki Bajaj

Let's take a look at Singapore's MOM latest news for October 2023, top HR news, updates and insights including workplace safety and health act, improved standards for foreign workers’ dormitories, enhanced heat stress measures, remote hiring strategy, employee experience trends, and more.

Workplace Safety and Health Act: New MOM Rule Mandates Hourly Breaks for Outdoor Workers in Hot Weather

MOM has introduced new enhanced measures to protect outdoor workers from the risks of heat stress. These measures, which take effect immediately, include a compulsory 10-minute break every hour for workers carrying out "heavy physical activities" when the Wet Bulb Globe Temperature (WBGT) is 32 degrees Celsius or higher.

MOM inspectors will visit workplaces to verify that new safety measures have been properly put in place.

Employers who fail to comply may face penalties under the Workplace Safety and Health Act, including stop work orders and composition fines.

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HR Manager Sentenced to Jail for Attempting to Deceive IRAS

An HR manager in Singapore has been sentenced to 4 to 6 months for attempting to deceive IRAS into granting their organisation payouts for incarcerated employees and ghost staff, through the Jobs Support Scheme (JSS).

Singapore's Penal Code punishes offenders with imprisonment of up to 10 years and a fine for each offense of cheating or attempted cheating, the police said.

False declarations made to deceive the IRAS into disbursing public funds could also have caused financial losses to the organization.

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Singapore to Improve Living Conditions for Migrant Workers by Upgrading 1,000 Dorms

MOM announced plans to raise the standards for around 1,000 existing purpose-built and factory-converted dormitories to improve housing resilience and living conditions for migrant workers.

By 2030, these dormitories will be upgraded to improved interim standards under the Dormitory Transition Scheme, with larger dormitories with higher public health risks taking priority.

Under the Dormitory Transition Scheme, the maximum number of occupants in a room will be limited to 12 people, with no more than one-metre spacing between beds.

There should be no more than 10 isolation beds per 1,000 bed spaces, and all isolation rooms must have en suite toilets.

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C-Suite Leaders Turn to Remote Hiring to Address Skills Gap

C-suite leaders and managers across the globe are increasingly hiring remote employees to meet their staffing needs.

A recent study found that this is mainly due to the skills and resource retention being one of the biggest obstacles to global growth, alongside challenging security environments, and complex physical and geopolitical infrastructure.

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Compensation Still the Top Priority for Recent Graduates

Based on Universum's latest report, high future earnings remained the most important factor for business, engineering, and IT students when seeking employment in 2023.

The demand for workplace flexibility is also increasing among students, particularly women.

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Hybrid Work Benefits Recognized, but Tech Support Struggles to Keep Up

Despite hybrid and remote work's positive impact on the organisations' performance, NTT's 2023 Global Employee Experience Trends Report found that less than half strongly agree that employees have access to the technology they need to be productive at home and in the office.

The technology gap highlighted the need for organizations to provide their employees with essential tools, especially as business leaders worldwide embrace structured hybrid work arrangements.

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