In a speech on International Worker’s Day, Hong Kong’s Chief Executive Carrie Lam thanked the city’s workers for their continued contribution towards the prosperity and stability of Hong Kong. The city has come a long way after having to endure both the Covid-19 pandemic, as well as the political protests that came before.
Due to these disruptions over the past two years, Lam said the government has deployed a wide array of measures to stabilise employment, including multiple rounds of anti-pandemic funds and over HK$300 billion (US$38.62 billion) in economic relief packages.
Additionally, Lam also mentioned that the government will be placing a greater focus on improving the welfare of workers throughout the city, including submitting a bill to the Legislative Council to increase statutory holidays from 12 to 17 days in phases.
The government is also working to improve the mandatory provident fund schemes to meet workers’ retirement needs, and increase the penalty for violations of the occupational safety and health regulation to better protect workers.
As of now, pandemic control remains the top priority for the government, even as the threat of COVID-19 is receding, urging the public to receive the COVID-19 vaccine early in order to let Hong Kong’s social and economic activities return to normal as soon as possible, according to Xinhua.
