TNAG-0452-FCO40-517-Legislation-for-employment-of-workers-in-Hong-Kong-1974 — Page 230

Explanatory Memorandum.

This Bill amends the Employment Ordinance to

provide for severance payments for employees who, in

specified circumstances, are dismissed by reason of

redundancy or are laid off.

Clause 3 adds a nev Part IIIA, consisting of

sections 20B to 20R, to the principal Ordinance.

Section 20C provides that, subject to other

provisions in the new Part IIIA, an employee who, having

been employed for a minimum of 24 months, is either

dismissed by reason of redundancy or is laid off is entitled

to a severance payment. Domestic servants are given the

same rights as other employees by treating the maintenance

of a household as if it were the carrying on of a business.

Section 20D contains exclusions from the right

to a severance payment. The excluded cases are where

(a) the employee's contract is terminated for cause

under section 8;

(b) the employer offers to renew the employee's

contract or to re-engage him under a new contract

on terms identical or similar to his existing

contract and the employee unreasonably refuses

that offer; or

(c) the employee ceases work before the expiration

of notice given to him under section 5 without the

employer's consent or a payment in lieu of notice.

Section 20E determines what is meant by "dismissal"

by an employer for the purposes of liability to make a

severance payment and section 20F prescribes what is meant

by "lay-off".