EMPLOYMENT
International Labour Standards
A number of international instruments set out labour standards. Among them are the International Labour Conventions of the International Labour Organisation. These con- ventions set out the standards on matters relating to labour administration, employment rights, conditions of work, industrial safety and occupational health, labour relations and social security. The Commissioner for Labour ensures that Hong Kong's obligations under these conventions are observed.
The International Labour Conventions have significant influence on the formulation of labour legislation in the territory. At the end of 1994, Hong Kong applied 49 conventions, which compared favourably with most members of the International Labour Organisation in the region.
Trade Unions
Trade unions must be registered under the Trade Unions Ordinance, which is administered by the Registrar of Trade Unions. Once registered, a trade union becomes a corporate body and enjoys immunity from certain civil suits.
During the year, 25 new unions were registered. At the year's end, there were 548 unions, comprising 506 employees' unions, 26 employers' associations and 16 mixed organisations of employees and employers. Their total memberships were about 545 800, 2 500 and 14 600,-respectively.
The majority of employees' unions are affiliated to one of the five major labour organisa- tions registered under the Societies Ordinance. These are the Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions (91 affiliated unions with about 200 300 members); the Hong Kong and Kowloon Trades Union Council (65 affiliated unions with about 30 600 members); the Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions (28 affiliated unions with about 78 500 members); the Joint Organisation of Unions - Hong Kong (16 affiliated unions with about 9 000 members); and the Federation of Hong Kong and Kowloon Labour Unions (23 affiliated unions with about 19 400 members). The remaining 283 employees' unions have a total membership of about 208 000.
Labour Relations
In 1994, the Labour Relations Division of the Labour Department conciliated in 166 trade disputes (each involving 21 or more workers) which involved three work stoppages and a loss of 355 working days. The division also dealt with 20 995 claims for wages and other employment-related payments.
The Labour Relations Ordinance provides the machinery for special conciliation, voluntary arbitration and boards of inquiry to settle trade disputes which cannot be resolved through ordinary conciliation.
The division endeavours to promote harmonious labour-management relations in the private sector through promotional visits and talks to individual establishments, employers' associations and employees' trade unions; organising trade union gatherings, training courses, workshops, seminars and exhibitions; and publishing newsletters, information leaflets and pamphlets on a wide range of labour matters. Four territory-wide seminars and 12 workshops on the Employment Ordinance were organised in 1994, attracting some 700 participants.
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