Hong Kong immigration officers arrest 43 in crackdown on illegal employment
Hong Kong immigration authorities have arrested 43 people, including domestic helpers, in an eight-day crackdown on illegal employment.
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The 35 suspected illegal workers and eight alleged employers were apprehended after officers raided at least 58 targeted locations, including restaurants and canteens, the Immigration Department revealed on Tuesday.
The operation, code-named 'Swordfish', was held between April 7 and 14.
'We urge employers not to arrange for or require foreign domestic helpers to be employed by any other person to perform any other duties to avoid being held criminally liable,' Senior Immigration Officer Fu Chit-ho said.
'We also call on employers to pay more attention to the behaviour of foreign domestic workers, such as observing whether they look tired when they come back from days off, or whether they wear clothes similar to work uniforms when they go out.'
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The suspected illegal workers – eight men and 27 women – are aged between 20 and 60 and mostly from the Philippines and Indonesia.
Most of them were arrested while they were washing dishes, handling meals or cleaning in canteens and restaurants, the department said.
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