XN000022-1986-02-14 — Page 15

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 1986

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ONLY THREE WORK STOPPAGES LAST YEAR

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AN ALL-TIME-LOW RECORD OF ONLY THREE WORK STOPPAGES OCCURRED LAST YEAR, RESULTING IN A LOSS OF 1 160 WORKING DAYS, A SENIOR LABOUR DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL SAID TODAY (FRIDAY).

+THIS FIGURE IS VERY LOW BY INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS AND A POSITIVE INDICATOR OF GOOD LABOUR RELATIONS IN GENERAL IN HONG KONG, SAID MR CHOW TUNG-SHAN, CHIEF LABOUR OFFICER WHO HEADS THE LABOUR RELATIONS DIVISION.

IT ALSO REFLECTED +A TREMENDOUS IMPROVEMENT OVER 1984, WHEN 11 WORK STOPPAGES CAUSED THE LOSS OF MORE THAN 3 000 WORKING DAYS.+

REVIEWING THE WORK OF HIS DIVISION DURING LAST YEAR, HE SAID THE LABOUR RELATIONS SERVICE (LRS) HANDLED 155 TRADE DISPUTES IN 1985.

EIGHTY-ONE OF THESE WERE INSOLVENCY CASES, OF WHICH 66 HAD TO BE PASSED TO THE LEGAL AID DEPARTMENT FOR WINDING UP PROCEEDINGS AND 15 REFERRED TO THE LABOUR TRIBUNAL.

OF THE REMAINING 74 CASES, 69 WERE SETTLED THROUGH CONCILIATION BY LABOUR OFFICERS AND FIVE CASES BETWEEN THE PARTIES.

THE LRS ALSO PROVIDED CONCILIATION SERVICE FOR 17 928 CLAIMS IN CONNECTION WITH PROVISIONS OF THE EMPLOYMENT ORDINANCE ON TERMS OF CONTRACTS OF EMPLOYMENT.

OF THESE, 13 015 OR 72.6 PER CENT WERE SETTLED BY CONCILIATION AT THE LABOUR DEPARTMENT AND MOST OF THE REMAINDER WERE REFERRED TO THE LABOUR TRIBUNAL FOR JUDICIAL DECISION.

OVER 21 000 WORKERS RECEIVED SOME $57 MILLION FROM THE IR EMPLOYERS LAST YEAR, AFTER THEIR LABOUR-MANAGEMENT PROBLEMS HAD BEEN SETTLED THROUGH THE EFFORTS OF THE LRS.

DURING THE YEAR, THE LRS HANDLED 409 679 ENQUIRIES AND CONSULTATIONS, COMPARED WITH 391 677 CASES IN 1984, MOST OF THESE CONCERNED PROVISIONS IN THE EMPLOYMENT ORDINANCE, PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT PRACTICES AND OTHER MATTERS CONCERNING LABOUR RELATIONS.

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