Hong Kong OKs Tougher Measures vs Agency Overcharging

Philippine Consul General Antonio A. Morales and HK Chief Secretary Matthew Cheung Kin-chung shake hands after a recent meeting at the Central Government Offices where the two sides outlined their efforts to protect and promote the well-being of Filipino nationals working in Hong Kong.

14 February 2018 HONG KONG – Hong Kong has approved tougher provisions against abuses committed against job-seekers in the territory, including Filipino household service workers (HSWs), Hong Kong’s second highest official told Philippine Consul General Antonio A. Morales at a recent meeting at the Central Government Offices.

“Hong Kong owes the Philippines a large debt of gratitude for your people’s contribution to our economy” as domestic helpers, nannies, caregivers, and permanent residents, all of whom have become “an important part of the local landscape,” said Chief Secretary for Administration Matthew Cheung Kin-chung about the 221,000 Filipinos living in Hong Kong.

Chief Secretary Cheung gave reassurances to the new Philippine consul general of his government’s commitment to the “full and fair protection” of Filipino nationals to ensure that they are “safe, comfortable, and happy”.

He enumerated a number of efforts they are undertaking toward this goal, including anti-trafficking measures as well as the establishment “two-way direct communication” with high-ranking Philippine officials to reinforce regular existing channels with the Philippine Consulate General, such as the quarterly trilateral working group meetings.

In particular he highlighted the newly passed draft amendment intended to impose more stringent penalties and more clear-cut safeguards against overcharging of foreign domestic helpers (FDHs, as HSWs are officially termed in Hong Kong) by unscrupulous employers and/or employment agencies, including their employees, brokers and subagents.

The Employment (Amendment) Ordinance 2018, which was passed on the third and final reading in Hong Kong’s Legislative Council (Legco) on the afternoon of Thursday, 1 February 2018, was signed by Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor a week later and enacted by Legco finally on 9 February 2017, according to the Legco Secretariat.

Chief Secretary Cheung said the new amended ordinance enhances protection for job-seekers (including FDHs) by increasing maximum penalties for overcharging of commission and for employment agencies (EAs) operating without a license or otherwise breaking provisions of a Code of Practice (CoP) for Employment Agencies.

The new law, which was introduced in June 2017 on Chief Executive Lam’s instruction and recommendation by the Executive Council, including the Secretary of Labour and Welfare, not only raises the maximum fine seven-fold from the current HK$50,000 to HK$350,000, but also adds the penalty of imprisonment of up to three years to make it more effective.

The level of deterrence is also expected to be enhanced by imposing the same penalties for unlicensed EAs, plugging loopholes against relatives of convicted violators, and expanding the scope of possible offenders to include associated of EAs, who might be charging invisible commissions which add to the financial burden of FDHs and employers.

Based on HK law, EAs may receive a maximum of 10 percent of the FDHs’ first salary, equivalent to HK$441 or so based on their prescribed minimum wage. Anything above this amount will be punishable by a fine and, depending on the extent of abuse, possibly a jail term.

The industry-wide Code of Practice was promulgated in January 2017 by Hong Kong’s Labour Department to promote the professionalism and service quality of EAs by setting out the minimum operation and management standards expected of EA licensees. Until the amended law’s enactment, there was no way to prosecute and punish violators of the CoP.

“We now provide the law more teeth” through such penalties and wider scope, said Chief Secretary Cheung. “This shows we mean business,” he said, noting the “strong deterrent effect” he expects the new law, whose passage he called a “very important step forward”.

He also called attention to continuing efforts by the Hong Kong government to increase the number of inspections of EAs, expand the manpower of the Labour Department working with the police as well as institute regular liaison mechanisms with Consulates General, including the Philippines.

Having served as HK Labour and Welfare Secretary for almost 10 years from 2007 until he was appointed to his current position in January 2017, Mr Cheung said the well-being of 370,000 FDHs remains one of his main concerns, considering they help 280,000 families in Hong Kong and represent 10 percent of the labor sector.

Mr Cheung said the current total of FDHs has more than doubled from 180,000 in 10 years and is expected to expand by more than 100 percent in the next 20 years due to Hong Kong’s rapidly ageing population. Of this figure, 54 percent or 200,000 are from the Philippines and most of the remainder are from Indonesia.

According to Hong Kong officials, the Hong Kong government is exploring the legal framework, policy implications, social impact and necessary preparations governing the possible introduction of foreign-born caregivers trained to care for the territory’s elderly in the coming decades.

On anti-human trafficking measures, Chief Secretary Cheung said the government’s top lawyers and law enforcement officials are working together to close existing labor and immigration gaps abused by employers to bring FDHs contracted for household tasks only in a listed address in Hong Kong to do illegal work in Shenzhen and places in mainland China.

He encouraged FDHs to come forward and report such violations, as well as possible illegal recruitment by fellow Filipino nationals, Hongkongers, Chinese or any nationality to other countries with false promises of employment and higher salaries. He said the government will work discreetly with the Philippine Consulate to encourage such whistle-blowers. END