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Two contractors were and five construction workers were sentenced at the Kowloon City Magistrates' Courts today (September 7) for conspiring to pervert the course of justice. The contractors were each sentenced to four months' jail and the workers to 200 hours each of community service.
While investigating a wage complaint at a construction site and verifying applications for ex gratia payments from the Protection of Wages on Insolvency Fund (PWIF), the Labour Department (LD) detected that the abovementioned persons might be involved in submitting false employment information and wage claims to LD and the Labour Tribunal in 2008. They fraudulently claimed that the five construction workers' wages were not yet cleared, with the intent that the project principal contractor would pay the wages on behalf of the contractors. There were also signs of abuse of the PWIF.
The LD referred the case to the Police, who subsequently prosecuted the two contractors and five workers pursuant to the Common Law and the Crimes Ordinance. The workers and the contractors pleaded guilty to the charges on May 25 and August 16 respectively this year. The sentences were delivered today.
The LD spokesman welcomed the court judgment and said, "We endeavour to combat wage offences and PWIF abuses. If any other suspected crimes or offences are detected during our investigation, we will refer the cases to the Police or other appropriate law enforcement departments for action."
Ends/Tuesday, September 7, 2010
Issued at HKT 16:43
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