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Labour chief visits Beijing

July 28, 2016
Gender equality

Gender equality:  Secretary for Labour & Welfare Matthew Cheung meets All-China Women's Federation Vice-president Meng Xiaosi in Beijing.

Secretary for Labour & Welfare Matthew Cheung met with a women's group and work safety and social security officials in Beijing today, and visited an elderly service complex.

 

Meeting All-China Women's Federation Vice-president Meng Xiaosi, Mr Cheung said the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government has incorporated the gender mainstreaming concept into its major policies and measures to ensure both sexes have equal access to society's resources and opportunities.

 

The gender benchmark target for women's participation in government advisory and statutory bodies has grown from 30% to 35% to encourage the greater participation of women, he added.

 

The HKSAR Government is committed to enhancing women’s employment through comprehensive planning on child care and elderly care services, promotion of a family-friendly working environment, as well as the provision of more part-time jobs and retraining opportunities.

 

Mr Cheung then briefed the Director-General of General office (Department of International Co-operation & Department of Finance) of the State Administration of Work Safety Ou Guang on Hong Kong’s occupational safety developments.

 

The HKSAR Government and the Construction Industry Council forecast annual expenditure on public and private construction works will stay at a high level of over $200 billion in the coming years.

 

He said the Labour Department will strive to prevent accidents and liaise with the Administration of Work Safety of Guangdong to monitor and enhance safety at mega construction projects, particularly cross-boundary ones.

 

Mr Cheung also visited Beijing Social Welfare Institution No. 1, a large-scale elderly service complex with 1,100 residential places for residential care, medical, rehabilitation and nursing services.

 

In a meeting with Vice-Minister of Human Resources & Social Security Kong Changsheng, Mr Cheung said the labour market in Hong Kong is generally stable, with the unemployment rate steady at 3.4%, and wages and earnings recording continuous improvements.

 

The Government is determined to unleash the potential labour force of various groups by extending the retirement age to enable healthy elderly to continue working, he said, citing a measure that raises the age ceiling for the Category B Security Personnel Permit from 65 to 70.



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