TNAG-0876-FCO40-1086-Development-of-social-welfare-policy-in-Hong-Kong-1979 — Page 25

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CHAPTER 4

FINANCIAL AND

CONCHIC INPLICATIONS

OF 'CALING GROUP'S RUCONLENDATIONS

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4.1

The Lorking Croup then proceeded to assess the financial and economic implications if the Government should accept its recommendations in Chapter 3.

4pp. 11

A. 12

App. 13

4.2

Based on ir formation on births in 1977 and on information obtained fro: te labour force urvey conducted in Septe ber 1978

and using various assumptions, the Working Group estinates that:

(a) the nu bar of working wonen earning not more

than $3,500 per month who world have given. birth to their first or second child in 1978

ras about 32,000 (breakdown by industry at ppendix 11) which represents 1.6 of the

labour force and 4.5 of the female labour

force;

(b) the amount of working time that would have

been foregone in 1978 as a result of taking

10 reeks haternity leave by those involved,

expressed as a percentage of total working

time of all employees on a 52 weeks basis, was 0.36,; or 1.03, of total working time of female employees (breakdown by industry at Appendix 12);

(c) the total cort in 1978 of the proposals in

respect of maternity pay entitlement, as

recorriended by the Working Group, for working

omen earning not more than $3,500 per month

would have been about 7 million or 0.19 of

the annual wage bill of all employees, or 0.6%

of the annual vage bill of the female employees (breakdown by industry at Appendix 13); clearly

some of this cost was actually incurred by

certain employers but the Working Group did not

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