'Inappropriate' to legislate work suspension, secretary says
Hong Kong Labour Secretary Chris Sun said it is "inappropriate" to legislate work suspension under adverse weather conditions in the wake of calls asking the government to do so.
Sun said in the Legislative Council on Thursday that legislating work suspensions would have an impact on closely linked job categories or supply chain relationships.
"Legislating for work suspension arrangements under adverse weather or 'extreme conditions' would pose adverse impact on maintaining the effective functioning of the society and the early resumption of normalcy, and would undermine the flexibility in work arrangements for both employers and employees," he said.
"It is hence inappropriate to take the legislative approach."
He cited as an example the case of suspending work for organisations providing meals, which could severely impact operations of hospitals or residential care homes that are receiving the food.
"Different industries and job categories have interrelated or supply chain relationships that are closely linked," Sun said.
"It is infeasible to determine whether a service is an emergency service solely based on the general nature of an individual industry or job category."
Sun faced questions after Typhoon Ragasa devastated Hong Kong on Wednesday. Authorities in the financial hub raised the No. 8 typhoon warning signal, urging most businesses to temporarily shut down.
Designated staff at work
Hong Kong's Labour Department has a "Code of Practice in Times of Adverse Weather and Extreme Conditions," which outlines practical guidelines for employers in cases of tropical cyclones and rainstorm warnings.
The code also covers guidelines in making proper arrangements for "designated staff" who are required to report for duty in times of adverse weather or extreme conditions.
However, Sun said it is "operationally impracticable to adopt a 'one-size-fits-all' approach in specifying which job categories and the type of 'designated staff' should return to work during adverse weather."
"Owing to the diverse work nature and modes of operation of job categories across various industries and hence the differences in organisations' manpower deployment, whether employees need to return to their workplaces or remain on standby and duty in other ways depends on the actual circumstances," he said.
"Many emergency services and services closely related to livelihood need to maintain operation and make flexible adjustments during adverse weather or 'extreme conditions.'"
