Question No. 2
Reply by the Hon. J.N. Henderson, OBE, JP, Secretary for Education and Manpower, to a question by the Hon. YEUNG Po-kwan in Legislative Council on 20 November 1985
Question :
In view of recent repeated occurences of industrial accidents involving workmen falling at height in various places in the territory, will Government inform this Council what measures will be adopted to prevent similar accidents?
Sir,
While we do not have statistics of falls from
a height as distinct from the much larger category of
falls of persons under all circumstances, we do know
that fatal cases are almost entirely the result of
falls from a height and that around three-quarters of
such cases occur in the construction industry. The
total number of fatalities is declining from 52 in
1981 to 24 in 1984 and to 19 so far this year.
·
The number of such accidents has been and
remains a major priority of the Labour Department.
Cases are very carefully investigated and analysed
with a view to identifying causes and preventive
measures required.
The Department's strategy in this area is
composed of three broad elements: legal enforcement,
education and publicity. As regards the legal