Govt Moving Too Slowly On Holidays: Pro-Beijing Union

"); jQuery("#212 h3").html("

Related News Programmes

"); });

2021-05-19 HKT 15:41

Share this story

facebook

  • Govt moving too slowly on holidays: pro-Beijing union

A pro-Beijing union said on Wednesday that the number of statutory holidays for grassroots workers should be increased from 12 to 17 days within the next three years, far quicker than the nine-year time frame the government is proposing.

Officials are planning to add one extra statutory holiday every two years, with the first one to come in 12 months' time, for Buddha's Birthday.

But the Federation of Hong Kong and Kowloon Labour Unions complained that the number of statutory holidays has remained at 12 since 1999, when Labour Day was added to the list.

It said the labour sector has been calling for an increase for more than a decade, so employers have already had plenty of time to prepare for changes.

"It's unfair that around 30 percent of workers only get 12 holidays right now when others have more....the government's plan is taking too long," said Lam Chun-sing, who chairs the federation.

He led several members in staging a demonstration on the issue on Wednesday, outside the government's headquarters at Tamar.

Meanwhile, Chief Secretary Matthew Cheung said if Legco passes the legal changes needed to increase the number of statutory holidays, this would be an "important milestone" when it comes to improving labour rights in Hong Kong.

In a Facebook post, he said more than a million workers would benefit, noting that it would be the Carrie Lam administration that made it happen.

RECENT NEWS

StartmeupHK Festival And Hong Kong Fintech Week 2025 Merge For 10th Anniversary Milestone

Invest Hong Kong (InvestHK) announced on 10 March 2025 that both of its flagship events, Hong Kong Fintech Week 2025 an... Read more

Ant AI-Powered Health Insurance Processes 7.25M Claims In 2024, 55%YoY Increase

In 2024, Ant Insurance, the online insurance brokerage platform of Ant Group, processed 7.25 million health claims, mar... Read more

Ping An Talent Uses AI For Job Matching, But Can Technology Make Recruitment Fairer?

Ping An Insurance (Group) Company of China, Ltd. has launched its 2025 Spring Campus Recruitment, offering over 2,000 p... Read more

HKEX Partners With CMU OmniClear To Boost Post-Trade Securities Infrastructure

Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEX) announced on 4 March 2025 that it signed a Memorandum of Understanding ... Read more

PAObank Secures Insurance Agency Licence, Partners With Ping An And FWD Hong Kong

PAO Bank Limited (PAObank) has received its Insurance Agency Licence from the Insurance Authority and signed strategic ... Read more

IFAST Launches Self-Service Accounts For Hong Kong Family Offices

Fintech solutions provider iFAST HK launches self-service accounts in Hong Kong, catering to the growing demand for ind... Read more