Today (28 April) marks Workers’ Memorial Day and two years since Hong Kong introduced tougher penalties for workplace safety violations. Yet, critics say the courts still impose disproportionately small fines, undermining the law’s intended deterrent effect.
Since the amended law went into effect on 28 April 2023, the Labour Department has prosecuted 25 industrial accidents under the new rules. As of the end of February, only four cases have led to convictions, totalling 16 conviction summonses. So far, the biggest fine is only HK$120,000, or 4% of the HK$3 million maximum.
The average fine per conviction summons in fatal industrial accidents has stayed just above HK$20,000 over the last three fiscal years, showing little sign of increase and the limited deterrent effect of the amended legislation.
The Legislative Council passed the Occupational Safety and Occupational Health Legislation (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill 2022 in April 2023. It raised the maximum fine for indictable offences from HK$500,000 to HK$10 million, with a maximum prison sentence of two years. For summary offences, employer liability fines rose from HK$500,000 to HK$3 million, and employee liability from HK$50,000 to HK$150,000.
Lax Enforcement Under New Law
The Labour Commissioner recently informed the Legislative Council Finance Committee that out of the 449 prosecutions filed under the new law, only four fatal cases had resulted in convictions.
One of the more serious cases took place on 16 May 2023, when a construction worker at the Central Kowloon Route site in To Kwa Wan was struck and killed by a forklift while helping to move an overhead platform. The Labour Department prosecuted both the forklift operator and the contractor, resulting in three convictions and a total fine of HK$210,000. The biggest fine among them, HK$120,000, was just 4% of the HK$3 million new maximum penalty.
In the other three convicted cases, each involving three to six summonses, fines ranged from HK$2,500 to HK$80,000—far below the new legal ceiling.
Average Fines Remain Low Over Three Years
Between 2021 and 2024, the Labour Department filed 146 to 252 prosecutions each year for fatal workplace incidents, with 115 to 166 convictions annually. However, the average fine per conviction has barely changed:
- 2021–22: HK$23,117
- 2022–23: HK$21,332
- 2023–24: HK$24,007
These figures reflect a consistent trend of lenient sentencing, even when lives are lost.
The Ombudsman previously reported that from 2018 to 2023, the average fine for violating occupational safety laws ranged from HK$8,000 to HK$10,500. Given the scale of construction budgets and profits, such penalties offer little deterrence. Shockingly, some contractors racked up 77 and 56 times during that period, treating legal fines as mere costs of doing business.
Labour and Welfare Secretary Chris Sun promised to review the reform’s impact after two years. Now that the deadline has arrived, the data makes it clear: the tougher law lacks teeth. The government must urgently plug the gaps to ensure real protection for workers.
Photo: Inmediahk