Latest news with #LamChun-sing
RTHK
09-05-2025
- Business
- RTHK
Congee chain 'irresponsible in way it treated staff'
Congee chain 'irresponsible in way it treated staff' The owner of Ocean Empire Food Shop only notified staff of its closure in a last-minute letter. Photo: Courtesy of Ocean Empire International Ltd's website A unionist lawmaker on Friday criticised the owner of a local congee chain – Ocean Empire Food Shop – for acting irresponsibly by notifying staff of its closure only at the very last minute. The owner, Ocean Empire International, informed all its employees late on Wednesday in a letter that it had shut down all outlets and offices and terminated their contracts of all employees the same day. Speaking on an RTHK radio programme, Lam Chun-sing pointed out the closure showed that the catering sector is facing a lot of challenges. He said the owner could have made the announcement earlier. "Indeed it seems rather irresponsible as the company issued the notice in this manner," Lam said. "It's not as if it only found out it had to close at the last minute; it likely knew about it three or four months in advance. "It should have informed the employees earlier about when the final payday would be, whether any unused annual leave would be fully compensated and then proceeded with the closure. "Then it would have given colleagues time to prepare and start looking for other jobs earlier." In the letter, the management wrote that employees could turn to the Labour Department for assistance about Protection of Wages on Insolvency Fund for ex-gratia payments. Workers can apply to the fund if a company is unable to pay back its employees after liquidation. Lam expressed concern over whether employees would be able to get back the full amount of their wage arrears even if they applied to the fund as it has a ceiling of HK$80,000. The Labour Department said at least 80 staff members have sought help over such issues as outstanding wages, which amount to more than HK$8 million. The Eating Establishment Employees General Union has received more than 100 requests for assistance, including about 20 imported workers. They were owed up to HK$10 million in total. Lam noted that some imported workers have to pay tens of thousands of dollars to work in the SAR, and they have to return home within 14 days after the termination of their employment. He called on the government to work with mainland authorities on the issue of agency fees as those who have been terminated within a short period upon arrival will undoubtedly suffer huge losses. The general union's Chiu Kwun-chung said on the same show that the restaurant has neither paid wages since last month nor contributed to staff's mandatory provident funds since January even though it had deducted the amounts from their incomes. He said the company should offer details on the matter, instead of breaking the news in the form of a letter, which he considered as anything but ideal. Chiu added that the owner should offer up information, such as staff's work attendance as well as leave records, to enable them to apply for ex-gratia payments.
RTHK
23-04-2025
- Business
- RTHK
Lawmakers call for rise in income thresholds for MPF
Lawmakers call for rise in income thresholds for MPF Lam Chun-sing, second left, and Kingsley Wong, fourth left, want both lower and upper income thresholds to be raised. Photo: RTHK Unionists called on Wednesday for adjustments to income levels for mandatory provident fund (MPF) contributions so people can enjoy better protection upon retirement. Lawmaker Kingsley Wong, who's also chairman of the Federation of Trade Unions, said that can be achieved by adjusting the minimum and maximum levels of income on which MPF contributions are based. These levels, he pointed out, have remained unchanged at HK$7,100 and HK$30,000 respectively for more than 10 years. Wong suggested the income range at which contributions become mandatory be raised to between HK$10,250 and HK$50,000. At present, those earning less than the minimum threshold per month do not have to make MPF contributions. This is despite the latest government data showing that workers' median monthly salary now stands at HK$20,500, Wong said. He said adjusting the income levels is crucial in terms of retirement protection. "Based on our calculations, because our contributions for MPF are quite low, they are only sufficient to cover one third of the amount needed after retirement," Wong said. "We will need to rely on other kinds of subsidies to fill the gap. "If we can adjust the relevant income levels, it will be a great help." Lam Chun-sing, lawmaker and chairman of the Federation of Hong Kong and Kowloon Labour Unions, called on the government to make MPF contributions for low-income and grassroots workers as soon as possible. He pointed out that by adjusting the income levels, even though more low-income workers can be exempted from making mandatory contributions, this would mean that they enjoy less protection for retirement. Lam believes the government would be able to shoulder the additional costs, as the number of low-income individuals earning less than HK$10,000 a month is low, he added. Separately, Lam said the proposal to allow people to transfer the entire MPF amounts to a new scheme provider once per year is good for workers. "If they can choose their own investment plan, [as] trustees also want to attract them to make investment in their funds, so there's competition," he said. "And through market forces, [it will] encourage the trustees to improve their investment performance and lower their administrative fees, and that will benefit employees." Currently, people can only transfer their own contributions, but not those made by their employers.
South China Morning Post
11-03-2025
- Business
- South China Morning Post
Hong Kong union calls on Deliveroo to clarify staff arrangements after closure
A Hong Kong labour union has called on food delivery platform Deliveroo to clarify staff arrangements ahead of its imminent shutdown, as some consumers expressed shock and dismay to be left with unused coupons worth thousands of dollars. Advertisement Legislator Lam Chun-sing, chairman of the Federation of Hong Kong and Kowloon Labour Unions, said on Tuesday his group contacted around 200 riders, a third of whom expressed worry about their livelihoods as they relied on Deliveroo rather than rivals Foodpanda and Keeta to earn a living. He noted that employees of the London-based company had been given scant details about their futures, with Deliveroo only saying it would redirect employees and sell some assets to rival Foodpanda after ceasing operations in Hong Kong on April 7. 'They are worried about the service capacity of Foodpanda and the amount of jobs they can be assigned given that it will take up more riders,' Lam told a radio programme. 'They wonder if they can earn a similar salary as before and hope Deliveroo can provide more details.' Advertisement After nine years of losses, Deliveroo said on Monday it would be pulling out of the Hong Kong market, leaving its rival, the Berlin-based Delivery Hero, to compete directly with Keeta.
