Letters | Be fair to Hong Kong’s migrant domestic workers and enforce contract rules

Readers discuss the rights of migrant domestic workers, the deaths of two men cleaning a sewer, and the cost of additional floors in the Legislative Council complex

Hong Kong society

Letters

Published: 11:30am, 3 May 2024

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Mission For Migrant Workers welcomes your editorial, “Hong Kong’s helpers need support not more restrictions” (April 24), which underscored what we have been pointing out all along: migrant domestic workers are already vulnerable, and “job-hopping” – or rather, changing jobs – puts them in an even more precarious situation.

In our 2022 service report, we noted that there was widespread job loss that year among migrant domestic workers in Hong Kong. One in three lost their jobs, with many Hong Kong employers leaving the city for good and thus terminating their contracts with their workers. There was a 597 per cent increase in claimed entitlements compared to the previous year.

To claim these entitlements, there are a few requirements, one of which is that it should be the employer who terminates the contract. So the tendency is for workers to stick with their employers, and not “job-hop”.

We understand that when employees resign from a workplace, employers may experience a certain degree of inconvenience and frustration. However, that does not justify taking away the right of an employee to change jobs. This right has never been taken away from other workers in Hong Kong and so should not be taken away from migrant domestic workers.

These workers should have the right to change employers, especially if their working and living conditions are unbearable. Unfortunately, this right cannot be fully exercised due to the rule requiring them to leave the city within two weeks of their contract being terminated, and now the accusation of “job-hopping”.

Migrant domestic workers in Hong Kong care for members of local households, while they have been forced to leave their families behind due to a lack of opportunities. It is time we implemented substantial improvements to the working and living conditions of these workers.

There is a need for a shift in understanding regarding employers and workers. While employers are being charged thousands of dollars by agencies for workers they may only know through their CVs and/or an interview, the workers are also being charged by agencies, and are entering a contract with someone they barely know. Workers too have been paying large sums of money and taking the same risks as employers. We also ask, what is the sending government’s accountability in this?

It is our collective responsibility to ensure this vital community is well and fairly treated. Wouldn’t it be better if Hong Kong strictly implemented the rules and regulations in the contract?

Johannie Tong, community relations officer, Mission For Migrant Workers

Lessons must be learned after sewer deaths

The fatal accident last week involving workers cleaning drainage pipes was extremely unfortunate. Development minister Bernadette Linn Hon-ho has said that workers are not required to enter sewers to clean the pipes. There have been calls for tighter supervision of contractors and more training for workers.

Much of the focus is on contractors, subcontractors and their employees but what about the owner of the sewage pipes? Your editorial, “Work harder to make Hong Kong sites safety a priority” (April 27), rightly points out that “the government and relevant stakeholders must work harder to prevent such fatalities and injuries from occurring”. Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu also said that everyone has a responsibility to ensure industrial safety.

Given that the government itself is a major stakeholder, the ball is in its court. A similar incident took place at a manhole in the area in 2006, resulting in the death of two workers. What lessons from this loss of life have been learned? Did anyone look into why there was so much toxic gas in the manhole? Could there have been an illegal drainage connection involved?

After repeated road accidents at a spot, the police and Transport Department carry out an investigation that encompasses the condition of the road, including road design, traffic light and sign placement, and if visibility is being impeded by trees. Any deficiency is quickly rectified.

I hope that the relevant government departments will carry out a thorough investigation of this unfortunate incident.

C.K. Lau, North Point

Keep track of expenditure on legislators

Frequently we are reminded that the Hong Kong government’s coffers have been suffering heavy losses.

It was recently reported that 20 Legislative Council members will soon occupy four new floors at the Legislative Council complex. The complex has a construction floor area of 45,000 sq m and now needs to accomodate 90 legislators.

Who would not remember the former Central Government Offices at Government Hill? They looked rather modest when compared to the current Legco complex.

It would be very interesting to learn how much our city’s administration costs today, compared with the time when “perks-spoiled” mostly British officers administered us. I’m confident that after 1997 there was an opportunity for big savings. I hope our government curtails expenses not only in areas which hit the man in the street, but when it comes to legislators as well.

Roland Guettler, Lai Chi Kok