社評雙語道：保持理性對話爭取標準工時

http://paper.wenweipo.com [2015-10-28]

放大圖片

■有意見指標準工時能夠維護勞工權益，但也有人指「一刀切」立法會增加中小企成本。資料圖片

標準工時委員會6名勞方委員，要求委員會就標準工時立法提出具體方案，否則考慮集體退出委員會。

標準工時委員會由勞資雙方代表、學者、社會人士和政府官員共同組成，成立至今已有兩年，就此議題收集了不少數據，並進行過多次評估，今年年底將展開第二次諮詢。

委員會中的勞方代表認為，委員會至今仍未有就標準工時立法提出具體方案，諮詢流於空泛，更不滿委員會欲以「標準合約立法」取代「標準工時立法」，因此作如此表態。

與世界發達經濟體相比，香港工時較長，設立標準工時有助增強對勞工權益、福利的保障。另一方面，有人認為設立標準工時會增加僱主的經營成本，尤其是「一刀切」立法要求各行各業實施標準工時，對於以中小企為主的本港企業來說，或會削弱經營靈活性，可能令中小企難以承受。

標準工時立法，應該參考落實最低工資的成功經驗，勞資雙方秉承互諒互讓的傳統，希望勞資雙方都不要意氣用事，堅持透過對話，求同存異。

Keep conversations for standard working hours

Six labour representatives have threatened to quit the Standard Working Hours Committee unless it can come up with specific proposals on the standard working hours legislation.

The Committee comprises members drawn from the labour and business sectors, the academia, the community and the government. Established for two years, it has collected numerous data and conducted various assessments on the issue, and the second consultation is set to conduct by the end of this year.

The labour representatives took this move to denounce the fact that the Committee has yet to put forth specific legislative proposals, and that the first consultation was overly general, who are still more frustrated by the Committee's intention to regulate working hours through job contracts instead.

Working hours in Hong Kong are longer than other developed economies in the world. Some argue a standard would bolster the protection of labour rights and well being, while some fear standard working hours would increase the costs of employers, especially when an across-the-board legislative approach causes uniform working hours for different market sectors. This could be a severe blow to small and medium local enterprises as operational flexibility may be hampered.

The legislation on standard working hours should learn from the experience of the successfully implemented minimum wage, where both the labour and employer sides showed mutual respect and understanding, cast aside differences and resolved disputes through conversations.■Jeffrey Tse

[ywc_jeffrey@hotmail.com]

Learning Point

本文繼上期後再以社會政策為主題，焦點轉至勞工福利保障。讀者可以此機會，延伸對香港公共政策不同範疇的討論。

Exercise

1. 超時工作

2. 學術界

3. 諮詢

4. 立法

5. 權益

6. 「一刀切」

7. 中小企

8. 最低工資