****************************************************
Following is a question by the Hon Lee Cheuk-yan and a written reply by the Secretary for the Civil Service, Miss Denise Yue, on Non-Civil Service Contract staff's paid leave entitlement in the Legislative Council today (April 30):
Question:
Will the Government inform this Council of the current number of Non-Civil Service Contract staff who, in accordance with their terms of appointment, are not entitled to paid general holidays which are not statutory holidays, with a breakdown by government department?
Reply:
Madam President,
The Non-Civil Service Contract (NCSC) Staff Scheme, introduced in 1999, aims to provide Heads of Bureaux, Departments and Offices (hereafter shortened as HoDs) with a flexible means to employ staff on fixed term contracts outside the civil service establishment to meet service needs which are seasonal or time-limited or part-time, or subject to market fluctuations, or where the mode of delivery of the service is under review or likely to be changed (for example, through outsourcing). HoDs have the discretion to decide on the appropriate employment packages for their NCSC staff, subject to the two guiding principles that the terms and conditions for engaging NCSC staff should be no less favourable than those provided for under the Employment Ordinance (EO) and no more favourable than those applicable to civil servants in comparable civil service ranks or with comparable level of responsibilities.
NCSC staff are entitled to the rights provided for under the EO, including paid statutory holidays. HoDs also have the discretion to allow NCSC staff to be off-duty on general holidays which are not statutory holidays and grant pay for these days, having regard to their management needs and operational circumstances, such as when offices are closed.
Although the Civil Service Bureau is not involved in departments' employment of NCSC staff and does not centrally keep detailed information on the terms of appointment of NCSC staff in individual departments, we have specifically collected relevant information from the eight main user bureaux/departments (B/Ds) of the NCSC Staff Scheme (including the Buildings Department, Department of Health, Education Bureau, Electrical and Mechanical Services Department, Food and Environmental Hygiene Department, Hongkong Post, Leisure and Cultural Services Department and Social Welfare Department). These B/Ds altogether employed about 65% of all NCSC staff as at December 31, 2007. According to the information collected, about 70% of their NCSC staff were entitled to paid general public holidays in their terms of appointment while the remaining 30% (or about 3,300 staff) were not. For the latter, about half of them might in practice be given off-duty with pay on those holidays subject to the operational need. The details are at Annex.
Ends/Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Issued at HKT 14:15
NNNN
