Largest Independent Trade Union to Disband

Today the CTU announced it has voted to disband

Hong Kong's largest independent trade union has voted to disband due to "political uncertainty" making it difficult for it to continue.

The Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions voted 57 in favour of dissolving, eight voted against and two abstained.

At a press briefing the CTU refused to elaborate on where the "political pressure" was coming from, saying it was clear and there was no need to explain.

The CTU is an umbrella group of 75 unions

"We all feel it is politically uncertain to continue to run the Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions. We have no further elaborations on that. But in the meeting, all our affiliates understood the situation and made the hard decision. Of course, it is a heartbreaking decision," said CTU vice chairman Leo Tang Kin-wah.

The 2019 anti-government protests sparked a 35 percent increase in registered trade unions, though now many are scrambling to disband as quickly as possible following the implementation of the national security law.

At least 29 trade unions have disbanded since the beginning of this year.

Tang had said earlier that members of the CTU had received threats to their safety without going into further details.

Pro-Beijing media had claimed the CTU was "a foreign agent" or "colluding with foreign forces" because of its affiliation with the International Trade Union Confederation, an accusation both CTU and ITUC deny.

"To suggest there is some collusion with HKCTU or other union leaders, with the international community is to simply misunderstand the global solidarity that is part of our DNA," said Sharan Burrows, the General Secretary of the ITUC.

The CTU was active in the 2019 protests

Maya Wang of Human Rights Watch says unions in Hong Kong are becoming like those on the mainland.

"Unions will be subject to greater scrutiny if they are not already. In that way, it's very similar to the mainland where labour activism is considered threatening by authorities, where there is no independent labour activism organized," she said.

During its existence, the CTU helped construction, dock and cleaning workers get back wages withheld by employers and negotiated on their behalf for increased salaries to be in line with inflation. The CTU also has 15 training centres offering more than 200 vocational courses.

As an umbrella group made up of 75 unions, the CTU also helped fight for improved maternity leave from 10 weeks to 14, increase sick leave compensation, and help legislate the city's first minimum wage bill.

How are workers in Hong Kong going to fight for their rights now without the CTU?

 

The Confederation of Trade Unions Folds Under Pressure

Wong (in blue) confirmed the union will disband next month

 

Another group has decided to disband, this time the Confederation of Trade Unions, which was critical of the government during the protests in 2019 and encouraged people to take part in general strikes.

Yesterday the opposition trade union's chief executive Mung Siu-tat announced on Facebook that he had resigned from the union and had left Hong Kong. He said he was forced to make a choice between two identities -- being a father and the CTU's chief executive.

Mung posted in Facebook he left Hong Kong

Today the union confirmed it was disbanding and expects to dissolve next month over concerns for "members' personal safety".

"Over the past one to two weeks, our members have received more messages," said chairman Joe Wong Nai-yuen. "We felt that the continued operation of the CTU could bring risks to members' personal safety. When our existence itself is already an original sin, even with the resignation of our leaders, it would not make a difference."

He did not say who the message came from or what they were about.

Speaking at a press conference at the confederation's offices in Yau Ma Tei, Wong was emotional when he said that after thorough discussions and "considering the risks and costs of continuing to run the CTU", the union's executive committee members had agreed to begin the process to fold during a meeting on Thursday.

The confederation was active in the 2019 protests

There will be an extraordinary general meeting held on October 3, and will need four-fifths of the votes from participating affiliated unions to support the dissolution to go ahead.

"I also hope to apologize to our affiliated unions, as well as all Hongkongers, as we, the CTU, can no longer hold on and march forward," Wong said.

He added 20, or most of the confederation's executive committee had already resigned, leaving just him, the vice-chairman, and the treasurer to handle the disbandment.

The CTU is one of the opposition and activist groups targeted by pro-Beijing media claiming it was "colluding with foreign forces" when it advocated general strikes and encouraged workers to set up new trade unions to demand greater democracy.  

At the time the CTU refuted the claim, saying having links with international labour unions was "legal" and normal practice.

The CTU was involved in 2013 dock worker strike

The union has links with some large groups, including the Professional Teachers' Union and the Civil Human Rights Front, both of which have already decided to fold under pressure from the authorities.

The CTU was started in 1990 and was co-founded by former opposition lawmaker Lee Cheuk-yan, and 31 years later represented more than 80 affiliates, and around 140,000 members as of last month. It was influential in labour movements, including the 2013 strike by dock workers which lasted 40 days.

Lee is currently in jail serving a 14-month sentence for unauthorized assembly, and earlier this month was charged with inciting subversion in relation to the annual June 4 candlelight vigil.

In addition, the CTU announced it will gradually stop running around 200 courses at its 15 centres which will affect around 1,000 people.

Lee Cheuk-yan co-founded the CTU in 1990

Many of the training courses had helped workers switch careers at retirement, such as becoming security guards or cleaners.

Lam Kam-piu, chairman of the 500-member New World First Bus Company Staff Union, an affiliate of the CTU, said he regretted the confederation's plans to disband, but understood the reasons for doing so.

"It is also a pity that our government isn't tolerant enough," he said.

Clashes Continue Despite Coronavirus

About 100 people held a protest at IFC Mall during lunchtime today

Today there were no new coronavirus cases to report, but anti-government protests restarted with social distancing in mind.

At lunchtime in IFC Mall in Central, almost 100 protesters gathered in the atrium and chanted the slogan, "Liberate Hong Kong, revolution of our times" with someone dressed up as cartoon cat Doraemon, while other supporters encircled the area.

Martin Lee was one of 15 people arrested last Saturday

They were protesting last Saturday's wave of arrests of 15 prominent lawyers, activists and legislators for the anti-government protests last year, and the recent criticism of pan-democrat legislators by the liaison office and the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, claiming they had the power to oversee Hong Kong.

Many feel these recent events show Beijing's resolve in doing away with "one country, two systems" and bring Hong Kong into line by finally passing Article 23, the subversion law.

They also believe Beijing is using the period during the pandemic to crack down on dissent and make it harder for protesters to push back with social-distancing measures in place.

Meanwhile the upcoming annual May 1 Labour Day application to march has been banned by the police, citing the coronavirus outbreak.

At IFC mall protesters kept social distancing measures

The Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions had applied for the march and would practice social distancing by marching in groups of four, according to the current public order ordinance.

"A lot of us are waiting for a march to express opinions. Police should not be in our way," was written in the application, adding Hongkongers wanted to speak out about coronavirus-related economic measures.

However, the police rejected the application on the grounds that it was a high-risk activity:

"Police have grounds to believe that the activists do not only increase the risk of infecting COVID-19 by participants and other people, but also pose serious threat to the lives and health of all citizens, jeopardizing public safety and affecting the rights of others."

The May 1 Labour Day march last year, banned this year

Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor has said if single-digit or no new cases continue, restrictions could be lifted May 7, which is why pro-democracy activists are also applying for a protest march on May 10 in Kowloon.

Each side is digging in their heels even deeper, resulting in greater resolve and more clashes ahead.

Fact of the Day: Hongkongers are Overworked

Hongkongers are some of the most overworked people in the world

A study released today has found one in five employees work an average of 11 hours a day, with security guards working the most.

The Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions analyzed the latest labour data from the Census and Statistics Department and found 20 percent of the city's 3 million employees worked an average of 55 hours per week last year, or an average of 11 hours a day for a five-day work week.

Half of food and drink employees work 56 hours a week

"Hong Kong employees have been working super long hours for years," says Mung Siu-tat, chief executive of the confederation. "This is because the government has never taken any concrete measures to ease this problem, which has been harming workers' family well-being, health and even lives."

People who work in security, food and drink, land transport, construction and retail industries have the longest working hours.

Almost half of security guards work 56 hours a week, a quarter of them work a staggering 72 hours. Also almost half of food and drink employees work 56 hours a week, along with one-quarter of land transport workers, 16 percent of construction workers and 16 percent of retail employees.

On top of that their salaries hardly compensate for the hours worked -- entry- and mid-level employees saw an average growth in their salaries of just 0.7 percent between 2008 to 2018 -- after taking into account inflation rates, while gross domestic product per capita rose annually by 2 percent.

"This shows that even though employees work so hard, they cannot get reasonable returns," Mung says.

Many security guards work 12 hours shifts, six days a week

While the government set up a Standard Working Hours Committee in 2013, it was only two years ago that the committee recommended the government require employers to establish agreements with entry-level employees about working hours and overtime compensation arrangements.

But the government has so far only promised to introduce working hours guidelines in 11 industries, with no plans announced yet to legislate standard working hours.

This shows the government doesn't care about the city's 3 million workers, the ones who keep Hong Kong's capitalistic characteristics functioning, whether it be feeding people, selling customers products, or making sure a property is safe from intruders.

Instead it's all about helping companies squeeze out as much labour as they can from their staff to ensure a profitable bottom line. If they're burned out, just hire the next person.

In 2016 financial services firm UBS released a study of working hours among 71 world cities and found Hong Kong workers had the longest.

Is this something we really want to brag about?