ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS
SECTION
PART I
Preliminary and Application of Act
1. Short title and Minister's power of exemption
2. General application of Act
3. Application to factories belonging to the Government
4. Power to exempt in case of public emergency
PART II
Interpretation
5. Interpretation of expression "factory"
6. General interpretation
PART III
Registration of Factories
7. Register of factories
8. Registration of existing factories
9. Registration of new factories
10. Plans of new factories
11. Appointment of Factories Appeal Board
12. Appeal to Board from decision of chief inspector
PART IV
Health - General Provisions
13. Cleanliness
14. Overcrowding
15. Ventilation
16. Lighting
17. Drainage of floors
18. Sanitary conveniences
19. Enforcement of provisions of section 18 by local authorities
20. Duty of inspector as to sanitary defects remediable by local authority
PART V
Safety - General Provisions
21. Prime movers
22. Transmission machinery
23. Other machinery
24. Provisions as to unfenced machinery
25. Construction and maintenance of fencing
26. Construction and disposal of new machinery
27. Vessels containing dangerous liquids
28. Self-acting machines
29. Training and supervision of inexperienced workers
30. Hoists and lifts
31. Chains, ropes and lifting tackle
32. Cranes and other lifting machines
33. Register of chains, ropes and lifting tackle and lifting machines
34. Safe means of access and safe place of employment
35. Precautions in places where dangerous fumes are liable to be present
36. Precautions in respect of explosive or inflammable dust, gas, vapour or substance
37. Steam boiler
38. Steam receivers and steam containers
39. Air receivers
40. Exemption as to steam boilers, steam receivers, steam containers and air receivers
41. Prevention of fire
42. Safety provisions in case of fire
43. Power of court to make orders as to dangerous conditions and practices
44. Power of court to make orders as to dangerous factory
45. Appeal from orders made on complaint
PART VI
Welfare - General Provisions
46. Supply of drinking water
47. Washing facilities
48. Accommodation for clothing
49. First aid
50. Exemption if ambulance room provided
PART VII
Health, Safety and Welfare - Special Provisions and Regulations
51. Removal of dust or fumes
52. Meals in certain dangerous trades
53. Protective clothing and appliances
54. Protection of eyes in certain processes
55. Power to make regulations for safety, health and welfare
56. Power to take samples
57. Notification of accidents and dangerous occurrences
58. Notification of industrial diseases
PART VIII
Special Applications and Extensions
59. Premises where part of building is separate factory
60. Premises in which steam boilers are used
61. Power to extend application of provisions of Act
PART IX
Miscellaneous
62. Posting of abstract of Act, regulations and notices
63. General registers
64. Preservation of registers and records
65. Periodical return of persons employed
66. Duties of persons employed
67. Prohibition of deductions from wages
PART X
Administration
68. Appointment of chief inspector and inspectors
69. Powers of inspectors
PART XI
Offences, Penalties and Legal Proceedings
70. Offences
71. Penalty for offences for which no express penalty provided
72. Power of court to order cause of contravention to be remedied
73. Penalty in case of death or injury
74. Forgery of certificates, false entries and false declarations
75. Penalty on persons actually committing offence for which occupier is liable
76. Power of occupier or owner to exempt himself from liability on conviction of the actual offender
77. Proceedings against persons other than occupiers or owners
78. Prosecution of offences
79. Special provisions as to evidence
80. Service and sending of documents
81. Power to modify agreements
82. Power to apportion expenses
PART XII
General
83. Factories Advisory Board
84. Saving
First Schedule - Particulars to be Submitted by Occupier or Intending Occupier of a Factory
Second Schedule - Certificate of Registration of a Factory
Third Schedule - Register of Chains, Ropes, Lifting and lifting Machines
Fourth Schedule - Processes requiring Provision of Suitable Goggles or Effective Screens
Fifth Schedule - Dangerous Occurrences of which Written Notice must be given to the Chief Inspector
Sixth Schedule - Industrial Diseases
Seventh Schedule - Particulars to be Submitted by Occupier of Premises (other than a Factory) in which a Steam Boiler is Used
Act 31, 1973,
S.I. 159, 1978.
An Act to make provision for the regulation of the conditions of employment in factories and other places as regards the safety, health and welfare of persons employed therein and for the safety and inspection of certain plant and machinery and for purposes incidental to or connected with matters aforesaid.
[Date of Commencement: 1st January, 1979]
PART I
Preliminary and Application of Act (ss 1-4)
1. Short title and Minister's power of exemption
(1) This Act may be cited as the Factories Act.
(2) The Minister may, by order published in the Gazette, exempt certain factories or classes of factories from the provisions of this Act.
Except as otherwise expressly provided in this Act, the provisions of this Act shall apply to all factories.
3. Application to factories belonging to the Government
This Act shall apply to factories belonging to or in the occupation of the Government and to building operations and works of engineering construction undertaken by or on behalf of the Government, and to the employment by or under the Government of persons engaged in painting or renovating buildings.
4. Power to exempt in case of public emergency
In the case of any public emergency the Minister may, by order, to the extent and during the period named in the order published in the Gazette, exempt from this Act either factories generally or any class or description of factory.
PART II
Interpretation (ss 5-6)
5. Interpretation of expression "factory"
(1) Subject to the provisions of this section, the word "factory" means any premises in which persons are employed in manual labour in any process for or incidental to any of the following purposes, namely—
(a) the making of any article or part of any article;
(b) the altering, repairing, ornamenting, finishing, cleaning, washing, breaking up or demolition of any article; or
(c) the adapting of any article for sale,
being premises in which, or within the close or curtilage or precincts of which, the work is being carried on by way of trade or for purposes of gain and to or over which the employer of the persons employed therein has the right of access or control, and whether or not they are factories by reason of the foregoing definition the word "factory" also includes the following premises in which persons are employed in manual labour, that is to say—
(i) any premises in which the business of washing or filling of bottles or containers or the packing of articles is carried on incidental to the purpose of any factory;
(ii) any premises in which the construction, reconstruction or repair of locomotives, vehicles or other plant for use for transport purposes is carried on as ancillary to a transport undertaking or other industrial or commercial undertaking, not being premises used for the housing of locomotives or vehicles where only cleaning, washing or minor adjustments are carried out;
(iii) any premises in which printing by letterpress, lithography, photogravure or other similar process, or bookbinding is carried on by way of trade or for purposes of gain or incidental to another business carried on;
(iv) any premises in which mechanical power is used in connection with the making or repair of articles of metal or wood or any other material incidental to any business carried on by way of trade or for purposes of gain;
(v) any premises in which articles are made or prepared incidental to the carrying on of building operations or works of engineering construction not being premises in which such operations or works are being carried on;
(vi) any premises in which persons are regularly employed in or in connection with the generation of electrical energy for supply by way of trade, or for the supply for the purposes of any industrial or commercial undertaking or for any public building or public institution, or for supply to streets or other public places;
(vii) any premises in which mechanical power is used for the purpose of or in connection with a water supply, being premises in which persons are regularly employed;
(viii) any sewage works in which mechanical power is used and any pumping station used in connection with any sewage works:
Provided that the Minister may, if in special circumstances he thinks it expedient to do so, at any time by order published in the Gazette exempt any premises or part of any premises, being a factory as hereinbefore defined, from the application of all or any of the provisions of this Act.
(2) Where the Minister has made an order under section 61 extending the application of this Act or any Part thereof to any premises, process or operation, such premises, process or operation shall be deemed to be a factory for the purposes of this Act or the Part thereof so applied.
(3) Any line or siding (not being part of a railway) which is used in connection with and for the purposes of a factory shall be deemed to be part of the factory; and if any such line or siding is used in connection with more than one factory belonging to different occupiers, the line or siding shall be deemed to be a separate factory, and the provisions of this Act shall apply as if such different occupiers were jointly the occupiers of the line or siding so deemed to be a factory.
(4) Any workplace in which, with the permission of or under agreement with the owner or occupier, two or more persons carry on any work which would constitute the workplace of a factory if the persons working therein were in the employment of the owner or occupier, shall be deemed to be a factory for the purposes of this Act, and, in the case of any such workplace, the provisions of this Act shall apply as if the owner or occupier of the workplace were the occupier of the factory and the persons working therein were persons employed in the factory.
(5) No premises to which the provisions of the Mines, Quarries, Works and Machinery Act (Cap. 44:02) apply shall be deemed to be a factory.
(6) Where a place situate within the close, curtilage or precincts forming a factory is solely used for some purpose other than the process carried on in the factory, that place shall not be deemed to form part of the factory for the purposes of this Act.
(7) Premises shall not be excluded from the definition of a factory by reason only that they are open air premises.
(8) No premises belonging to or in the occupation of the Government or any local authority shall be deemed not to be a factory by reason only that the work carried on thereat is not carried on by way of trade or for purposes of gain.
(1) In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires—
"article" includes any solid, liquid or gas, or any combination thereof;
"bodily injury" includes injury to health;
"building operation" means the construction, structural alteration, repair or maintenance of a building (including re-pointing, re-decoration and external cleaning the structure), the demolition of a building, and the preparation for, and laying the foundation of, an intended building, but does not include any operation which is a work of engineering construction within the meaning of this Act;
"chief inspector" means the chief inspector of factories appointed under this Act;
"class or description", in relation to factories, includes a group of factories described by reference to locality;
"driving belt" includes any driving strap or rope;
"fume" includes gas or vapour;
"general register" means the register kept in accordance with the requirements of section 63;
"inspector" means an inspector of factories appointed under this Act and includes the chief inspector;
"Labour Commissioner" means the Labour Commissioner in the Ministry for the time being responsible for labour matters;
"local authority" includes, in any area, such person or body of persons as the Minister may by regulations made under section 55 declare to be a local authority for the purposes of this Act;
"machinery" includes any driving belt;
"maintained" means maintained in an efficient state, in efficient working order and in good repair;
"mine" has the same meaning assigned to it in the Mines, Quarries, Works and Machinery Act;
"owner" means the person for the time being receiving the rents or profits of the premises in connection with which the word is used, whether on his own account or as agent or trustee for any other person, or who would so receive the same if the premises were leased;
"prime mover" means every engine, motor or other appliance which provides mechanical energy derived from steam, water, wind, electricity, the combustion of fuel or other source;
"process" includes the use of any locomotive;
"railway" means any railway used for the purpose of public traffic, whether passenger goods or other traffic, and includes any works used in connection with and for the purposes of the railway;
"sanitary conveniences" includes urinals, water closets, earth closets, chemical closets, privies, ashpits and any similar conveniences;
"steam boiler" means any closed vessel in which for any purpose steam is generated under pressure greater than atmospheric pressure and includes any economizer used to heat water being fed to any such vessel, and any superheater used for heating steam;
"transmission machinery" means every shaft, wheel, drum, pulley, system of fast and loose pulleys, coupling, clutch, driving belt or any other device by which the motion of a prime mover is transmitted to or received by any machine or appliance;
"work of engineering construction" means the construction of any railway line or siding, and the construction, structural alteration or repair (including re-pointing and re-painting) or the demolition of any tunnel, bridge, viaduct, waterworks, reservoir, pipeline, aqueduct, sewer, sewage works, or gas holder, and includes such other works as may be specified by the Minister by order published in the Gazette.
(2) For the purposes of this Act, machinery or plant shall be deemed to have been constructed or reconstructed before the commencement of this Act or the making of regulations under this Act, and a factory or building shall be deemed to have been constructed, reconstructed, extended, added to or converted for use as a factory, before the commencement of this Act or the coming into operation of any provision of this Act, or the making of regulations under this Act, if the construction, reconstruction, extension, addition or conversion was begun before the commencement of this Act, or the making of regulations under this Act, or the coming into operation of any provision of this Act, as the case may be.
(3) For the purposes of this Act, mechanical power shall not be deemed to be used in a factory by reason only that mechanical power is used for the purpose of heating, cooling, ventilating or lighting the workrooms or other parts of the factory.
(4) For the purposes of this Act, an apprentice shall be deemed to be a person employed.
PART III
Registration of Factories (ss 7-12)
The chief inspector shall keep a register of factories, in which he shall cause to be entered such particulars in relation to every factory required to be registered under this Act as he may consider necessary or desirable.
8. Registration of existing factories
(1) Every person who, at the commencement of this Act, occupies a factory shall, within one month after such commencement, apply for the registration of such factory by sending to the chief inspector a written notice containing the particulars set out in the First Schedule.
(2) Upon receipt of such notice the chief inspector shall cause the factory to be registered and shall issue to the applicant a certificate of registration in the form set out in the Second Schedule.
(3) Any person who, without having been issued to him a certificate of registration under this section, and after the period of one month after the commencement of this Act, continues to occupy or use as a factory premises which were so occupied or used by him at such commencement shall be guilty of an offence and liable to a fine not exceeding P400 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months, or to both, and if the contravention in respect of which he was convicted is continued after the conviction, he shall be guilty of a further offence and liable in respect thereof to a fine not exceeding P30 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 14 days, or to both, for each day on which the offence was so continued.
9. Registration of new factories
(1) Before any person occupies or uses as a factory any premises which were not so occupied or used by him at the commencement of this Act, he shall apply for registration of such premises by sending to the chief inspector a written notice containing the particulars set out in the First Schedule.
(2) Upon receipt of such notice and on being satisfied that the premises are suitable for use as a factory of the nature stated in the notice, the chief inspector shall cause the premises to be registered and shall issue to the applicant a certificate of registration in the form set out in the Second Schedule.
(3) Any person who, without having been issued to him a certificate of registration referred to in subsection (2), occupies or uses as a factory any premises which were not so occupied or used by him at the commencement of this Act, shall be guilty of an offence and liable to a fine not exceeding P400 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months, or to both, and if the contravention in respect of which he was convicted is continued after the conviction, he shall be guilty of a further offence and liable in respect thereof to a fine not exceeding P30 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 14 days, or to both, for each day on which the offence was so continued.
(4) Where the chief inspector refuses to issue a certificate of registration under this section he shall, if so required by the applicant, state in writing the grounds of such refusal.
Where, under the provisions of any written law, plans of an intended factory or of any intended building appurtenant to a factory or an existing building for use as a factory are submitted to any local authority, such authority shall, before approving such plans, forward copies thereof to the chief inspector and, notwithstanding the provisions of any such written law, shall not approve the plans until notified by the chief inspector that the premises concerned are, in his opinion, suitable for use as a factory of the nature proposed.
11. Appointment of Factories Appeal Board
(1) Subject to the provisions of subsection (2), the Minister may, by notice published in the Gazette, appoint such persons as he thinks fit to be a Factories Appeal Board (in this Act referred to as "the Board") for the purpose of hearing and determining any appeal that may be submitted to it under the provisions of section 12.
(2) The Board shall consist of a chairman, who shall be a person qualified to be admitted as an advocate or attorney under the Legal Practitioners Act (Cap. 61:01), and not less than six other members.
(3) At any meeting of the Board, a quorum shall be the chairman and two other members.
(4) The Minister may make regulations regulating the procedure of the Board and, in the absence of any such regulations, the Board shall regulate its own procedure.
12. Appeal to Board from decision of chief inspector
(1) If any person is aggrieved by a decision of the chief inspector under the provisions of this Part he may, within 30 days from the date of such decision, send to the chairman of the Board and to the chief inspector written notice of his intention to appeal to the Board against the decision and such notice shall state the grounds of appeal.
(2) On receipt of such written notice, the chairman of the Board shall appoint a day and place for the hearing of the appeal and shall notify the parties concerned in the appeal.
(3) For the purposes of subsection (2) the chief inspector shall be a party concerned in the appeal and shall be entitled to appear and be heard before the Board at the hearing of such appeal.
(4) The Board may, on hearing the appeal, confirm, vary or reverse the decision of the chief inspector, and the decision of the Board shall be final and shall not be subject to further appeal.
PART IV
Health - General Provisions (ss 13-20)
Every factory shall be kept in a clean state, and free from effluvia arising from any drain, sanitary convenience or nuisance, and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing—
(a) accumulations of dirt, refuse and waste materials shall be removed daily by a suitable method from the floors and benches of workrooms and from the staircases and passages;
(b) the floor of every workroom shall be cleaned at least twice in every week by washing or, if it is effective and suitable, by sweeping or any other method;
(c) all inside walls or partitions and all ceilings or tops of rooms, and all walls, sides and tops of passages and staircases shall—
(i) where they have a smooth impervious surface, at least once in every period of 12 months be washed with hot water and soap or cleaned by some other suitable method;
(ii) where they are kept painted with oil paint or varnished, be repainted or revarnished at least once in every period of three years, and at least once in every period of 12 months be washed with hot water and soap or cleaned by some other suitable method;
(iii) in other cases be kept whitewashed or colourwashed and the whitewashing or colourwashing shall be repeated at least once in every period of 12 months:
Provided that where it appears to the Minister that in any class or description of factory or part thereof any of the foregoing provisions of this section are not required for the purpose of keeping the factory in a clean state, or are by reason of special circumstances inappropriate or inadequate for such purpose, he may, if he thinks fit, by order published in the Gazette, direct that those provisions shall not apply to factories, or parts of factories, of that class or description, or shall apply as varied by the order.
(1) A factory shall not, while work is carried on, be so overcrowded as to cause risk of injury to the health of the persons employed therein.
(2) Without prejudice to the generality of subsection (1), a factory shall be deemed to be so overcrowded if the number of persons at a time in any workroom is such that the amount of cubic space allowed for each person employed is less than 10 cubic metres:
Provided that in calculating for the purposes of this subsection the amount of cubic space in any room, no space more than four and one half metres from the floor shall be taken into account, and, where a room contains a gallery, the gallery shall be treated for the purposes of this subsection as if it were partitioned off from the remainder of the room and formed a separate room.
(3) Every workroom shall be not less than three metres in height, measured from the floor to the lowest point of the ceiling, or, where there is no ceiling, to the lowest point of the roofing material:
Provided that, if the Minister is satisfied that owing to the special conditions under which the work is carried on in any workroom the application of the provisions of this subsection to that workroom would be inappropriate or unnecessary, he may by certificate in writing exempt the workroom from the requirements of this section subject to any conditions specified in the certificate.
(4) As respects any room used as a workroom at the date of the commencement of this Act, the provisions of subsections (2) and (3) shall not have effect until after the expiration of a period of two years after that date.
Effective and suitable provision shall be made for securing and maintaining, by the circulation of fresh air in each workroom, the adequate ventilation of the room.
(1) Effective provision shall be made for securing and maintaining sufficient and suitable lighting, whether natural or artificial, in every part of a factory in which persons are working or passing.
(2) All glazed windows and skylights used for the lighting of workrooms shall, as far as practicable, be kept clean on both the inner and outer surfaces and free from obstruction of light:
Provided that this subsection shall not affect the whitewashing or shading of windows and skylights for the purpose of mitigating heat or glare.
Where any process is carried on which renders the floor liable to be wet to such an extent that the wet is capable of being removed by drainage, effective means shall be provided and maintained for draining off the wet.
(1) Sufficient and suitable sanitary conveniences for the persons employed in the factory shall be provided, maintained and kept clean, and effective provision shall be made for lighting the conveniences; and, where persons of both sexes are or are intended to be employed (except in cases where the only persons employed are members of the same family dwelling there), such conveniences shall afford proper separate accommodation for persons of each sex.
(2) Regulations may be made determining for factories or for any class or description of factory what is sufficient and suitable provision for the purposes of this section.
19. Enforcement of provisions of section 18 by local authorities
The provisions of section 18, and any regulations made thereunder, shall, in such areas as the Minister may by order direct, be enforced by the local authority.
20. Duty of inspector as to sanitary defects remediable by local authority
Where an inspector finds any act, default, nuisance or other matter in relation to any sanitary convenience in a factory which appears to him to be the concern of a local authority under this Part, he shall give notice thereof in writing to the local authority, which shall proceed as soon as possible to take steps to enforce such provisions of section 18 and any regulations made thereunder as have been contravened.
PART V
Safety - General Provisions (ss 21-45)
(1) Every flywheel directly connected to any prime mover and every moving part of any prime mover, except any prime mover mentioned in subsection (3), shall be securely fenced, whether the flywheel or prime mover is situated in any engine house or not.
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