TNAG-0212-FCO40-248-Departmental-briefs-on-Hong-Kong-1970 — Page 57

NOTHING TO BE WRITTEN IN THIS MARGIN

W(B)L 51-7406

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bring

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Juanda up

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date.

About 10% of total Government expenditure

in the current financial year is allocated

to medical services which includes hospitals,

out-patient clinics, school health services

Labour situation

More than

and a district midwifery service. More

E 11⁄2 million people are employed in Hong Kong

and of these 600,000 are engaged in the

industris manufacturing centres, Wage rates are high

by Asian standards and in general conditions

of work in Hong Kong are second only to those

in Japan among Asian countries. Over the

last decade the real wages of workers in the

insustores

manufacturing-eentres have risen by an

average of 5.7% p.a.

A wide ranging legislative programme

of some 30 items including new provisions

in conciliation, joint consultation and

welfare, redundancy and holidays were

approved by the Executive Council in January

1968. Two major Bills in this programme which

have now been enacted are the Workmens

Compensation Amendment Ordinance and the

Employment Act providing protection for

wages and making provision for contracts

of service. The third major Bill is now

being drafted to provide machinery for the

settlement of trade disputes and also a

Bill to establish Labour Courts is under

consideration. The permitted hours of work

for women and young persons are being

reduced progressively from 60 to 48 hours a

week.

A team of factory inspectors has been

provided by the British Government to

recommend improvements in the registration

and inspection of factories and labou

conditions.