Officials check contracts of MIRROR dancers
Labour minister Chris Sun said on Saturday that officials are checking whether dancers at last week's concert by boyband MIRROR are actually self-employed and the implications this might have. Two dancers were injured at the concert on Thursday last week, after a large video panel fell on-stage. One of them remains in critical condition in hospital. When asked whether the contractual status of the dancers might affect any compensation, Sun said in general that even if a worker had signed a self-employed contract, he or she might still be an employee. Factors, he said, include whether they can self-finance or have the authority to decide how they operate. "It depends on the facts rather than what kind of a document was signed. The Labour Department is in the process of seeking information from the companies concerned and is liaising with dancers," the minister told reporters after attending radio programmes. "We hope that, with our mediation, they'll be able to determine later on whether or not the dancers are self-employed or they're indeed employees." Sun said in the event of the two sides not being able to reach a consensus over the employment status, they might have to go to court.  He said in the meantime, officials were also investigating whether anyone had violated occupational safety laws over the concert - and that prosecution remained an option. The Association for Rights of Industrial Accident Victims has been calling on the government to regulate stage safety in the same way as suspended working platforms at construction sites. Sun said in response that he thinks the two things are not comparable, noting that there are more variables for different performance stages. When asked what concrete measures the government would take to avoid a repeat of the incident, the minister said that would have to wait for the task force looking into the case had completed its work.