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A few other migrant workers who spoke to TODAY recently - mostly under anonymity due to fear of reprisals - lamented how their pleas to employers were met with indifference at best or on many occasions, threats of deportation.

“I cannot open (my) mouth … boss will say: ‘This one, I will send back already,’” said one worker from India who worked as a lorry driver in the construction industry for five years, before recently moving to a different industry. He added that riding on the back of lorries “is not just dangerous, it’s very, very dangerous”.

The long-running debate on the issue of safer transportation for foreign workers was reignited recently, following two such accidents and a parliamentary adjournment motion...

Two petitions were also raised by members of the public and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in July, followed by a joint response on Aug 1 by 25 business and trade associations.

... the statement cautioned against any form of immediate legislation, warning people to brace themselves for traffic jams, higher costs and “a change in social compact”...

The latest round of measures to address these safety risks were implemented in January, in the form of assigned safety buddies and mandatory rest periods for lorry drivers, while the installation of speed limiters on all lorries will be rolled out at a later date.

Migrant worker groups who spoke to TODAY previously were measured in their support of the new initiatives. They highlighted the need for monitoring and enforcement in implementation - notwithstanding the crucial fact that the measures did not address the “inherent” safety risks of transporting workers on the back of lorries...