Fatal workplace injury rate falls to 0.92 per 100,000 in H1

The drop was concentrated in larger sites, which saw injuries fall to 27 from 31.

Singapore’s workplace safety performance improved in the first half of 2025, with key injury rates falling, according to the Ministry of Manpower (MoM).

The annualised fatal injury rate declined to 0.92 per 100,000 workers, down from 1.0 in the same period last year.

The annualised major injury rate dropped to 15.5 per 100,000—a historic low excluding the pandemic-affected year of 2020.

The manufacturing sector recorded 55 fatal and major injuries, an improvement from 65 cases in H1 2024. Notably, metalworking injuries fell by 29%.

In construction, the combined fatal and major injury rate decreased to 28.2 per 100,000 workers, with 76 cases compared to 81 a year ago.

The drop was concentrated in larger sites, which saw injuries fall to 27 from 31, whilst injury numbers at smaller-scale worksites remained largely unchanged.

MoM attributed the overall gains to several factors: tighter enforcement, a sector-wide Safety Time-Out initiated in November 2024, and stricter public-sector procurement rules requiring enhanced safety protocols from April 2024.

Vehicular incidents and falls from height remained the leading causes of fatal workplace accidents, while slips, trips, and falls continued to account for the bulk of major injuries.

Enforcement activity ramped up in the first half of 2025. MoM carried out more than 3,000 inspections, identified roughly 7,000 safety breaches, issued 28 stop-work orders, and levied over $1.5m in composition fines.

On occupational diseases (OD), the annualised rate held steady at 25.2 per 100,000 workers, with 465 cases reported. Noise-induced deafness accounted for 60% of cases, followed by work-related musculoskeletal disorders (26%) and occupational skin diseases (10%).