HK construction worker falls to his death at Macau hotel site
A Hong Kong worker plunged to his death at a hotel construction site in Macau yesterday.
The 53-year-old man surnamed Tsang was found lying on a podium on the third floor of the building at the site of Crown Macau Hotel-Casino, which is owned by Melco PBL Entertainment, and at 32 floors, will be the tallest building on Taipa Island.
Macau police said the man was removing boards on the 15th floor about 11am when he lost his balance. He was taken to Conde de S. Januario Hospital, where he was certified dead. Police are investigating the cause of the accident.
Hong Kong Construction Industry Employees' General Union chairman Choi Chun-wah urged employers to provide extra insurance cover for Hong Kong workers on high-risk jobs in Macau.
'Many bosses buy insurance for Hong Kong workers according to the law in Macau, but compensation is not as good as the system in Hong Kong. Workers should also buy their own insurance before working in Macau,' he said.
Mr Choi said that in the case of a death, a worker's family could receive compensation of $1.7 million in Hong Kong, compared with just $400,000 in Macau.
'If a worker is paralysed in an industrial accident in Hong Kong, the compensation is about $1 million, maximum, which is double the amount in Macau,' he said.
'If a company is proven to have neglected workers' safety leading to their deaths or injuries, compensation can be up to several millions, or even hundreds of millions. But there is no such thing as safety negligence under the Macau system.'
Mr Choi said it would take some time to resolve differences in the cities' systems.
'The death of two Hong Kong construction workers last year already highlighted the need for extra insurance for our skilled labour working in Macau,' he said.
Last December, two Hong Kong workers, Leung Kai-ching and Lai Chun-kit, died when the arm of a crane snapped, sending debris plunging down on workers at the Macau Venetian Casino Resort project in Cotai.
