HONG KONG (SE): With new vaccine pass arrangements due to come into play on February 24, the Diocesan Commission for Labour Affairs urged the Hong Kong government to include exemptions for people who are unfit to take vaccines in light of plans to amend the Employment Ordinance. The amendments would allow employers to sack unvaccinated employees without being accused of unfair dismissal. At the same time, the commission welcomed proposed amendments that would protect quarantined employees from unreasonable dismissal or salary deduction.
Hong Kong’s chief executive, Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, announced the proposed amendments at a press conference on February 8. The vaccine pass will cover a total of 23 types of premises with those who received at least one vaccine jab being allowed to enter.
Law Pui-shan, policy research officer of the commission, called on the government to grant exemptions to employees who are unfit, or temporarily unfit, to receive injections on medical grounds so that they will not worry about being sacked.
“The government should give exemptions so that people who really cannot receive injections or unable to do it for a period of time can have the allowance and not be dismissed,” Law said.
She acknowledged that it is not easy at present to get a medical certificate to prove that a person is not fit to receive vaccines. She believes the exemption mechanism should include specific guidelines to follow.
“The most important point is that there is a need for an exemption mechanism and the government should ensure that this mechanism can be effectively implemented,” she said.
The government should give exemptions so that people who really cannot receive injections or unable to do it for a period of time can have the allowance and not be dismissed,
Law Pui-shan
The labour commission also welcomed the proposed amendment making it unlawful to dismiss employees who cannot go to work due to a government-imposed lockdown or compulsory quarantine will. Under such conditions, an employer can be charged with unreasonable dismissal.
It also supported the legal clarification from the government that any medical certificate or mandatory quarantine order issued by the Department of Health will be considered a valid medical certificate to determine whether the employee is eligible for statutory sickness allowance.
The commission stressed that quarantined employees are already entitled to sick leave and protected from being dismissed under the existing law. However, the proposed amendment would make it easier to prosecute employers who refused to pay or even dismissed their employees for such reasons.
“We hope that the amendments can be made as soon as possible so that employers and employees know what rules to follow and employees in quarantine do not need to worry about salary deductions or losing their jobs,” Law said.
The commission organised an online talk on labour rights under the existing Employment Ordinance for employees who were quarantined in Kwai Chung Estate or other areas on February 5.
It was held in response to the quarantine which lasted seven days at the end of January, triggering some concerns about labour issues for employees stranded there.
