***********************************************************
Following is a question by the Hon Frederick Fung and a written reply by the Secretary for the Civil Service, Miss Denise Yue, on the implementation of the five-day week initiative closely monitored by the Government, in the Legislative Council today (November 1):
Question:
Regarding the implementation of a five-day work week, will the Government inform this Council:
(a) whether it has studied the effects of implementing a five-day work week on its employees in terms of staff morale, family life, the pattern and amount of spending, the overall economic situation and the quality of public service; if so, of the study results; if not, whether it will conduct such a study;
(b) of the overtime situation among government employees in the past three years and how the situation has changed with the implementation of a five-day work week, and whether it will monitor the situation; whether it has asked various bureaux and government departments to encourage their staff to leave work on time, so as to avoid their family life being affected by overtime work and thus defeating the intended purpose of a five-day work week;
(c) whether it knows the number of commercial organisations which have followed the Government in implementing a five-day work week, and its percentage in the total number of commercial organisations;
(d) whether it has compiled statistics on the number of employees who work a five-day work week and its percentage in the labour force;
(e) whether it has assessed if an increasing number of organisations are implementing a five-day work week, and whether it will introduce policies and measures to encourage the adoption of a five-day work week by public and private organisations; and
(f) given that 17 festive days are appointed annually as general holidays under the General Holidays Ordinance, and if any of such festive days falls on a Sunday, then a day preceding or following it will be appointed as a general holiday, and as those organisations adopting a five-day work week usually designate Saturdays as rest days, whether the Government will amend the Ordinance to provide that if any of such festive days falls on a Saturday, then another day (for example, the preceding Friday or the following Monday) will be appointed as a general holiday?
Reply:
Madam President,
(a) The Government is implementing the five-day week initiative in phases. The first phase has come into effect from July 2006. In taking forward the five-day week initiative, our primary consideration is to maintain the overall level and efficiency of government services, and to ensure the continued provision of emergency and other essential services round the clock as well as the provision of some necessary counter services on Saturday. Prior to the move to the five-day week, bureaux and departments (B/Ds) are required to compress the performance pledges for the delivery of the affected services, where applicable, to ensure that these services will be delivered within the same calendar period; or to make arrangements to clear outstanding applications by Friday where practicable. B/Ds are also encouraged to make available or further enhance their internet services, institute alternative payment channels, provide drop-in boxes, etc. to facilitate business transactions with the Government.
The Civil Service Bureau and B/Ds have been closely monitoring the implementation of the first phase of the five-day week initiative. Our preliminary assessment is that the quality of government services has been maintained and that the public has generally accepted this arrangement. Staff feedback is also positive. We believe the initiative has brought about intangible benefits to staff, such as stress reduction; better work-life balance; more opportunities for sports, recreational and cultural activities; more time for self-development and voluntary and community work; and more harmonious family life. All these will help improve civil service morale. We consider any impact on the economy and on consumption from the implementation of the five-day week in the Government should be insignificant.
(b) The Civil Service Regulations currently in force stipulate that overtime work may be undertaken only when it is unavoidable. It is incumbent upon Heads of Department to ensure that overtime work is kept to the absolute minimum having regard to operational requirements, and that such unavoidable overtime work is strictly controlled and properly supervised at all times.
The amount of overtime work performed by civil servants fluctuates from year to year in the light of operational needs. The expenditure on overtime allowance in 2003-04, 2004-05 and 2005-06 was $374,432,000, $346,459,000 and $375,122,000 respectively.
Since July 2006, government offices operating on a five-day week basis have extended their business hours during weekdays. Under the established policy, Heads of Department will continue to ensure that overtime work is kept to the absolute minimum through appropriate manpower deployment to meet operational needs. We will be in a better position to assess whether the overtime situation has changed after the full implementation of the five-day week initiative next year.
(c) & (d) The Census and Statistics Department (C&SD) conducts supplementary enquiries from time to time via the General Household Survey to collect specified statistical data relating to the labour force and the employment situation. According to the supplementary enquiry conducted in the third quarter of 2003, 95.2% (approximately 2,419,000) of the employees who worked in the non-government sector (including those employed by individuals, private companies, non-profit making organisations and subvented organisations) had a fixed number of contractual days of work per week. Among them, 20.5% (approximately 496,300) were contracted to work five days or less per week. The supplementary enquiry did not collect information on the number of commercial organisations adopting a five-day week. A similar supplementary enquiry was conducted by C&SD in the second quarter of 2006, but the survey data is not yet available. We have not conducted any study to find out how many organisations in the private sector have followed the Government in implementing the five-day week arrangement.
(e) According to media reports, some organisations in the private sector have followed the Government's example in implementing the five-day week arrangement. However, we are not in a position to verify the accuracy or otherwise of these reports. The Government's policy is not to mandate a five-day week in Hong Kong. We consider individual organisations in the public and private sectors are in the best position to decide whether to adopt a five-day week having regard to their operational circumstances, needs of their clients, views of their staff, and so on.
(f) The General Holidays Ordinance, Cap. 149, sets out the days to be kept as holidays by banks, educational establishments, public offices and Government departments. These holidays are known as general holidays. Statutory holidays, i.e. the holidays to be granted by an employer to an employee, are provided under section 39 of the Employment Ordinance, Cap. 57. General holidays are not to be confused with statutory holidays. Sunday is a general holiday but not a statutory holiday, whilst Saturday is neither a general nor a statutory holiday. As the implementation of the five-day week has no impact on the designation of general or statutory holidays, it is not necessary to amend the General Holidays Ordinance.
Ends/Wednesday, November 1, 2006
Issued at HKT 12:54
NNNN
