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Lo Hoi-ying

Hong Kong authorities have identified another suspected case of an employer dismissing local workers and importing staff, after earlier this month sanctioning a firm that violated labour rules.
Secretary for Labour and Welfare Chris Sun Yuk-han said on Saturday that findings would be announced as soon as an investigation into the case had been completed.
“Our initial review shows significant evidence that the employer hired non-local labour but fired a local worker,” he said in a televised interview.
“If the case is confirmed, the government will implement administrative sanctions with zero tolerance.”
Sanctions include the immediate suspension of the employer’s imported labour applications and a one-year ban on applying to the scheme.

In early August, the Labour Department banned a pest control and cleaning company, Amala Limited, from importing workers for a year for violating local recruitment rules.
It was the first time a business had been penalised for failing to follow the rules of the Enhanced Supplementary Labour Scheme since it was revised two years ago.
Last month, Sun said authorities had discovered preliminary evidence in two other cases of companies dismissing local employees after bringing in staff from outside the city.
Under the imported labour scheme, employers must first conduct a four-week local recruitment exercise to try to fill vacancies.
Authorities tightened this requirement for junior chef and waiting staff positions, which Sun said the industry was “most concerned about.”
Catering unions have called on the government to implement restrictions on the scheme as workers claimed that the influx of non-local employees had negatively affected their livelihoods.
Starting next month, employers applying to import labour for these two positions must not only conduct a four-week local recruitment exercise for each vacancy but also recruit in person at Labour Department job centres, where residents can be interviewed on the spot.
“If the job location and description fit, and the employer is present, we hope our workers can be matched quickly, so the employer need not hire foreign labour,” Sun said.
In response to recent media reports that the illegal labour situation was worsening across various industries, Sun warned employers not to risk violating the law.
“Illegal labour is against the law. As employers, they should keep a clear head and know that hiring illegal labour is a criminal offence,” he said.
“Law enforcement agencies and the Labour Department will fully crack down on illegal labour.”
Hong Kong and mainland Chinese law enforcement agencies arrested 42 people on Friday in a crackdown on a cross-border people-smuggling syndicate that allegedly sold workers forged identity cards, housed them in subdivided flats and placed them in low-paid jobs.
Local police recently arrested at least eight people for their alleged involvement in a syndicate recruiting mainland drivers to provide ride-hailing services in the city illegally.
Earlier this month, police searched more than 130 premises in an operation against illegal employment, arresting 14 workers and five bosses, with most cases linked to the catering sector.
Separately, Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu defended the city’s talent scheme, saying it had achieved its original purpose, created positive value and brought many benefits to Hong Kong.
Labour authorities last week revealed that only 54 per cent of the 14,000 people accepted in the first round of the Top Talent Pass Scheme had applied for a visa extension, while the median monthly salary of those who renewed was around HK$40,000 (US$5,120).
Official data shows that a third of these visa holders do not live in Hong Kong long-term, which Lee said was a “normal pattern” for an international city.
“Talented individuals working in New York City do not necessarily live in the city itself, but rather settle in surrounding cities,” he said, addressing the press after a consultation exercise for his policy address next month.
Lee said some visa-holders lived in Shenzhen or other Greater Bay Area cities, which are still within an hour of Hong Kong and also pay taxes.
He emphasised that the scheme had to continue. “Otherwise, if they go to our competitors, we will lose one talent and the other side gains one,” he said.


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1 more Hong Kong firm suspected to have fired locals after importing workers

The illegal labour situation is reportedly worsening across various industries in Hong Kong. Photo: Jonathan Wong

Chris Sun says authorities have significant evidence in the case. Photo: Edmond So

Hong Kong pest control firm banned from importing workers over rejecting local

The Labour Department has said it imposed an “administrative sanction” on Amala Limited and will not process its applications for importing workers for one year. Photo: SCMP

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Police have said they are cracking down on syndicates running illegal ride-hailing operations. Photo: Handout

Police say they believe the syndicate has a mainland-based partner responsible for recruiting drivers. Photo: Handout

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Society

Labour chief Chris Sun says government will implement administrative sanctions with zero tolerance if case is confirmed after probe


Labour chief Chris Sun says government will implement administrative sanctions with zero tolerance if case is confirmed after probe.


1 more Hong Kong firm suspected to have fired locals after importing workers

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Labour chief Chris Sun says government will implement administrative sanctions with zero tolerance if case is confirmed after probe

Labour chief Chris Sun says government will implement administrative sanctions with zero tolerance if case is confirmed after probe