TNAG-0531-FCO40-626-Application-of-International-Labour-Convention-to-Hong-Kong-1975 — Page 298

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5.

On his second point, the intention of the Hong Kong law has

been to make sure that union officers are themselves genuine workers with the practical experience to recognise problems of concern to union members and with the personal incentive to work for their elimination. Thus the law provides that a union officer must be "habitually engaged, or employed in a trade, industry or occupation with which the union is directly concerned". An additional safeguard

to this same end is the requirement that the written consent of the Registrar is needed before one person may be an officer of more than one union.

6.

The problem is how to achieve simplification without effecting modifications which will relax the protection for union memberships still thought to be necessary by the Hong Kong "overnment.

Recommendations

7.

As action by way of legislative changes would be initiated by the Hong Kong Government, it will be necessary to consult the Governor. He might be asked in addition to any other possibilities as part of a general simplification process to consider, for example,

whether:

(a)

(b)

(c)

in respect of federations (para. 4 above), an amendment should be made to clarify the meaning of "the same trade, industry or occupation", possibly by making clear that this test will be satisfied if the members

of the component unions work for the same employer or

groups of employers. This would have resolved the difficulty affecting Public Service Unions (para. 4 above);

in respect of paid officers, the law should permit one officer in each registered trade union to be a full-time paid official by exempting him from the requirement that he must remain actually engaged in the trade, industry or occupation from which the union's membership is drawn;

the restrictive provisions of section 51 (possession of certain documents unlawful) now fulfil any useful

purpose.

18.