ENG-1991 — Page 140

EMPLOYMENT

observes international labour conventions which have been applied to it through declara- tions by the United Kingdom Government after full consultation with the Hong Kong Government.

International labour conventions provide a framework upon which labour legislation in Hong Kong has been modelled. Hong Kong now has a comprehensive body of labour law governing the conditions of employment, safety and health and employees' compensation. As at December, Hong Kong applied 47 conventions, of which 29 were applied in full and 18 with modification. This compares favourably with most members of the International Labour Organisation in the region.

Trade Unions

In Hong Kong, trade unions must be registered under the Trade Unions Ordinance, which is administered by the Registrar of Trade Unions. Once registered, a trade union becomes a corporate body and enjoys immunity from certain civil suits.

During the year, 21 new unions were registered. At the end of the year, there were 511 unions, comprising 469 employees' unions, 28 employers' associations and 14 mixed organisations of employees and employers, and their total memberships were about 469 700, 2 900 and 16 300 respectively.

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The majority of employees' unions are affiliated to one of the six local societies registered under the Societies Ordinance the Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions, the Hong Kong and Kowloon Trades Union Council, the Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions, the Joint Organisation of Unions, Hong Kong, the Hong Kong Trade Union Education Centre, and the Federation of Hong Kong and Kowloon Labour Unions. The Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions has 84 affiliated unions with about 176 100 members. The Hong Kong and Kowloon Trades Union Council has 69 affiliated unions

with a membership of about 30 600. The Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions,

which was registered in February 1990, has 22 affiliated unions with about 78 500 members. The Joint Organisation of Unions, Hong Kong has 19 affiliated unions with a membership of about 12 200. The Hong Kong Trade Union Education Centre has 14 affiliated unions with about 63 100 members. The Federation of Hong Kong and Kowloon Labour Unions has 19 affiliated unions with a membership of about 24 200. The remaining 242 employees' unions have a total membership of about 85 000.

Labour Administration and Services

The Labour Department has an establishment of 1 400. It has 41 branch offices throughout the territory to serve employers and employees on a local basis. Headed by the Commis- sioner for Labour, the department is responsible for formulation of new proposals for labour legislation, ensuring Hong Kong's observance of international labour conventions, enforcement of legislation regulating employment conditions, promoting good labour relations, providing assistance to job seekers and to employees injured at work and persons suffering from occupational diseases in obtaining compensation, and protecting the safety and health of workers.

Labour Relations

In 1991, the Labour Relations Service of the Labour Department conciliated in 169 trade disputes (each involving 20 or more workers) which involved five work stoppages, with a

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