Duo fined for getting safety supervisor to lie

Duo fined for getting safety supervisor to lie

SINGAPORE - It was only a broken finger but it would have been a blemish on an engineering company's safety record.

Two managers at the Tong Hoi company were each fined $4,000 on Tuesday for telling a safety supervisor to lie to the Ministry of Manpower that a worker had sustained the injury while falling in his dormitory.

Mr Jahangir Abul Kashem, 35, had actually fractured his right little finger while fitting pipes in the Southern Islands in April 2011.

Former general manager Hor Meng Chee, 56, and former operations manager Woo Chee Wai, 53, pleaded guilty to abetting Ramamoorthy Reddiar Jayaraman in passing the false information to an MOM officer.

Ramamoorthy Reddiar was interviewed by an MOM investigation officer six months after the accident.

It was found out that Hor and Woo had told him the previous day to stick to the false story made in an accident notification that was sent to the ministry earlier.

For instructing the safety supervisor to lie to an MOM investigating officer, the duo could each have been fined up to $5,000 and jailed for up to six months.

Both men have since resigned. Hor is now a project manager for a construction company, while Woo is unemployed.

Asking for low fines, the men's lawyers said their clients would have to pay the penalties from their own pockets.

MOM prosecutor Mohd Rizal Ali said Ramamoorthy Reddiar, 42, had been levied a $500 composition fine. He is now a security officer.

The court also heard that Mr Jahangir had been fully compensated for the injury and medical fees and suffers no permanent disability.

khush@sph.com.sg


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