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The Immigration Department yesterday (July 15) arrested seven illegal workers and three suspected employers during a territory-wide anti-illegal workers operation codenamed "Twilight".
Operation "Twilight" began at 8am and ended at 7pm yesterday. Immigration Task Force officers raided 23 target locations including restaurants, a bone-setting clinic, refuse collection points, a hair salon and flats under renovation. The seven illegal workers comprise five men and two women aged between 22 and 44. Two men and one woman aged between 41 and 60 were suspected of employing the illegal workers.
"Visitors are not allowed to take employment in Hong Kong, whether paid or unpaid, without the permission of the Director of Immigration. Offenders are liable to prosecution and upon conviction face a maximum fine of $50,000 and up to two years' imprisonment," an Immigration Department spokesman said.
The spokesman also appealed to employers not to employ illegal workers, warning that it is an offence to employ people who are not lawfully employable. The maximum penalty is a fine of $350,000 and imprisonment for three years. It is also an offence if an employer fails to inspect the job seeker's identity card or, if the job seeker does not have a Hong Kong permanent identity card, his or her valid travel document. The maximum penalty for failing to do so is a fine of $150,000 and imprisonment for one year. To deter unlawful employment, the High Court laid down sentencing guidelines in 2004 reaffirming that it is a serious offence to employ someone who is not legally employable, and stating that the employer of an illegal worker should be given an immediate custodial sentence.
Ends/Tuesday, July 16, 2013
Issued at HKT 16:50
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