The Legislative Council passed the third reading of the latest amendment bill of the maximum penalty for serious offences under the Occupational Safety and Health Ordinance yesterday night which is now increased from HK500,000 to HK$10,000,000, side by side with two years imprisonment term for the violators.
Secretary for Labour and Welfare Chris Sun Yuk-Han said that the yearly cases of fatal industrial incidents stays at around 20 in the past 10 years. He said further that the situation is not getting much better because the penalty for the violation of the Occupational Safety and Health legislation is not serious enough to deter employers from taking safety issues as a priority.
Michael Luk Chung-hung from the Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions in his view added that it is not too bad to fine any company HK$10,000,000 if failed to implement any safety policies. He also advised that the Labour Department should be strengthening its efforts on the patrols. He said further that the system of assigning a safety officer has to be upgraded as he discovered that many safety officers have only duties but are not effective.
The representative from Liberal Party, Peter Shiu Ka-fai said he believed the amendment bill will be passed in the end, against all odds. However, he asked the government to clarify how an employer will be made responsible over an industrial incident and recommended stepping up promotion and training on safety awareness.
最新通過的安全法案可能會促使老闆被罰款100萬，如果違反將被判入獄2年
立法會昨晚三讀通過《職業安全及健康條例》下嚴重罪行的最高刑罰的最新修正案，由50萬港元增至1000萬港元，並可判處兩年徒刑。 違規者。
勞工及福利局局長孫玉漢表示，過去10年，每年致命工業事故個案維持在20宗左右。 他進一步表示，情況並沒有好轉，因為對違反職業安全與健康立法的處罰還不足以阻止雇主將安全問題放在首位。
香港工會聯合會的陸仲雄認為，如果公司沒有執行任何安全政策，罰款1000萬港元也不錯。 他還建議勞工處應加強巡邏工作。 他進一步表示，安全員的委派制度必須升級，因為他發現許多安全員只有職責，但沒有效用。
自由黨代表邵家輝表示，他相信修例會排除萬難，最終獲得通過。 不過，他要求政府澄清雇主如何對工業事故負責，並建議加強安全意識的宣傳和培訓。
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