The Employment Support Scheme for the Construction Sector (ESSC) under the second round of the Anti-epidemic Fund will offer subsidies to construction sector employers who have employed casual employees on a long-term basis. The ESSC was opened for applications on July 6, and the application period will end on July 31 (Friday). Eligible construction sector employers wishing to apply for the subsidy should submit their applications before the deadline.

     As of yesterday (July 26), around 1 200 construction sector employers have submitted their applications for the ESSC. The Construction Industry Council (CIC) will process the applications expeditiously so as to provide assistance to eligible construction sector employers promptly.

     "We expect that the subsidy will be disbursed to applicants within six to eight weeks upon receipt of applications. The CIC will notify the applicants of the result via email, and arrange for the disbursement of the subsidies by autopay. The CIC will also publish the list of successful applicants, the amount of subsidies and their committed headcount of long-term casual employees on its website," a spokesman for the Development Bureau said today (July 27).

     The application form, authorisation and declaration form and undertaking form can be downloaded from the CIC's dedicated website (www.cic.hk/eng/main/anti_epidemic_fund_2nd/ess/).

     The Government has launched two rounds of the Anti-epidemic Fund so far. As of yesterday, more than $4.8 billion in subsidies had been disbursed to some 490 000 construction workers and some 19 000 construction-related enterprises. Apart from the ESSC, the application deadline for other subsidy schemes offered to the construction sector is August 31. Further details are available at www.cic.hk/eng/main/anti_epidemic_fund_2nd/.

Ends/Monday, July 27, 2020
Issued at HKT 14:46

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