Singapore rejects national psychological safety benchmarks, pushes holistic workplace mental health approach

Singapore will not develop national-level indicators or benchmarks specifically for workplace psychological safety for now, with the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) instead taking a broader approach to assessing workplace mental health.

In a parliamentary reply on 5 August, Acting Minister for Manpower Jasmin Lau said MOM recognises the role of psychological safety in creating workplaces where employees feel comfortable raising their ideas and views.

However, she noted that psychological safety is only one of several factors influencing workplace mental well-being. Other factors include job demands, relationships with colleagues and support from supervisors.

Rather than establishing national benchmarks for psychological safety, MOM is encouraging employers to assess and address mental well-being across their workplaces more broadly.

One of the tools available to employers is iWorkHealth, an online psychosocial health assessment tool developed by MOM to help organisations identify common workplace stressors and psychosocial risks.

Employers that participate receive an aggregated and anonymised report highlighting key work stressors and risks affecting their workforce, including psychological safety within the organisation.

The reports also provide recommendations to help employers address the issues identified. These can be supplemented with other resources aimed at building a more supportive workplace culture, including the Tripartite Advisory on Mental Health and Well-being at Workplaces.

The response came in reply to a parliamentary question from MP Patrick Tay Teck Guan, who asked whether MOM had considered developing psychological safety indicators or benchmarks to complement existing workplace well-being initiatives.

MOM's position suggests that employers will have flexibility to assess psychological safety within the wider context of workplace conditions, rather than measure themselves against a single national benchmark.

The approach comes as organisations face growing pressure to address psychosocial risks at work, including excessive job demands, workplace relationships and management practices, alongside creating environments where employees feel safe to speak up.