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A new government tendering system aimed at improving employment conditions of more than 20,000 contract workers will impose a benchmark on bidders to keep a check on management quality, working hours and wages.

The Food and Environmental Hygiene Department will reportedly adopt the system in about two weeks, followed by other departments including Housing and Leisure and Cultural Services.

Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa told a Labour Day reception on Tuesday that the Government would reform the system and provide contract workers with 'reasonable terms of employment'.

Unions yesterday questioned the effectiveness of making management quality a component of the benchmark because, they said, it would mean firms offering very low wages would still be able to win contracts.

They accused the Government of coming up with the pass mark system to avoid the thorny issue of a minimum wage.

Under the existing tendering system, firms that bid the lowest usually get the job. The Government has no records of the workers' wages.

Legislator Lee Cheuk-yan said: 'It's a good start, but the Government still doesn't want to set a minimum wage, so it puts a company's management quality as part of the benchmark.

'A company paying low wages could still win the contract if it gains a high grade in the management quality area. It doesn't help to eradicate exploitation.'

Mr Lee has called on officials to set a minimum wage in contracts or consider wages and management quality separately.

A spokesman for the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department said it already had a marking scheme to assess contractors.

Contract workers are often poorly paid and get no holidays. The Government came under pressure to reform the tendering system after evidence emerged that some of them were being exploited.

Some cleaners of public toilets work 14 hours a day for $7 an hour. Security guards in public housing work at least 12 hours a day for about $5,000 a month.

Firms have been found illegally sub-contracting jobs to street-sleepers and even two-way permit holders.



Benchmark to be set for contractors