Swift launch of support plan needed

April 9, 2020

The Employment Support Scheme should be launched as soon as possible, Secretary for Labour & Welfare Dr Law Chi-kwong said today.

 

The Chief Executive on April 8 announced relief measures to help individuals and businesses tide over financial difficulties during the COVID-19 epidemic, including the $80 billion scheme, under which wage subsidies would be provided to eligible employers.

 

Speaking to the media after attending a radio programme this morning, Dr Law said the scheme should be implemented in a quick and simple manner to provide timely assistance to employers and their workers.

 

"If we examine the conditions of a particular company or employer before we provide the subsidy, it will take a lot of administrative work - we would have to employ a lot of people to look at each individual transaction history of each employer and that will take a very long time and incur a very heavy administrative cost.

 

“Looking at the epidemic right now, it has impacted almost all industries with some exceptions. It is very important for us to launch the programme as soon as possible.

 

“So, it is key to make it quickly so it must be quite simple. Otherwise, a very complex system requiring a long time to set up would not serve our present purpose.”

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