HONG KONG - The initial statutory minimum wage rate recommendation will be submitted to the city's Chief Executive next month, Hong Kong Secretary for Labor and Welfare Matthew Cheung said here Saturday.
Speaking on a local radio talk show on Saturday, Cheung said the community is concerned about the rate and have been expressing their views and demands.
The city's Provisional Minimum Wage Commission has conducted extensive consultations, meeting 100 stakeholder groups and receiving 7,500 submissions, he said.
The commission comprises a chairperson and 12 members drawn from the labor sector, business community, academia and government officials. The chairperson and non-official members are appointed on a personal basis and not as representatives of their organizations.
Cheung was confidence that an appropriate rate would be set by the commission and he hoped the initial statutory minimum wage would come on stream in the first half of 2011.
The Legislative Council of Hong Kong passed the Minimum Wage Ordinance on July 17, which aims to establish an optimal statutory minimum wage regime to provide an hourly wage floor to forestall excessively low wages without unduly affecting labor market flexibility, economic growth and competitiveness or causing significant loss in low-paid jobs.
