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As the summer vacation will soon begin, the Labour Department reminds employers to observe the Employment of Children Regulations and the Employment of Young Persons (Industry) Regulations when hiring employees aged below 18.
"Unless with prior approval of the Commissioner for Labour, no person shall employ children aged under 13 to work. While children aged 13 or 14 may be employed to work in non-industrial establishments, their employment is subject to the conditions laid down by the Employment of Children Regulations which include, among others, the written consent of the child's parent to the employment and the production by the parent to the prospective employer of evidence of the child's completion of Form III or a valid school attendance certificate, etc.," a Labour Department spokeswoman said.
"Those aged 15 or above may generally be employed to work in non-industrial establishments or industrial undertakings. But for those aged below 18 working in industrial undertakings, their working hours and the general conditions of employment are governed by the Employment of Young Persons (Industry) Regulations," she said.
"Any person who contravenes any provisions of the two regulations shall be guilty of an offence and is liable, upon conviction, to a maximum fine of $50,000. In 2009 up to the end of May, three employers had been convicted of breaching the regulations."
The spokeswoman highlighted several cases of unlawful employment of children for assisting the sale of books in bookstores and for distribution of flyers in streets during the summer months in past years. She said that the Labour Department would step up inspections particularly to shopping arcades or locations with a concentration of bookstores in the coming summer vacation to detect possible offences.
Employers are advised to refer to the annex for major provisions under the relevant regulations or obtain a copy of the Concise Guide to the Employment of Children Regulations and to the Employment of Young Persons (Industry) Regulations available at the Labour Department's website at www.labour.gov.hk/eng/public.content2_2.htm, or call the enquiry hotline at 2717 1771 for more details on the regulations.
Ends/Saturday, June 27, 2009
Issued at HKT 14:00
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