TNAG-0991-FCO40-1210-Policy-on-salaries-and-pensions-for-civil-service-in-Hong-Ko-1980 — Page 234

3023

布政司署

港下亞厘道

* OUR Ref.: SS L/M 131/79

* YOUR Ref.:

Richan

Dear

Х

2.

27

HICK 43011

GOVERNMENT SECRETARIAT

LOWER ALBERT ROAD

HONG KONG

24 March 1980

Willy ihm m J 28.3.

See

36

Hay Wress.

hve

Kong

RECEIVED IN REGISTRY NO. 51

14 APR 1980

DESK OFFICER

REGISTRY

oportion Hpi

Action

see

now owe Mr. Parry further lexy Pl. dgt

INDEX 187 Workers' General Union

Anwitly. Au 14 To

This the report promised in our telegram

437 in response to Mr. Parry's PQs.

a

(42

92

28/3

The Union was formally registered on 8 February 1980 as a trade union under the Trade Unions Ordinance (Cap.332), with a declared membership of about 240 social workers (including menial workers) in voluntary agencies engaged in the provision of social welfare services in Hong Kong. Before its formal establishment as a trade union, the Union sent four letters addressed to the Governor and the Chief Secretary between October 1979 and February 1980, mainly criticising the Government for not including the voluntary sector staff in the Welfare Class Review (Appendix) of the Social Welfare Department (SWD) during 1977 and 1978; demanding that the Government apply the new organisational structures and salary scales in SWD to all social workers in voluntary agencies subvented by the Government with retrospective effect from 1 April 1979; and demanding representation on the Steering Committee (see paragraph 2(d) below).

3.

(a)

I replied in January and March 1980 that :

Voluntary agencies are not organised on the same lines as SWD, nor do they perform the same functions. The public interest would not have been served in attempting a combined review of Government and voluntary agency staff having regard to these differences. Indeed, no such combined review would have been practicable in view of the number of agencies and staff involved (about 2,700 in the voluntary sector) and the great diversity in the services provided. (This explanation has been accepted by the voluntary sector generally). Furthermore, it would be imprudent to seek to impose a Government department structure on the voluntary sector without careful consideration of all the relevant factors.

R.D. Clift, Esq.,

Hong Kong & General Dept.,

Foreign & Commonwealth Office,

London SW1A 2AH,

U.K.

/(b)