Ban imposed after violations of local recruitment rules under the Enhanced Supplementary Labour Scheme
Three employers in Hong Kong have been banned from importing foreign labourers for two years after the Labour Department found that they violated the requirements of the Enhanced Supplementary Labour Scheme (ESLS).
The Labour Department (LD) imposed the two-year ban on Grosswell Limited, Tmomo (Tsuen Wan) Limited, as well as Pei Ho Ming Ho Roasted Meat Restaurant and its sole proprietor.
It is also terminating the previous applications that were submitted by these employers.
Local recruitment violations
These sanctions come after authorities discovered that the employers violated the local recruitment rules under the ESLS, according to the department.
Grosswell Limited imposed an additional recruitment requirement on local jobseekers without obtaining the LD's consent while it was applying for the importation of general office clerks and accounting clerks.
It also refused to employ a jobseeker who met the original requirements.
Tmomo (Tsuen Wan) Limited also refused to employ a qualified jobseeker while it was applying for the importation of stockkeepers.
Meanwhile, Pei Ho Ming Ho Roasted Meat Restaurant and its sole proprietor did not provide jobseekers with all the job vacancies that had passed the preliminary screening of the LD, causing jobseekers to decline employment offers.
This is tantamount to refusing to employ qualified jobseekers, according to the department.
"Employers applying for the importation of workers under the ESLS should strictly comply with the requirements of the ESLS, including according priority to employing suitable local workers," a spokesperson for the LD said.
The ESLS is a foreign labour importation scheme in Hong Kong that allows employers to bring in workers from overseas to fill vacancies that cannot be filled by local jobseekers.
"The ESLS stipulates that if an employer violates labour or immigration laws, the requirements of the ESLS, or the Standard Employment Contract, the LD will impose an administrative sanction on the employer, including withdrawal of approvals for the importation of workers previously granted and refusal to process any subsequent applications submitted by the employer," the LD spokesperson said.
More than 37,000 foreign workers have been recruited to work in Hong Kong since September 2023 under the ESLS, according to the latest government data. Labour Secretary Chris Sun previously said measures are in place to ensure that imported workers are not replacing the financial hub's local labour force.
