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After the Sex Discrimination Ordinance (SDO) and the Disability Discrimination Ordinance, this is the third anti-discrimination Bill. As with the two Ordinances, our objective is to draw up a piece of legislation which best serves the needs of Hong Kong and at the same time, is readily acceptable by the public.
"Family status" is defined, under Clause 2 of the Bill, as the status of having the responsibility for the care of an immediate family member. An immediate family member must be related to the person concerned by blood, marriage, adoption or affinity. The proposed definition, therefore, includes relationship between husband and wife, parent and child as well as near relatives. Co-habitation, however, would fall outside the definition. This takes into account of the strong public objection received, during the public consultation, to giving legal recognition to de facto spouse relationship.
By virtue of its Clause 5, the Bill renders it unlawful to discriminate against any person, on the ground of his or her family status, in specified areas of activity similar to those covered by the SDO. These areas include employment, education, the provision of goods and services, as well as the disposal and management of premises.
To administer the proposed legislation, we propose in Clause 44 of the Bill to extend the remit of the Equal Opportunities Commission to handle complaints of discrimination on the ground of family status and to promote equal opportunities for persons with family status. On the judicial mechanism, the court may exercise similar powers as provided for under the SDO. Like the SDO, by virtue of Clause 54 of the Bill, civil claims for damages can be filed through district court proceedings. We believe that the measures proposed in the Bill would provide an efficient and accessible avenue of redress for the aggrieved.
We are conscious that for any anti-discrimination legislation to be acceptable to the community, we have to strike a balance between equality for all on the one hand and the practical needs of the society on the other. Therefore, like the SDO, we have provided for exceptions in respect of certain matters which might otherwise be rendered unlawful by the Bill. In relation to employment matters, employers would be allowed to afford special benefits to suit the special needs of employees with a particular family status. By virtue of this exception provided for under Clause 36 of the Bill, an employer is allowed to provide, for example, an education allowance for married employees with children only.
In order to give small employers time to familiarise with the legislation and if necessary, to adapt their existing practices to comply with the legislation, Clause 8 of the Bill also provides for a three-year grace period for business establishments with not more than five employees.