Labour Minister Demands Safety Overhaul Following Accidents on Rama II Road

[snoop1130]

Pictures courtesy of KhaoSod

 

Labour Minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn has called for urgent safety reforms at a major construction site on Rama II Road, in response to multiple accidents causing fatalities and injuries. A critical meeting with Italian-Thai Development (ITD) is slated for tomorrow, March 28, to address these issues head-on.

 

Minister Phiphat has instructed the Department of Labour Protection and Welfare (DLPW) and the Institute for the Promotion of Occupational Safety, Health, and Environmental Working Conditions (POSHEC) to devise stringent safety protocols. These measures will target all construction sites nationwide, with a special focus on high-risk areas in Bangkok.

 

The initiative aims to enforce comprehensive safety strategies, inviting contractors from across Bangkok and nearby areas to participate in discussions. The agenda includes developing scenario simulations to facilitate practical prevention solutions.

 

Central to these measures is ensuring that all construction workers, regardless of nationality, are covered under Section 33 of the Social Security Act, safeguarding their rights and protections. Employers will bear responsibility for any incidents involving their workers initially.

 

 

 

Saroj Khumkhai, director-general of DLPW, highlighted the ongoing investigation into the March 18 incident, stressing the importance of collaboration with bodies like the Expressway Authority of Thailand (EXAT) to guide the project safely forward.

 

ITD is expected to partake in a fact-finding session to verify adherence to the Safety Act 2011 and ministerial regulations, particularly Section 8 concerning hazardous work conditions like scaffolding and crane operations. Non-compliance could result in fines up to 400,000 baht, imprisonment for up to a year, or both.

 

Saroj reiterated the strict enforcement of legal measures against those implicated in accidents. The ministry plans intensified inspections, cooperating with agencies such as the Engineering Institute of Thailand (EIT) to review safety protocols on construction sites.

 

All state entities are encouraged to ensure that subcontractors comply meticulously with legal standards, reinforcing a culture of safety across the construction industry in Thailand, reported The Thaiger.

 

-- 2025-03-27

 

 

[MikeandDow]

What a load of BS  there is No safety in Thailand  !!!  they have mountains of safety procedures but no impemetation,  it costs tooooo much money to  implement simple as that, you can see it every day thais working on construction sites no hard hat no work boot just flip flops short sleve shirts it goes on and on  untill they are muti million baht litagation cases  nothing will change   its simple maths  cost of safety gear safety manager wages time lost for training againts  workers funeral cost   guess which is cheaper !!

[lordgrinz]

More "Safety First" signs should do it.

[smedly]

how about the whole country you ### idiot

[Moonlover]

9 minutes ago, smedly said:

how about the whole country you ### idiot

 

13 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

These measures will target all construction sites nationwide, with a special focus on high-risk areas in Bangkok.

Headline reader only I assume.

[NE1]

Wonder what the actual figure is for deaths on Rama 2 , be it construction workers or falling steel and concrete onto the road.

[ChrisY1]

140 deaths on Rama 2 and finally the penny has dropped!.....Oh..or is it just more speak like every time?

[Aussie999]

I think we all know what this means.... wants/demands, a thicker brown envelope.

[hotchilli]

15 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

Minister Phiphat has instructed the Department of Labour Protection and Welfare (DLPW) and the Institute for the Promotion of Occupational Safety, Health, and Environmental Working Conditions (POSHEC) to devise stringent safety protocols. These measures will target all construction sites nationwide, with a special focus on high-risk areas in Bangkok.

Must be running out of migrants?

[spidermike007]

Heads should be rolling and the top officers of this construction company should be in jail. This project is a decade behind schedule and was not only an badly planned, but continues to be an embarrassment to the Thai nation. This is the main artery in and out of Bangkok for God's sake, get your act together people!

 

the fact that this project has been so poorly managed and is so far behind schedule is an abomination. 

[chondan]

Tour minister, Labor minister, when is Phiphat going to disappear?

[Gandtee]

Bt400,000 fine or a prison sentence. For whom? The bosses of the companies that allowed nonsafe operations? Yeah. Right.😆

[RayOday]

I love the cynicism of the responses. They are accurate and express the frustration, anger, and point directly to the incompetence of this Mafia state. What's next a photo op of Prawit and civil engineer Charnvirakul operating cranes?

 

"Department of Labour Protection and Welfare (DLPW) and the Institute for the Promotion of Occupational Safety, Health, and Environmental Working Conditions (POSHEC) to devise stringent safety protocols. These measures will target all construction sites nationwide, with a special focus on high-risk areas in Bangkok."

 

This paragraph makes me choke with laughter and then vomit. It's a confession that they don't do the job up front and don't plan to inspect. Too busy with self congratulatory lunches and selfies and fighting over their share of the "commission".

These are not public servants. They are more like "The Gang Who Couldn't Shoot Straight." 

 

At one point in my life I was an industrial engineer working closely with civil engineers bringing over 5 billion USD/yr in capital expansions (note: the company generated $95 billion/yr in revenue). I mention this because my perspective is that the Rama 2 issues are due to corruption, incompetence, a lack of concern over human lives, craven interests, and what I call "director mentally", meaning getting their flat asses out of their chairs for more than 1 meeting after a disaster and spending less time with bull<deleted> and more time on the site with engineers, project managers, suppliers, insurance and public safety experts. The mentality of "my level is too high to get involved in the detail", rather than just setting onerous penalties, is a prognostication for more fatal failures.  

 "all things processed in their circle and thus the empire is complete" The Prince, Machiavelli

 

[BayArea]

when your construction workers are mostly made of females and the uniforms consist of flip flops and no hard hats, save the safety concerns for fools!

[Watawattana]

Great words.  Wonder what adjectives might get used for the actual actions taken and the quality of the enforcement? 

[ujayujay]

Nonsensical chatter! Anyone who knows how easy it is to get a driver's license in LOS knows where the problem lies: education, education, education. TV spots and safety-first banners are just cheap substitutes.

[thesetat]

5 hours ago, ChrisY1 said:

140 deaths on Rama 2 and finally the penny has dropped!.....Oh..or is it just more speak like every time?

i do not think the penny has dropped. I think this OP is mostly lip service same as always. Promise this but never really enforce anything... There will be more incidences I am sure. Especially at Rama 2. 

[Peterphuket]

15 hours ago, lordgrinz said:

More "Safety First" signs should do it.

Anything else?
And there are so many already.

[lordgrinz]

1 minute ago, Peterphuket said:

Anything else?
And there are so many already.

 

I don't know, but it was comical to see all bigwigs in their pressed suits with hardhats standing in front a "safety first" sign when being interviewed after the collapse.

[Peterphuket]

2 minutes ago, lordgrinz said:

 

I don't know, but it was comical to see all bigwigs in their pressed suits with hardhats standing in front a "safety first" sign when being interviewed after the collapse.

Yes, it is all in a word ridiculous, and nothing will change.

[tomazbodner]

You guys totally don't get it.

 

This is all a cunning plan to turn Rama 2 road into a future tourist attraction. Like there is death railway in Kanchanaburi, there could be tours of Rama 2 death expressway years later, where tourists will be shown cemetery and explained how many workers died for every meter of road built...

 

[SARCASM=OFF]

[digger70]

Labour Minister Demands Safety Overhaul Following Accidents on Rama II Road 

 

Isn't this the same ITD that is having a lot of trouble .like  108 Billion THB last year?  

It's a very shady Ruthless   company.

Didn't Premchai Karnasuta, Executive Chairman of the Italian-Thai Group Company,... go to jail for the Black Panther killing..  Italian-Thai Development faces B108bn debt crunch as overseas projects fail.

Please credit and share this article with others using this link: https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/general/2758639/italian-thai-development-faces-b108bn-debt-crunch-as-overseas-projects-fail. View our policies at http://goo.gl/9HgTd and http://goo.gl/ou6Ip. © Bangkok Post PCL. All rights reserved.  

 

https://www.khaosodenglish.com/news/crimecourtscalamity/courts/2019/06/11/premchai-sentenced-to-jail-for-bribery-in-black-panther-case/

[PETERTHEEATER]

Off topic but still on safety. I am watching the media reaction to todays earth tremor outside the site of a multistorey building collapse. A woman walking by was wearing a large floppy-brimmed hat with a safety helmet perched on top.🙄

[JimHuaHin]

8 hours ago, spidermike007 said:

Heads should be rolling and the top officers of this construction company should be in jail. This project is a decade behind schedule and was not only an badly planned, but continues to be an embarrassment to the Thai nation. This is the main artery in and out of Bangkok for God's sake, get your act together people!

 

the fact that this project has been so poorly managed and is so far behind schedule is an abomination. 

Do you really think the most Thai politicians and most wealthy Thai families care about the people, the workers?

[MikeandDow]

18 minutes ago, JimHuaHin said:

Do you really think the most Thai politicians and most wealthy Thai families care about the people, the workers?

Nobody cares, Asian lives are cheap !! safety is tooooooo expensive 

[spidermike007]

20 hours ago, JimHuaHin said:

Do you really think the most Thai politicians and most wealthy Thai families care about the people, the workers?

No I do not think that they do, however they should be feeling some embarrassment and shame over the lack of progress with this highway project, it is the main highway in and out of Bangkok after all.

 

Anybody with some pride would be feeling shame over this massive construction  failure.