ENG-1985 — Page 107

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Employment

HONG KONG has a resourceful and energetic workforce of about 2.54 million - comprising 64 per cent men and 36 per cent women. This is estimated from the July-September 1985 General Household Survey which is a sample survey covering the land-based, civilian, non-institutional population in Hong Kong. They are mainly engaged in: manufacturing, 35.6 per cent; wholesale and retail trade, restaurants and hotels, 22.9 per cent; community, social and personal services, 17.5 per cent; transport, storage and communications, 8.2 per cent; construction, 7.5 per cent; and financing, insurance, real estate and business services, 5.8 per cent.

An establishment survey of Employment, Vacancies and Payroll in the manufacturing sector, held in September 1985, recorded 848 900 people engaged in 48 065 establishments. It covered working proprietors and partners, employees receiving pay, and unpaid family workers affiliated to business organisations, but excluded out-workers. Some 367 938 people - the largest portion of the manufacturing workforce were engaged in the textile and wearing apparel industries. The electrical industry and the plastics industry were the next two largest employers. Details of the distribution of manufacturing establishments, and of the number of people engaged in them, are given at Appendices 13 and 14. =

The bulk of the manufacturing workforce is concentrated in the urban areas of Hong Kong Island and Kowloon, However, industrial development in the New Territories is increasing and more than 30 per cent of the manufacturing workforce now works there.

Labour Legislation

In 1985, 14 items of labour legislation were enacted to provide for better standards of safety, health and welfare for the workforce. This brings the total number of items of labour legislation enacted in the last 10 years to 154 under the overall policy of achieving a level of legislation on safety, health and welfare broadly equivalent to Hong Kong's neighbouring countries at a similar stage of economic development. The most significant items of legislation were the Protection of Wages on Insolvency Ordinance, which provided for payment from a Protection of Wages on Insolvency Fund of arrears in wages to employees whose employers became insolvent, and the amendment to the Employment Ordinance, which provided for a long-service payment. These and other items of legislation are described in greater detail below.

As a dependent territory of the United Kingdom, Hong Kong is not a member of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and is not called upon to ratify any International Labour Conventions, which set international labour standards. However, the United Kingdom Government makes declaration on behalf of Hong Kong with regard to the application of conventions it ratifies. This is done after full consultation with the Hong Kong Government. As at December 1985, Hong Kong had applied 30 conventions in full