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be sharply opposed to changes in trade union legislation which would appear to facilitate such activities in future. To make the registration of trade unions voluntary would undoubtedly appear to have this effect. Thus, while it was accepted that registered trade unicas ought to have adequate immunities to enable them to carry out their genuine functions, it would not in Hong Kong be considered appropriate that persons, or unregistered temporary combinations of persons, should by express provision of law enjoy indefinitely the same immunities. The deleted provisions for the exemption of temporary trade unions were an attempt to compromise on this issue. Novortheless, even under the existing law, no persons, or temporary and unregistered combinations of persons, engaged in peaceful picketing, acting reasonably and lawfully in pursuance of their trade dispute, otherwise than in the matter of registration, had ever been prosecuted in Hong Kong, and it was presumed that in practice this situation would continue. In this connexion it is perhaps worth noting that Citrine, on the Law of Trade Unions, expresses the opinion that peaceful picketing would be lawful at common law even without an express provision of statute law.
3.
Seasonal and Casual Workers
Points made by TUC
The effect of the proposed amendment would be to deny unions the right to refuse membership to seasonal and casual workers whom they did not want and could not service. Workers should not be barred from membership by law but unions must have the right to act arbitrarily in deciding, in terms of their rules and constitution, who would be acceptable as members. A possible remedy was to use the words "nothing in this Ordinance shall prevent a person from becoming a member of a trade union on the ground that he is casually or seasonally engaged
Points made by Officials
"
This amendment was inserted following a query by the ILO's Committee of Experts as to the possible effect of restricting membership and office to persons "habitually engaged or employed" etc. It was intended only to ensure that casual and seasonal workers were not barred by law from becoming members of trade unions and even so it was considered that the amendment would have little foreseeable practical effect of any consequence to either casual or seasonal workers or to trade unions.
4. Picketing
Points made by TUC
The restriction on picketing a worker's home was not sensible. An employer could get at a person in his home and persuade him to come to work but unions were not to be allowed to picket private houses. If workers were taken to work in
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