XN000022-1997-02-19 — Page 37

(b)

- 21.

of the measures will be taken to prevent employers from hiring children under the age of 13?

Reply:

Mr President,

According to regulation 4(1)(a) of the Employment of Children Regulations (the Regulations) under the Employment Ordinance, no person shall employ a child who is under the age of 13 in any establishment or a child who is under 15 in any industrial undertaking. However, non-industrial establishments, which include property agencies, may employ children aged 13 or 14, provided that they comply with a number of conditions stipulated under the Regulations. These conditions include the requirements that the child must have completed Form 3 secondary education (as certified by his parents), or that the child has a valid School Attendance Certificate from his parents and that his employment is consented in writing by his parents.

My reply to the specific parts of the question is as follows:

(a)

(b)

It is in contravention of regulation 4(1)(a) of the Regulations for any real estate agent to employ children under the age of 13 for distribution of promotional materials. Any person who contravenes this regulation commits an offence and is liable to a maximum fine of $50,000. In 1996, no prosecution was taken against any property agent for employing a child under the age of 13 for distributing publicity materials.

To prevent employers from employing children under the age of 13, the Government has been taking a series of enforcement, education and publicity measures.

The Labour Department has been enforcing the Regulations vigorously through conducting site inspections and paying visits to employers. In 1996, the Labour Department conducted 149,769 inspections, of which 33,892 were made to establishments in the non-industrial sector. Prosecutions were taken against illegal employment of children resulting in 16 convictions. Visits to targeted employers such as real estate agents have also been conducted recently.