​The Secretary for Environment and Ecology, Mr Tse Chin-wan, will depart for Lima, Peru, this evening (August 13) to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Energy Ministerial Meeting (EMM). &nbs… read more
​As the Heat Stress at Work Warning is now in effect, the Labour Department (LD) reminds employers and employees to take appropriate measures during the effective period of the warning to prevent heat stroke when working in hot weather or hot environments.
Employees who work outdoors or in non-air-conditioned indoor environments face high levels of heat stress and are at a relatively higher risk of heat stroke. Employers should assess the risk factors of heat stress for employees at work and, based on the identified risk factors, take necessary preventive and control measures, including rescheduling work periods, setting up shading covers, providing ventilation and heat dissipation equipment, and reminding employees to replenish water and rest in a timely manner.
The Heat Stress at Work Warning is formulated by the LD based on the Hong Kong Heat Index. There are three levels of the warning: Amber, Red and Black, which help employers and employees better understand the level of heat stress while working outdoors or indoors without air-conditioning systems.
A spokesman for the LD said that when the department issues the Heat Stress at Work Warning, employers must refer to the criteria and recommendations provided in the “Guidance Notes on Prevention of Heat Stroke at Work” to conduct risk assessments, according to the workloads and other relevant heat stress risk factors, for employees who work outdoors or in non-air-conditioned indoor workplaces. Appropriate rest breaks should be arranged every hour, as far as reasonably practicable, based on various levels of the Heat Stress at Work Warning, to reduce employees’ risk of heat stroke.
Employees must also follow instructions to rest on time. Whenever there are any symptoms of heat-related illnesses, such as headache, dizziness, thirst, and nausea, they should rest in a cool and shady place, drink water, and inform employers/supervisors to take appropriate action immediately.
The LD issued the “Guidance Notes on Prevention of Heat Stroke at Work”, detailing the various risk factors that should be considered when conducting heat stress risk assessments and recommending corresponding control measures for identified risk factors for employers’ and employees’ reference. For the Heat Stress at Work Warning and related guidelines, please refer to the department’s thematic webpage: www.labour.gov.hk/eng/news/prevention_of_heat_stroke_at_work.htm. read more
Supported by the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office (Toronto) (Toronto ETO), six Hong Kong movies will be screened at the Mulan International Film Festival in Toronto, Canada, showcasing the multi-faceted movie culture an… read more
The following is issued on behalf of the Legislative Council Secretariat:
The delegation of the Legislative Council (LegCo) Panel on Education began the four-day duty visit to Shanghai and Suzhou today (August 12) to learn about the latest development of the two cities in promoting patriotic education, strengthening research-academic-industry collaboration, expediting digital transformation in education and enhancing the quality of education services.
The delegation arrived at Shanghai in the morning and first visited the Grand neoBay of Shanghai Jiao Tong University to receive a briefing on the development of Grand neoBay and visit the 1km Incubator exhibition hall. Positioning as a world-class innovation bay area, Grand neoBay comprehensively promotes the transfer of scientific and technological achievements. At present, the Grand neoBay has a cluster of over 4 000 technology enterprises and over 600 high-tech enterprises.
The delegation then visited Shanghai Jiao Tong University Student Innovation Center and exchanged views with the leaders of the university on how to cultivate students’ creative and entrepreneurial spirit. Members also visited Minhang Special School for Mentally Retarded Children to understand its education services provided for students with intellectual and physical disabilities.
In the evening, the delegation had dinner and exchanged views with the leaders of East China Normal University on issues such as patriotic education, teacher training and digital transformation in primary and secondary education, etc.
The delegation will continue its duty visit in Shanghai tomorrow (August 13).
A total of 14 members and non-members of the Panel on Education joined the duty visit. At the invitation of the Panel, the Secretary for Education, Dr Choi Yuk-lin, also joined the duty visit.
The Court of Final Appeal (CFA) today (August 12) unanimously dismissed the appeals of seven appellants including Lai Chee-ying arising out of their knowingly taking part in an unauthorised assembly on August 18, 2019. The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government welcomes the CFA’s judgment.
The CFA reiterated that the defendants’ applications for leave to appeal on the ground of challenging the trial Judge’s factual findings had been refused. The court also stated in its judgment that the appellants’ constitutional challenges against section 17A(3)(a) of the Public Order Ordinance (Cap. 245) had failed, and they had not raised any constitutional challenge against the Commissioner of Police’s decision to ban the march, and that was not to suggest that such a challenge would have succeeded as there were compelling reasons to accept that the Commissioner of Police’s decision had been constitutionally sound and proportionate.
The CFA has explained and modified the legal concept of “operational proportionality”, placing it in the well-established framework for constitutional challenges in this jurisdiction. In view of the differences between the respective frameworks for human rights challenges in Hong Kong and the United Kingdom (UK), the court also held that the decisions of the two UK cases should not be followed in Hong Kong, and rejected the appellants’ argument that each of a defendant’s arrest, prosecution, conviction and sentence must be separately justified as proportionate.
The HKSAR Government reiterated that Hong Kong citizens have the rights to peaceful assembly and procession conducted in accordance with the law. That said, these rights must be exercised in conformity with the relevant legislation to ensure the safeguarding of national security, public order, public safety and the protection of the rights and freedom of others. The impact of such public events on members of the public should also be minimised.
The HKSAR Government spokesman said, “Hong Kong residents have the obligation to abide by the laws in force in the HKSAR. Equality before the law is one of the fundamental facets of the rule of law, and all persons, regardless of race, rank, politics or religion, are subject to the laws of the land.” read more