XN000022-1996-05-17 — Page 5

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The Government also proposes to legislate against the assignment of hazardous work to a pregnant employee upon her production of a medical certificate on her unfitness to undertake such work.

Any employer who fails to accede to the employee's request without reasonable excuse is liable to a maximum fine of $50,000.

Any change in the employee's earnings as a result of her transfer from hazardous work should not affect the basis for the calculation of maternity leave pay and penal damages if she is wrongfully dismissed.

With the proposed amendments, employees will no longer be required to specify the expected dates of confinement and commencement of leave when they give maternity leave notice to their employers.

This will address to the practical difficulties in providing such dates on the part of a pregnant employee.

Outlining the Government's proposal to improve the long service payment scheme, Mr Cheung said the scheme was introduced in 1986 to provide financial protection for elderly and long-serving employees who were dismissed through no fault of their own.

"Although all employees with a minimum of five years' continuous service will be entitled to long service payment (LSP), the amount payable to employees who have less than 10 years' service will be reduced according to their age in relation to their length of service.

"This prescribed scheme of percentage reduction in the amount of LSP was drawn up on the ground that younger employees would, upon dismissal, encounter less difficulty in obtaining alternative employment.

"This has, however, been perceived as a form of discrimination against younger employees.

"We propose to remove this provision by two phases. First, the percentage reduction for those younger employees who have seven years' service or more will be removed with immediate effect. A year later, those with less than seven years service will have the reduction removed.

"With this progressive improvement, the additional cost implications on employers can be staggered over a period of one year," Mr Cheung said.