Trade unionist calls for more safety culture checks
Trade unionist lawmaker, Lam Chun-sing, says authorities should investigate the safety culture at companies related to Aggressive Construction Engineering, following a series fatal accidents at the contractor. It will now be removed from several projects it is working on, affecting an estimated 900 workers.  "We need to pay attention, and for those companies, I think the Development Bureau or the Labour Department needs to do some inspections to monitor the situation," Lam said. Lam, who is the chairman of the Federation of Hong Kong and Kowloon Labour Unions, says he expects it could take the Development Bureau one to two months to find other firms to take over its projects. But he said he hoped other contractors would be able to take on Aggressive Construction's workers, with no loss of benefits. "I think the workers will still have job opportunities because the project is in progress and needs to be continued," Lam said. "But I hope the new contractor can maintain the benefits and salary levels of the workers." Meanwhile, a former head of the government's Geotechnical Engineering Office, Raymond Chan, said it is rare to see a firm de-registered, and the reason is usually unannounced. The government says three people involved in the firm have also been de-listed, and Chan explained this means the trio cannot take on new projects. "It means that the industry in general is not confident about them executing the regulations listed under the Buildings Ordinance," he told an RTHK programme. "This is the basic understanding – you're not recognised by the industry, then you're not suitable to do relevant works." On Wednesday, the government gave Aggressive Construction Engineering less than a month to wrap up its business._____________________________
Last updated: 2023-10-19 HKT 12:18 