A leading Hong Kong labor organization has called for sweeping reforms to protect the city's growing number of platform workers while also demanding tighter controls on imported labor ahead of Chief Executive John Lee's upcoming Policy Address in September.
The Federation of Hong Kong and Kowloon Labour Unions (HKFLU) has proposed adopting legislation similar to Singapore's Platform Workers Act, which would provide food delivery riders, ride-hailing drivers and other gig workers with statutory workplace injury coverage, retirement benefits and formal negotiation channels with their platforms.
New legal category sought for platform workers
HKFLU Chairman and lawmaker Lam Chun-sing said Hong Kong should create a new legal classification for platform workers that falls between traditional employees and self-employed contractors.
Under the proposed system, platform companies would be required to make Mandatory Provident Fund contributions for workers and provide injury insurance matching employee benefits.
The labor group also wants to expand protections for workers affected by corporate insolvencies. Currently, the Protection of Wages on Insolvency Fund does not cover employers' MPF contributions, leaving many workers unable to recover these losses when companies collapse.
Lam noted the fund's healthy HK$7 billion reserves could easily absorb the estimated HK$10 million cost of covering these defaults.
In the construction sector, the HKFLU is pushing to extend the Pilot Rehabilitation Programme for Employees Injured at Work that has shown promising results.
Government data indicates construction workers in the scheme recover 10 percent faster with 30 percent shorter recovery periods compared to those outside the program. The group wants to make the initiative permanent and expand it to manufacturing and retail sectors.
Labor group demands freeze on foreign worker imports
The proposals come amid growing concerns about foreign labor impacts. HKFLU secretary-general Chau Siu-chung revealed the Enhanced Supplementary Labour Scheme has approved over 67,350 foreign worker applications, including 28,000 in the catering industry alone.
He warned of wage suppression and job displacement, particularly in food service, and called for reinstating bans on foreign workers in 26 low-skilled occupations.
Chau stated that there is a need for a temporary freeze mechanism that responds to real-time labor market data. He suggested that an automatic trigger should pause new foreign worker approvals whenever there is a rise in unemployment or a decline in wages within a sector.
Sweeping benefits expansion for Hong Kong workers
The HKFLU's comprehensive set of recommendations also includes significant expansions to worker benefits. They propose increasing paternity leave from 5 to 7 days, extending maternity leave to 18 weeks, and introducing 5 days of paid caregiver leave—a policy already implemented in Australia.
For low-income workers, the group is demanding the government finally implement its long-promised scheme to subsidize MPF contributions. Vice Chairman Chan Man Luen-ying said this crucial support measure has been delayed for too long.
