ENG-2004 — Page 192

158 Employment

Employees' Compensation

In Hong Kong, the employees' compensation system adopts the no-fault principle whereby compensation is payable irrespective of whether the injury, occupational disease or death was the employee's fault. The Employees' Compensation Ordinance covers injuries or death caused by accidents arising out of and in the course of employment or by specified occupational diseases. An employer must be in possession of a valid insurance policy to cover his liabilities under the ordinance and at common law.

The Employees' Compensation Division of the Labour Department, which administers the Employees' Compensation Ordinance, assists injured employees and family members of deceased employees to obtain compensation from their employers. It also administers a scheme to provide interest-free loans to those injured employees and family members of deceased employees who need financial assistance as a result of a work-related accident. In 2004, loans totalling $164,600 were made to 11 injured employees.

As at end-2004, the Labour Department received 414 employees' compensation claims (including nine fatal cases) relating to Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) reported by employers under the Employees' Compensation Ordinance. Since employees infected with SARS might have residual complications, they would be fit for assessment by the Employees' Compensation Assessment Board only when their medical conditions had stabilised. As at year-end, the Labour Department arranged 247 assessments in respect of respiratory impairment. Since some of the SARS employees had other complications and had received treatment from orthopaedic, endocrine and other specialists, the department also arranged assessments by the relevant specialists. As a result of the department's follow-up action, the statutory compensation claims in seven fatal cases and 76 non-fatal cases have been resolved upon the issue of certificates of compensation assessment by the department as at year-end.

Payment of compensation under the Pneumoconiosis (Compensation) Ordinance is administered by the Pneumoconiosis Compensation Fund Board. Pneumoconiosis sufferers who were diagnosed before 1981 are not covered by the ordinance. They receive ex gratia benefits from the Government under the Pneumoconiosis Ex Gratia Scheme. As at end-2004, 2 241 pneumoconiosis sufferers were receiving compensation in the form of monthly payments under the ordinance or the Ex Gratia Scheme. Family members of the 85 pneumoconiosis sufferers who died as a result of the disease were granted compensation.

The Occupational Deafness Compensation Scheme compensates employees suffering from noise-induced deafness due to employment in specified noisy occupations. It is administered by the Occupational Deafness Compensation Board. In 2004, the board approved 52 applications for compensation due to employment related noise-induced deafness, and paid out $5.9 million as compensation. The board also approved 488 applications in relation to the payment of expenses on hearing-aids in the amount of $2.1 million.