Securing the Safety of Experienced and Inexperienced Workers: A 'Salutary' Reminder for Singaporean Employers and Contractors

Abstract

There has been a perceptible hardening of the attitude of the Singaporean courts towards the claims of contractors and employers on issues of liability for workplace safety. While the recent High Court decisions of Tan Lee Meng J. in Hao Wei and Rajah J.A. in Zheng Yu Shan still resonate with both the common law of England and Hong Kong, these decisions seem to be propelling the law in a new direction with regards to an employer’s responsibility for experienced workers and a contractor’s liability for inexperienced workers. As such, Singaporean employers and principals are well advised to take heed of the High Court’s renewed call for employee safety and to take prudent steps to minimize liability. It is also averred here that it is time for statutory reform to formally abolish distinction between the duties of contractors and employers to provide a safe working environment, and that such a reform could take its inspiration from the irrelevance of the distinction under employees’ compensation regimes in both Singapore and Hong Kong.