HONG KONG

Domestic Worker Found Dead

From The Sun, Mid-Month, April 2001, translated by Bong Angeles

A domestic worker from the Philippines was found dead at the home of her employer, in Fairview Park, Yuen Long on 3 April 2001, around 8.00 a.m. An Indonesian domestic worker living nearby heard screams prior to discovery of the body. She called the police who found the body.

No other wounds were found on the victim. Local Filipinas suspect the victim was killed during the early morning hours while sleeping.

Her employer, a local Chinese singer, normally arrives home early in the morning.

Lolit leaves a husband and child. She had worked for the singer for four months and had complained to other domestic workers that her employer often beat her. Recent beatings had become worse. Her friends advised her to resign, but she stayed as she had many debts.

The case is being investigated by the police.

From local reports

During the last major outbreak of avian bird flu in 1997, the government drew up a compensation scheme. It covers 20,000 poultry wholesalers, retailers, transporters, and farmers. The scheme published in May offered HK$104.6 million compensation and HK$73 million low interest loans to these bosses.

Conspicuous by their non-inclusion from the compensation scheme are the workers in the industry. One said, “ I do not understand why the workers are excluded. How are we going to live with poultry markets closed until July?” A government spokesperson said the administration would not grant any assistance to the workers, declaring “employers are responsible for their welfare”.

Secretary for Environment and Food, Lily Yam, said that supporting workers in this way would be misusing public money.

Hong Kong has one of the most free markets in the world. Employers demand minimal interference from government. Yet when it comes to training staff or compensation for business failure, they demand money from the government.

The government spends as little as possible on public health care and education. It even enthuses about the advantages of the free market, but when the market fails, money miraculously emerges to recompense the bosses while workers get nothing.

From South China Morning Post, 21 June 2001

Guangnan (KK) supermarkets closed 34 outlets yesterday without consultation with workers, rendering over 500 workers jobless.

Mainland invested Guangnan (Holdings) established the KK supermarket chain in 1996 when they bought 56 shops from Kitty and Ketty supermarkets. Ye Xuquan, mainland Chinese chairman of Guangnan said the group had signed five year rental agreements during the last property boom. Guangnan lost HK$145 million this year.

Despite this, five stores in China’s occupying army bases on Hong Kong will remain open.

Mr Ye keeps his job with Guangnan, looking for more lucrative investments.

Even local management were not previously informed of the unhappy news. Joe Wong, deputy store manager in Quarry Bay said, “My boss called me late last night. It was a big shock to me and I guess a big shock to many of my colleagues.”

This is the third food retail chain closure in less than a year after French superstore chain Carrefour pulled out of Hong Kong last August and the adMart online shopping venture failed last December.

A local marketing academic said that it would allow ParknShop and Wellcome to tighten their stranglehold on Hong Kong’s market.

From South China Morning Post, 4 July 2001

Two thirds of the staff at the German owned Triumph International factory received one month’s notice on 23 June.

The company which produces underwear will step up production elsewhere in Asia to make up for lost production in Hong Kong.

400 of the 600 strong work force lost their jobs in the latest cuts, as the company relocates to Thailand for cheaper labour, where the same products sell at half the price of those in Hong Kong.

It last sacked 170 Hong Kong staff when ‘downsizing’ in 1998.

The company reasserted its commitment to customers. Unfor-tunately it would not do the same for its workers who contributed to US$1.6 billion worldwide sales last year.

From South China Morning Post, 5 July 2001

340 Internet workers at Pacific Century CyberWorks were dismissed on 4 July. The staff will be paid until 20 August to honour a promise made by PCCW last year to the workforce of at least 12 months guaranteed work.

PCCW chairman Richard Li Tzar-kai could give no similar guarantee this year, causing trade unionists to fear further staff cuts in the pipeline.

Despite a commitment by Law Yiu-tung, Assistant Director of Immigration, that no non-local hi-tech workers would be employed when plenty of local workers are available. His department is considering applications under the new Admission of Mainland Professionals Scheme, which has already processed work visas for eight information technology experts.

From local reports

Cathay Pacific pilots began limited industrial action recently in a fight for improved pay and conditions.

The pilots in the Aircrew Officers’ Association began working to rule on 3 July. This has a cumulative effect on flights, which have to be increasingly delayed or cancelled.

The company, long hailed as Hong Kong’s flag carrier by the government which gives it protected flight routes despite being owned by UK’s Swires group and has its head office in London, sacked 52 of its 1,500 pilots on 9 July while imposing a package of less value than the one previously on offer. Company negotiators are refusing to negotiate with the union as the company charters scab labour to undermine the action.

The association said that four of its seven member negotiating team and six of the general committee were included in the 52 sacked officers, and that reinstatement of all 52 dismissed staff would be a pre-condition of the settlement.

The company demands a halt to the work to rule before it will negotiate. Cathay is forced to cancel over 20 percent of flights as ALU goes to press.