• 11/10/2024

Hong Kong immigration officers arrest 4 over alleged illegal employment, providing cleaning services

Hong Kong Free Press

illegal workers

Four mainland Chinese residents were arrested in Hong Kong while illegally working as cleaners in the city, the Immigration Department has announced.

After noticing some mainland Chinese companies promoting their cleaning services in Hong Kong on social media, the Immigration Department said it had investigated one company suspected of arranging illegal cleaners in the city. Posing as a potential customer, staff from the department reached out to the company, leading to the four arrests.

Hong Kong's Immigration Department arrests four mainland Chinese over allged illegal employment in cleaning services in June 2024. Photo: The Immigration Department.
Hong Kong’s Immigration Department arrests four mainland Chinese over allged illegal employment in cleaning services in June 2024. Photo: The Immigration Department.

A 28-year-old who was in charge of the company and three illegal workers were apprehended while providing cleaning services in Hong Kong.

In a response to HKFP, the Immigration Department said all four were mainland Chinese residents and had entered Hong Kong as visitors without work permits.

“[V]isitors are not allowed to take employment in Hong Kong, whether paid or unpaid, without the permission of the Director of Immigration, ” the authority said in a statement issued on Monday. Offenders face a maximum fine of HK$50,000 and up to two years’ imprisonment.

west kowloon station high speed rail border reopening
West Kowloon station on Jan. 16, 2023, the first day of high-speed rail services between Hong Kong and the mainland resuming. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP.

According to the Immigration Ordinance amended in 2021, the penalty for employing illegal workers is a fine of up to HK$500,000 and 10 years’ imprisonment.

The Immigration Department said it would also investigate possible human trafficking, urging potential victims to report to the department.

Imported labour

To tackle a widespread labour crunch, the Hong Kong government rolled out a series of schemes last year for local employers in different sectors to import and hire non-local workers. However, cleaners are not currently allowed to import staff from outside the city.

Construction workers taking rest.
Construction workers taking rest. Photo: Kyle Lam.

The government enhanced a supplementary scheme, which came into effect in September and allows employers to hire non-local staff for 26 positions, including chefs, waitresses, cashiers, and salesmen without restrictions on how many.

Authorities including the Social Welfare Department, the Transport Department, and the Development Bureau also introduced schemes to import care workers for residential care homes, workers for the construction industry, and minibuses. Non-local labour employed under these three schemes are subject to certain quota.

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https://hongkongfp.com/2024/06/04/hong-kong-immigration-officers-arrest-4-over-alleged-illegal-employment-providing-cleaning-services/