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Following is a speech by the Secretary for Education and Manpower, Mr Joseph W P Wong, in moving the second reading of the Education (Amendment) Bill 1999 in the Legislative Council today (Wednesday):

Madam President,

I move that the Education (Amendment) Bill 1999 be read the second time.

The Bill seeks to give legal backing to Government's long-established retirement policy for teachers and principals employed by aided schools.

In February 1999, a principal of an aided secondary school sought declaration from the High Court that section 57 of the Code of Aid for Secondary Schools concerning the retirement policy of principals and teachers contravened the Education Ordinance and was of no effect. The Court in June 1999 ruled that section 57 of the Code of Aid for Secondary Schools was not binding on the principal under the doctrine of privity of contract and so was unenforceable against him. The ruling is taken to be equally applicable to principals of aided primary, secondary and special schools.

The objective of setting a retirement age for teachers and principals is to ensure a healthy staff turnover which is important for revitalizing the work force and in keeping the school intellectually active. It also helps to meet the reasonable expectations of staff for career advancement.

Under the current policy, the Director of Education may, after the principals or teachers have reached 60, exercise her discretion to grant extension of service on a year to year basis for a maximum of five years. The limit of five years is to provide a buffer against unforeseen circumstances which may require the continued service of the principal or teacher and ensure that a qualified successor is available. When considering an application for extension, the recommendation of the School Management Committee, the ability and performance of the principal or teacher concerned, and any reasons furnished by the School Management Committee in support of the application are taken into account. These may include recruitment difficulties, unforeseeable circumstances giving rise to a vacancy which cannot be filled within the time available, staff succession problems etc. Each application will be considered on its own merits.

Retirement at 60 has been stipulated in the Codes of Aid for over 25 years and is generally accepted by principals and teachers in the aided schools. Setting the retirement age at 60 is also in line with the practice in the civil service and most private sector organisations.

In view of the Court ruling mentioned above, the Administration now proposes to give the retirement policy the necessary legal backing. The main provisions of the Education (Amendment) Bill 1999 are:

(a) Except serving teachers or principals, no one who is 60 or above shall be employed as a teacher or a principal of an aided school;

(b) The retirement age of serving teacher or principal of an aided school is 60, but with the approval of the Director of Education, may remain in employment for a period of not more than one school year after that in which he has attained the age of 60. The approval may be extended by the Director for a maximum aggregate period of five consecutive school years; and

(c) a serving teacher or principal who is aggrieved by the decision of the Director in relation to the extension of service may appeal against such decision to the Appeals Board established under section 59 of the Education Ordinance.

We put the proposals in November this year to the Education Panel of this Council for discussion; the Panel supported the proposals. I urge honourable Members to support the Bill and to pass it into law quickly, so that its provisions may be implemented as from the 2000/01 school year.

End/Wednesday, December 15, 1999

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