OCCUPATIONS, WAGES AND LABOUR ORGANIZATION
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activities had their culmination on 1st March when a demonstra- tion led to an employee of the Dockyard being prevented from leaving his office. Police reinforcements had to be sent to the Yard and remained there until the demonstrators dispersed. Following this demonstration, the leaders of the agitation were warned that such incidents threatened public order; no further major incidents took place during the year. On 3rd June the Dockyard authorities replied to the representations they had received by announcing that, although severance pay could not be granted nor any guarantee of alternative employment before discharge be given, the scale of retiring gratuities had been reconsidered and that these would now be calculated at a rate of two weeks' pay for each year of service up to 10 years, three weeks' pay for every year of service from the 11th to the 20th, and four weeks' pay for every year of service over 20. These terms, while not considered satisfactory by either right- or left-wing unions, had, in conjunc- tion with the success of the Employment Liaison Office (see below) in finding fresh employment for the workers discharged, a con- siderable affect in lessening tension in the second half of the year.
At the time of the announcement of the closure, an assurance was given by the Dockyard authorities and the Hong Kong Government that every endeavour would be made to find other work for the 4,600 employees concerned, and for this purpose the Commissioner of Labour set up an Employment Advisory Committee which recommended the establishment of an Employ- ment Liaison Office in the Labour Department and in H.M. Dockyard. All the Dockyard employees were registered and information to facilitate selection of suitable workers was cir- culated to potential employers. During the year the total run-down was 2,233 workers and of these, apart from 59 workers who were discharged or retired on grounds other than redundancy, 1,917 or 86% were known to have found other employment, the great majority through the efforts of the Employment Liaison Office. Help was also given by the Employment Liaison Office to Dockyard workers laid off in 1957 before the closure announce- ment, as well as to redundant civilian employees of the War Department and Royal Air Force. During the year 855 such workers were found employment through the office.