The Labour Department handled 10,606 labour disputes and claims in the first five months of 2005, down 14% on the 12,331 cases in the same period in 2004.

Speaking at the "Seminar on Good People Management Practices", Permanent Secretary for Economic Development & Labour Matthew Cheung said the trend coincided with the reduction in the number of cases last year.

The Labour Department handled 28,666 labour disputes and claims for all of 2004 - a 16% drop compared with 2003.

"In the past four years, the number of working days lost because of strikes per 1,000 wage earners and salaried employees in Hong Kong was among the lowest in the world, standing at only 0.1 day on average. For the first five months of this year, not a single strike was recorded," he said.

Harmonious labour relations are conducive to maintaining social stability, he said, adding the Labour Department has been promoting harmonious workplace relations and enhancing employer-employee partnership through the concerted efforts of the labour sector, the management and the government.

Mr Cheung pointed out that every labour dispute or labour claim would inevitably have negative effects on an enterprise. If employees do not have to worry about their statutory or contractual entitlements, they can focus on their work. For the same reason, employers will be able to fully devote their energy and resources to the development and management of the enterprise.

For an enterprise to be truly successful, apart from achieving outstanding business results, it must also demonstrate its capacity in fulfilling its corporate social responsibility, he said.

"As employees are one of the most important partners of an enterprise, employers should discharge their corporate social responsibilities by investing in their employees," he added.

"They should provide them with reasonable benefits and protection with respect to their employment conditions and training opportunities. They should also provide adequate protection in the work environment and also take care of the employees' well-being and their families.

"Employers should also try to enhance the standard of work performance and abilities of employees. The enterprise should also actively explore ways to retain their employees.

"I firmly believe that with all these measures in place, the productivity of employees will be raised and the enterprise will become more competitive. This is a win-win situation," he said.

He also gave kudos to the Labour Department, for its increased efficiency: The average waiting time for conciliation for the claims it handled was shortened to 2.3 weeks in the first five months of this year, down from 3.4 weeks in 2004. At the same time, the successful conciliation rate has risen from 67.3% in 2004 to 69.3%, a record high since 1994, he said.