Author Archives: hksar gov

Attention TV/radio announcers: Please broadcast the following as soon as possible:      Here is an item of interest to swimmers.      The Leisure and Cultural Services Department announced toda… read more

     â€‹As the Heat Stress at Work Warning is now in effect, the Labour Department (LD) reminds employers and employees to take appropriate measures during the effective period of the warning to prevent heat stroke when working in hot weather or hot environments.
      
     Employees who work outdoors or in non-air-conditioned indoor environments face high levels of heat stress and are at a relatively higher risk of heat stroke. Employers should assess the risk factors of heat stress for employees at work and, based on the identified risk factors, take necessary preventive and control measures, including rescheduling work periods, setting up shading covers, providing ventilation and heat dissipation equipment, and reminding employees to replenish water and rest in a timely manner.
      
     The Heat Stress at Work Warning is formulated by the LD based on the Hong Kong Heat Index. There are three levels of the warning: Amber, Red and Black, which help employers and employees better understand the level of heat stress while working outdoors or indoors without air-conditioning systems.
      
     A spokesman for the LD said that when the department issues the Heat Stress at Work Warning, employers must refer to the criteria and recommendations provided in the “Guidance Notes on Prevention of Heat Stroke at Work” to conduct risk assessments, according to the workloads and other relevant heat stress risk factors, for employees who work outdoors or in non-air-conditioned indoor workplaces. Appropriate rest breaks should be arranged every hour, as far as reasonably practicable, based on various levels of the Heat Stress at Work Warning, to reduce employees’ risk of heat stroke.
      
     Employees must also follow instructions to rest on time. Whenever there are any symptoms of heat-related illnesses, such as headache, dizziness, thirst, and nausea, they should rest in a cool and shady place, drink water, and inform employers/supervisors to take appropriate action immediately.
      
     The LD issued the “Guidance Notes on Prevention of Heat Stroke at Work”, detailing the various risk factors that should be considered when conducting heat stress risk assessments and recommending corresponding control measures for identified risk factors for employers’ and employees’ reference. For the Heat Stress at Work Warning and related guidelines, please refer to the department’s thematic webpage: www.labour.gov.hk/eng/news/prevention_of_heat_stroke_at_work.htm. read more

The following is issued on behalf of the Legislative Council Secretariat:

     The Legislative Council Secretariat (the Secretariat) today (August 4) released a Research Brief on “Characteristics of low- and lower-middle-income households”.

     The Government identified three groups for targeted poverty alleviation earlier this year to strengthen support to the relevant populations. Among these groups, for all-elderly households that comprised about 560 000 persons, around two-thirds of them were low-income households (defined as households belonging to the lowest quintile group of household income); regarding households residing in subdivided units and single-parent households, with each group covering about 210 000 persons, both groups had some 40 per cent being lower-middle-income households (i.e. households in the second lowest quintile group of household income). The Research Brief made use of the detailed data on household characteristics collected in the 2021 Population Census and compared that with the statistics of the past 25 years, with a view to understanding the situations and challenges faced by the low-income and lower-middle-income households.

     Among low-income households, the proportion of economically inactive households doubled over the past 25 years from 33.8 per cent to 74.1 per cent in 2021, representing 396 000 households. An ageing population led to a significant increase in the number of all-elderly households between 1996 and 2021, from 86 000 to 253 000 (239 000 of which were economically inactive households). Concurrently, among low-income households with non-elderly members, the number of economically inactive households also tripled from 50 000 to 157 000.

     The absence of employment earnings among economically inactive households was an important factor leading to stagnant income for low-income households (monthly income of the tenth percentile household actually declined about 17 per cent from HK$5,700 in 2016 to HK$4,700 in 2021). As income of middle-income and high-income households basically showed an upward trend, a widening income disparity ensued.

     Meanwhile, among the aforementioned 157 000 low-income, economically inactive households, there were some 200 000 household members who were of working-age but economically inactive. For 40.8 per cent of them or 81 300 who were homemakers and early retirees, they resided in households without any fellow household members being such care recipients as children, older long-term care recipients or persons with disablement/sickness. Insights on their reasons for not participating in the labour market, combined with practical help to overcome the relevant obstacles, might improve the income situation of these households as well as release some potential labourers into the local labour market.

     With various poverty alleviation policies implemented, Government expenditure on recurrent cash benefits grew significantly when compared with the 1996-1997 fiscal year, to HK$75.7 billion in the 2022-2023 fiscal year. More specifically, elderly-related recurrent cash benefits including Old Age Living Allowance were the main drivers, with total expenditure stood at HK$37.3 billion in the 2022-2023 fiscal year, a figure equivalent to more than 12 times that in the 1996-1997 fiscal year. Together with a number of new or enhanced recurrent cash benefit schemes launched by the Government in recent years, the added expenditure on one hand somewhat offset the negative impact of reduced employment earnings of low-income households, but on the other hand raised much concern over the sustainability of social welfare expenditure especially when the relevant recurrent expenditure is set to become the largest among policy area groups by the 2023-2024 fiscal year.

     Regarding housing situation, there were about 170 000 low-income and lower-middle-income households that were accommodated in private rental housing in 2021, hence inevitably impacted by rising rents of private flats. Among low-income households with non-elderly members, the median rent-to-income ratio for economically active households that were renting private flats jumped to 93.1 per cent in 2021, or 2.4 times the level in 2011, and the corresponding median for lower-middle-income households was also noticeable at 42.8 per cent. Such data suggests that the burden from housing expenditure was considerable for these households living in rented private housing.

     The Research Brief is prepared by the Secretariat’s Research Office of the Research and Information Division with a view to enhancing research and information support for Members. It is a concise summary aiming at explaining a subject matter which may be of interests to Members and the general public. The Research Brief is now available on LegCo website at app7.legco.gov.hk/rpdb/en/uploads/2023/RB/RB02_2023_20230804_en.pdf. read more

     The Government Gazette published today (August 4) contains a Legal Notice to the effect that the Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury has authorised a change in the rate of interest payable on Tax Reserve Certificates. … read more