Arrangement sets bad example and could push more people into poverty, say critics

The Executive Council will be lobbied to halt the Government's plan to claw back Mandatory Provident Fund (MPF) contributions to civil servants from their end-of-contract gratuities.

Opponents say the new arrangement sets a bad example to the private sector and could push more people into poverty.

When the MPF comes into operation on December 1, the Government plans to cut the gratuity paid to contract-term civil servants by one dollar for every dollar paid by the administration into the workers' MPF fund, so that in effect civil servants will pay their own and the Government's contributions.

About 7,000 contract staff in such departments as the police, health, justice, education and lands and thousands of workers in contracted-out firms will be affected. Most only learned of the changes during MPF seminars organised by employers recently.

'Given that the overall pay of contract civil servants has already been cut, further exploitation due to the MPF will see employees taking home even less and hence undermine efforts to curb poverty,' said Leung Kai-yin, research officer of the Hong Kong Catholic Commission for Labour Affairs.

'We will go to the Executive Council meeting tomorrow and petition the Chief Executive and the council members, urging the Government to stop such exploitation of its contract workers and to abandon its practice of contracting out services.'