The Labour Department (LD) today (June 26) suspended the recognition of the Mandatory Basic Safety Training Course (Construction Work) (commonly known as the Green Card Course) organised by the Federation of Hong Kong and Kowloon Labour Unions under the Factories and Industrial Undertakings Ordinance (Cap. 59) for a period of six months, until December 25, 2026.
 
     The LD found that the Federation of Hong Kong and Kowloon Labour Unions had violated the approval conditions for operating the courses, including an examiner (a staff member of the training course provider) disclosing answers to trainees during the re-examination, an examiner and an invigilator failing to invigilate the examinations in a proper manner resulting in their inability to detect trainees cheating, insufficient staff being present to invigilate certain exam periods, and the re-examination being conducted in a training venue that was not approved by the Commissioner for Labour.
 
     After conducting thorough investigations and gathering evidence, and taking into account the explanations and representations provided by the Federation of Hong Kong and Kowloon Labour Unions and the relevant persons, the LD decided to suspend its recognition of the Green Card Course for six months. At the request of the LD, the Federation of Hong Kong and Kowloon Labour Unions has recalled and cancelled most of the Green Cards concerned. Two Green Cards (the numbers are listed in the Annex), which have not yet been recalled, have also been invalidated.
 
     A spokesman for the LD said, "The LD is highly concerned about the quality of mandatory safety training courses. The LD has increased manpower to monitor compliance with approval conditions by recognised training course providers, with a view to maintaining training standards and providing workers with appropriate occupational safety and health (OSH) training. If a training course provider does not comply with the approval conditions set by the LD, its recognition to operate the relevant courses will be withdrawn or suspended. The LD will continue to closely monitor the quality of all training course providers and their trainers and strive to enhance the standard of OSH in Hong Kong."
 
     There are 125 training course providers offering the recognised Green Card Course. Relevant course information has been uploaded to the LD's website (www.labour.gov.hk/eng/osh/content5.htm) for public reference. Individuals interested in enrolling may contact these training course providers. For enquiries, please call the LD's OSH Training Centre hotline at 2940 7064, or the department's OSH advisory service hotline at 2559 2297.

Ends/Friday, June 26, 2026
Issued at HKT 11:00

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