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Citifine Limited was fined a total of $37,000 at the Kwun Tong Magistrates' Courts today (April 25) for wage and holiday pay offences under the Employment Ordinance. The prosecution was launched by the Labour Department.
The employer was fined $22,000 for failing to pay wages to three employees within seven days of the expiry of the wage period as required by the ordinance. The amount of wages involved was about $12,000.
In addition, the employer was also found failing to give holiday pay of five statutory holidays to the three employees within the statutory time limit under the ordinance. Thus he was fined $15,000.
According to Section 23 of the Employment Ordinance, wages due upon expiry of the last day of the wage period shall be paid as soon as practicable, but not later than seven days.
A spokesman for the Labour Department stressed that the maximum penalty for wage offences had been raised from March 30 this year - the fine going up from $200,000 to $350,000 and imprisonment from one year to three years.
Meanwhile, Section 40 of the Employment Ordinance stipulates that an employee having been employed under a continuous contract for not less than three months immediately preceding a statutory holiday is entitled to the holiday pay. Holiday pay should be paid to the employee not later than the day on which he is next paid his wages after that statutory holiday. Failing which the employer is liable to a maximum fine of $50,000.
The spokesman urged employees who were owed wages and holiday pay to immediately report to the department's complaint hotline on 2815 2200.
Ends/Tuesday, April 25, 2006
Issued at HKT 18:01
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