7 May 2014 marked the first day of the Singapore Workplace Safety and Health (WSH) Conference 2014, held in conjunction with the launch of the National Workplace Safety and Health Campaign for this year.
The conference saw regional workplace safety and health professionals and stakeholders, businesses and organisations convene to share and learn about how to adopt a holistic approach in managing health and safety risks in the workplace.
Co-organised by the WSH Council, WSH Institute and the Ministry of Manpower, the theme for this year’s conference was “Integrating Safety and Health: Towards a Holistic Approach“.
The conference opened with a welcome address from Mr Heng Chiang Gnee, Chairman of the WSH Conference 2014 Steering Committee and a keynote speech delivered by Mr Moussa Oumarou, Director of the ILO Governance and Tripartism Department at the International Labour Organisation.
Following that, the Plenary 1 session got underway in discussing how businesses and organisations should start putting health as a priority alongside safety in the WSH discussion and discourse.
The speakers included Professor Chia Kee Seng, Dean of the Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health, who spoke on the importance of “Integrating safety and health: Towards a holistic approach” and the need to understand the health aspects of the workforce and its link to the productivity of an organisation and employee satisfaction.