In this issue: Free #HK45| Labour Rights Analysis | Hong Kong Diaspora | Event Recap | HK Labour Rights Newsflash
Solidarity with the 47 Pro-democracy Activists
Carol Ng, former Chair of the Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions (HKCTU), and Winnie Yu, former Chair of the Hospital Authority Employees Alliance, are two of 45 pro-democracy activists sentenced to prison terms ranging from four years and two months to ten years for their involvement in the primary election. International worker organisations and overseas Hong Kong groups have expressed deep concern about the primary election case.
Around a week after the sentence, more than ten labour unions in France, Australia, Canada, the Netherlands, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, Spain, the Philippines, and Myanmar stood in solidarity and condemned the sentence. International trade unions, including the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), BWI Global Union, and the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) were among those who expressed concern. The Swedish Trade Union Confederation, LO, France’s Force Ouvrière (FO) and Spain’s largest labour union, Comisiones Obreras (CCOO), have urged their respective foreign ministers to press the Hong Kong government to free the 45 pro-democracy activists imprisoned in the primary election case. They have also written to Chinese consulates in their countries to express their strong dissatisfaction over the imprisonment
Beyond the UK, Hong Kong diaspora communities in Canada, the US, Australia, Taiwan and other nations have organised demonstrations in support of the 47 Democrats, denouncing the case as human rights violations and demanding the immediate release of all political prisoners.
Photo credit: VAHK Vancouver Activists of HK
Labour Rights Analysis
What lies behind the series of fatal industrial accidents?
A series of fatal industrial accidents continue to claim lives, with six workers tragically losing their lives in November alone—heartbreaking and alarming. Each worker who perished left behind grieving families and loved ones, adding immense emotional weight to these tragedies, particularly when considering the struggles of these shattered working-class households.
Labour Department officials have urged the industry to avoid prioritizing speed and convenience, promising to enhance education and publicity. However, this rhetoric often shifts blame onto individual workers, sidestepping the deeper systemic causes of these accidents.
The true roots of the problem lie in structural failings: lenient penalties for safety violations, exploitative multi-layer subcontracting systems, and a lowest-bid procurement approach. These systemic issues, effectively entrenched, foster widespread negligence toward occupational safety. Unless the government confronts these core institutional flaws with decisive reform, the relentless cycle of industrial accidents will likely persist unabated.
Graphic credit: RFA Cantonese
Hong Kong Diaspora
Former Civil Human Rights Front Vice-Convenor, Vincent Lam, Calls on Hong Kong Diaspora to Keep Fighting for Justice
In September, Vincent Lam, former vice convenor of Hong Kong’s Civil Human Rights Front (CHRF), organised an exhibition in London titled “Behind the Struggle.” The exhibition showcased numerous T-shirts related to various protests in Hong Kong, including the Umbrella Movement in 2014, the Anti-Extradition Law Movement in 2019, as well as other significant protest events such as the 1989 Tiananmen Square commemoration and labour strikes in Hong Kong.
Lam, who fled to the UK three years ago, curated the exhibition to remind the world of Hong Kong’s ongoing fight for democracy and justice.
Event
Labour Rights Talk for Hongkongers in Stockport
Workplace Safety Concerns: Your Right to Stop Work
In November, we teamed up with the Stockport Hongkongers CIG for a labour rights talk in Stockport, just south of Manchester. The goal was clear: to empower the local Hong Kong community with essential knowledge of UK labour laws. The session covered everything from wages, working hours, and holiday entitlements to the Labour Government’s proposed 2024 Employment Rights Bill, which could affect Hongkongers working in the UK.
A key focus was workplace safety—an issue close to everyone’s heart. UK law mandates that employers provide a safe working environment, and if workers spot hazards, they are required to report them immediately. But here’s the big takeaway: if a situation feels unsafe, employees have the legal right to stop work or refuse to enter dangerous premises until it’s resolved.
We also took the opportunity to reflect on the history of Hong Kong’s independent labour movement, which has long been intertwined with the fight for democracy. In light of the recent sentencing in the HK47 primary case, this reminder of the deep connection between labour rights and social justice was especially poignant.
HK Labour Rights Newsflash
- Hong Kong Lags in Protecting Platform Workers’ Rights <Read more>
- Three UK-Vodafone Merger Sparks Concerns Over CCP Surveillance on Overseas Dissidents <Read more>
- South Korea’s Foreign Domestic Worker Pay 1.6 Higher than HK at HK$13,000 (Chinese only) <Read more>
- Labour Rights Analysis | Government’s Talent Recruitment Plan Doomed to Fail (Chinese only) <Read more>