Southeast Asia · Case study

Port of Tanjung Pelepas, Workforce Health within HSE Management

Johor, Malaysia2023 to present

The Port of Tanjung Pelepas (PTP) is a container port in Johor, Malaysia. It is a joint venture between MMC Corporation Berhad (70%) and APM Terminals (30%) (PTP, 2025). At the end of 2025 it had 6,548 employees. About 65% were permanent and 35% were temporary or contract staff (PTP, 2025). PTP states that its company is only as healthy as its workforce (PTP, n.d.). It treats worker health as part of its health, safety and environment (HSE) management rather than as a separate welfare topic.

Approach

Health in the HSE policy. PTP's HSE Policy, signed by the Chief Executive Officer in February 2024, commits the company to the prevention of injuries and illnesses and to continual improvement of HSE performance. It also commits to compliance with HSE regulations and to the active participation of all staff (PTP, 2024b).

Health on and off the job. PTP promotes a terminal-wide focus on health and safety practices among employees, on and off the job. It runs campaigns and events across the company and local communities to promote healthy lifestyle choices and raise awareness of critical health issues (PTP, n.d.).

Mental wellness baseline. In its 2024 reporting year, PTP established a baseline for employees' mental wellness through surveys and awareness activities (PTP, 2024a).

Benefits and activity. PTP offers comprehensive benefits, including health insurance and wellness programs (PTP, 2023). In 2024 it held a Sports Carnival through the year to promote teamwork and a healthy lifestyle (PTP, 2024a).

Targets and worker feedback. For 2023 to 2025, PTP set short-term targets of a 10% year-on-year reduction in significant incidents and safety risks. It also set a target of 85% in the Employee Satisfaction Index of a site-wide Safety Climate Survey (PTP, 2023). It describes a five-year safety transformation from a compliance-focused organization to a learning organization (PTP, n.d.).

Results

PTP reports that it has put in place a mental wellness baseline for employees (PTP, 2024a). It has published short-term targets for 2023 to 2025, including an 85% employee satisfaction target in its Safety Climate Survey (PTP, 2023). Outcome data against these targets were not reviewed for this case study.

Transferability

DMC ports can write health and illness prevention into their HSE policy, not only injury prevention. A mental wellness baseline survey gives a starting point for later action. Worker surveys, such as a safety climate survey with a set target, give staff a voice in HSE performance. Ports with a large share of contract staff should check that health programs reach those workers as well as permanent employees.

Sources

All information used for this case study was based on publicly available resources.