34 arrested in Hong Kong crackdown on illegal workers, including 13 ex-helpers
Three-day operation is the third targeting illegal workers in two months, involving raids at places such as restaurants and manufacturing sites
Hong Kong immigration officers have arrested 34 people, including 13 former domestic helpers who overstayed their visas, during an operation to crack down on illegal labour.
The three-day operation was among a series of citywide crackdowns by the Immigration Department on illegal workers over the past week. The collective effort has resulted in the arrests of 33 suspected illegal workers, 10 alleged employers and two overstayers in total.
The department said on Friday that officers conducted the operation from Tuesday to Thursday, raiding multiple locations across the city, including restaurants and food manufacturing plants.
Officers arrested 34 people, including 24 illegal workers and eight others suspected of employing such workers.
A man and 23 women, aged 22 to 52, were arrested for allegedly working illegally. Thirteen were former domestic helpers who had overstayed their visas, 10 held recognisance forms, which prohibited them from taking any employment in the city, and the other one was a mainland Chinese visitor who had overstayed a visa.
Most of those arrested had jobs such as dishwashers, cleaners and kitchen workers, with the longest stint lasting nearly a year. They earned daily wages of HK$300 (US$38.50) to HK$500.