Penalties for industrial accidents ‘too lenient’ to have deterrent effect, Hong Kong labour rights concern group says
Hong Kong Free Press
Hong Kong authorities should file appeals against “lenient penalties” in cases of occupational safety violations, a labour rights group has said after the city saw three fatal industrial incidents in five days.
The deaths of three construction workers last week were “very concerning” and Hong Kong must continue to improve its industrial safety laws, the Association for the Rights of Industrial Accident Victims said in a press conference with other labour rights advocates on Tuesday.
According to the group, 11 construction workers had died in industrial incidents since the beginning of 2024. The government, property owners, consultants, contractors and frontline workers all had an “irrefutable responsibility” in these incidents, the association’s chief executive Fay Siu said.
Siu pointed to the “poor practices” of the construction industry in the city, including multiple levels of subcontracting that weakened the effectiveness of safety messaging to workers.
The labour group called on the authorities to increase the duration of safety training courses and require workers to complete a certain number of training hours before renewing their professional licenses. Industrial safety education should be incorporated into the curriculum of primary and secondary schools to foster awareness from a young age, the association said.
Siu also urged the Labour Department and the Department of Justice to “uphold justice” by appealing against cases in which the court imposed penalties that were “too lenient.”
“The courts often impose fines of tens of thousands of dollars for violation of safety regulations, effectively letting those responsible off the hook and offering no deterrence,” she said in Cantonese.
Hong Kong currently requires workers from specified high-risk industries to hold relevant certificates from mandatory safety training courses. The courses included basic safety training, confined spaces safety training and training for operators of crane and load shifting machine.
Last year, Hong Kong recorded 8,134 industrial accidents, among which 3,097 involved the construction industry, figures from the Labour Department showed. Of the 24 industrial fatalities reported last year, 20 were construction workers.
Speaking at the same press conference, Cheng Sau-kuen of the Federation of Hong Kong and Kowloon Labour Unions said the construction industry had difficulty seeking insurance coverage, or would likely be subject to expensive insurance premiums if they were able to secure if. Many self-employed workers tend to take a risk and not purchase insurance, resulting in a lack of protection when accidents occur, she said.
Cheng called on the government to introduce a tailored insurance system for the industry, as well as take a portion of safety violation fines to establish a fund for industrial incident victims.
In April 2023, Hong Kong lawmakers passed a bill that raised the maximum penalty for employers who commit serious occupational safety violations from HK$500,000 to HK$10 million. Those convicted may also be sentenced up to two years behind bars.
A recent penalty, however, fell far below the maximum. Last month, Swire Waste Management Limited was fined HK$80,000 for violating the safety ordinance. The case involved a fatal accident at a landfill last December.
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