All About SS 506 - Occupational Safety and Health Management System (Part 1,2 & 3)

Occupational Safety and Health Management System

Singapore Standards SS 506 (Part 1, 2 and 3)

According to the Workplace Safety and Health Report for 2020 from the Singapore Ministry of Manpower, workplace injuries were 11,350 cases, while 30 cases were workplace fatalities. This translates to a fatal injury rate at work of 0.9 per 100,000 workers. For cases of Occupational Disease (OD), there was a marginal increase of 2% from 517 cases in 2019 to 528 cases in 2020. This was partly contributed by 34 Covid-19 cases, which were classified as work-related.

The total number of workplace injuries for 2020 decreased by 18% compared to 2019. Fewer injury cases were mainly due to the suspension of activities at work in the second and third quarters of 2020 to manage the COVID-19 outbreak. However, the number of workplace injuries returned to pre-COVID levels in the fourth quarter of 2020, with 3,413 workplace injuries reported compared to 3,445 in the same quarter in 2019.

The escalating injury rate in late 2020 and the spate of accidents in February 2021 is a cause for concern. The Singapore’s Ministry of Manpower (MOM) urges organisations not to neglect Workplace Safety & Health (WSH) while balancing business interests, project schedules and workforce constraints. Companies should update workers’ WSH training and review risk assessments, especially if there are changes to their work processes or workplace due to COVID-19.

By the end of this article, you will be able to:

• Grasp a better understanding of the SS 506 standard
• Understand the benefits of implementing the SS 506 standard

What is SS 506?

SS 506 is a Singapore standard that specifies requirements for occupational safety and health (OSH) management system to enable an organisation to control its OSH risks and improve its OSH performance.

The SS 506 standard consists of 3 parts, which are as follows:

• Part 1 – Occupational safety and health (OSH) management systems – Requirements
• Part 2 – Occupational safety and health (OSH) management systems – Guidelines for the implementation of SS 506: Part 1.
• Part 3 – Occupational safety and health (OSH) management systems – Requirements for the chemical industry

The SS 506 series of standards is intended to provide your organisation with elements of an effective OSH management system, which can be integrated with other management system requirements to help your organisation achieve its OSH and economic objectives.

SS 506 can be used for certification, registration and self-declaration of your organisation’s OSH management system. It is a helpful guide for general assistance in establishing, implementing, maintaining or improving an OSH management system.

What is SS 506 Part 1?

SS:506: Part 1 adopts the Occupational Health and Safety assessment Series (OHSAS) OHSAS 18001:2007, published by the British Standards Institution. This standard is also compatible with the ISO 9001 (Quality) and ISO 14001 (Environmental) management systems such that it would facilitate the integration of quality, environmental and OSH management systems by organisations.

The benefits of implementing SS 506 Part 1 are as follow:

• Compliance with legal and regulatory requirements are ensured
• Your organisation’s commitment to health and safety to interested parties is demonstrated
• Health and safety of the work environment improvement
• Company image and brand reputation improvement
• Encouraging your organisation to improve the work environment by ensuring health and safety for employees
• Health and safety risks in the workplace are eliminated and reduced
• Continuous improvement of occupational safety and health performance.
• Helps your organisation to achieve bizSAFE STAR

What is SS506 Part 2?

SS 506 Part 2 adopts the Occupational Health and Safety Assessment Series (OHSAS) 18002:2008, published by the British Standards Institution. SS 506 Part 2 is intended to provide general assistance to your organisation to establish, implement or improve occupational safety and health management system based on the requirements set out in SS 506 part 1. This is to aid the understanding and implementation of SS 506 Part 1.

What is SS 506 Part 3?

SS 506 Part 3 is a Singapore Standard developed specifically for the chemical industry in Singapore on Occupational Safety and Health management system. SS 506 Part 3 was designed based on SS 506 Part 1. This standard provides a systematic way to manage occupational safety & health in the chemical industry by controlling occupational health & safety and process safety risks through objective setting, planning, and performance measurement.

Several workplaces are required to implement a Health and Safety Management System (SHMS) under the Workplace Safety and Health (Safety and Health Management System and Auditing) Regulations 2009 to ensure the safety and health of people in the workplace.

The SHMS of the following workplaces will have to be audited following Singapore Standard SS 506: Part 3:

• Factory that processes or manufactures petroleum, petroleum products, petrochemicals or petrochemical products
• Premises that stores toxic or flammable liquid at a storage capacity of 5,000 or more cubic metres
• Factory manufacturing fluorine, chlorine, hydrogen fluoride, carbon monoxide and synthetic polymers
• Factory manufacturing pharmaceutical products or their intermediates
• Factory manufacturing semiconductor wafers

SS 651 and its relevance to SS 506 Part 3

SS 506 Part 3 has been superseded by SS 651 in 2019, and will expire on 31 December 2021. SS 651 is the new Singapore Standard for the Safety and Health Management System for Chemical Industry. It was specifically developed to address occupational safety and health management system requirements and process safety management system requirements.

Conclusion

To prevent and reduce the increase in cases of injuries, fatalities and occupational diseases every year, Singapore’s MOM recommends every organisation to implement Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) while running your business. One of the standards that can be referenced in implementing an OSH management system is SS 506. This standard helps your organisation in controlling OSH risks, preventing accidents and occupational diseases in your workplace.