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7.
Two other Factories and Industrial Undertakings Regulations became
operative in 1970. One specifies the minimum requirements regarding the
number of trained First Aid operatives and amount of first aid equipment;
the other lays down detailed provisions relating to all aspects of safety in
quarries.
A new regulation permitting night work for women over 18 years of age in
industrial establishments also came into force in 1970.
Social Security
8.
An inter-departmental working party set up in February 1966 to consider
certain aspects of social security submitted its report to the
Legislative Council in April 1968. Proposals included social insurance
schemes for sickness and unemployment benefit, medical care, old age and
survivors benefit, employment injury benefit, cash maternity benefit,
invalidity benefit, the provision of practical assistance for widows and a
redundancy fund. In response to the working party's recommendations, the
Government is to revise the public assistance scheme currently operated by
the Social Welfare Department.
The Director of Social Welfare is G.T. Rowe.
Industrial Relations
9. Because of the unusual geo-political position of Hong Kong, the
Trade Union Movement has been unable to enter into collective bargaining
processes as understood in this country.
Most wages are fixed by individual verbal agreement with employers and wage
levels are affected to a greater extent by the supply and demand of labour
than by systematic collective negotiations on the basis of productivity.
Consequently, uniform wage structures exist only in a limited number of trades
such as transport, ship-building, building construction and public utilities.
Agreements on conditions of employment are sometimes negotiated as a direct
result of a settlement of a dispute with the assistance of the Labour Department.
3.