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EMPLOYMENT
department is organised into seven divisions-administration, development, employ- ment, industrial health, industrial training, industry, and labour relations.
The introduction on August 1 of the Labour Relations Ordinance was a milestone in the annals of labour relations in Hong Kong. The ordinance aims at improving labour-management relations and facilitating the settlement of trade disputes by providing for, where necessary, special conciliation, voluntary arbitration, investiga- tion by a board of inquiry, and a maximum cooling-off period of 60 days. This cooling- off measure is confined to situations where industrial action has begun or is likely to begin; where the local economy, the livelihood, safety or health of a substantial number of Hong Kong's people or its internal security might be seriously jeopardised; and where the taking of this measure is conducive to settlement by peaceful means. The section of the ordinance covering the cooling-off period will only come into operation by order of the Governor in Council.
During the year, the labour relations service dealt with 6,585 labour problems, most of which were of a grievance nature involving individuals in claims for wages in arrears, severance payment, wages in lieu of notice, and holiday pay. There were 17 work stoppages and the number of working days lost in these disputes was 17,600, compared with 10,708 in 19 work stoppages in 1974.
The Labour Tribunal, which is part of the Judiciary, has functioned with success since its inception in March 1973. The tribunal complements the labour relations service and in no way supersedes the existing conciliation services of the Labour Department.
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During 1975 the tribunal dealt with 1,987 cases involving employees as claimants and a further 40 cases in which the claims were initiated by employers. More than $3 million was awarded by presiding officers. Of the cases dealt with by the tribunal, 88.6 per cent were referred from the labour relations service of the Labour Department after unsuccessful conciliation attempts.
By the end of the year, the Labour Department had record of 54 formal joint consultative committees set up in 24 establishments, compared with 86 committees in 41 establishments in the previous year. The drop in numbers was due mainly to a re-calculation based on stricter criteria than those originally used. In addition, 62 firms are recorded as having some form of informal consultation. Most are working smoothly and achieving the object of bringing management and employees together to improve relationships and to allow each to benefit from the experience of the other.
Similar committees established in certain government departments have discussed a wide range of administrative, welfare and organisational problems. A total of 85 special visits were made during the year to employers who have shown positive interest in introducing joint consultation.
Safety
The factory inspectorate of the department's industry division is responsible, under the Factories and Industrial Undertakings Ordinance and its subsidiary legisla- tion, for the safety and health of workers in factories, building and engineering