Labour Department chiefs yesterday vowed to step up monitoring of minor projects after two workers fell five floors to their death at a San Po Kong industrial building on Wednesday.
Commissioner for Labour Matthew Cheung Kin-chung made the pledge after meeting the relatives of Pang Tung-ming, 23, and Lee Bing-yiu, 24, who died after the scaffolding they were working on collapsed at Lee Wan Industrial Building.
He promised to help the relatives apply for emergency assistance funds and find the employer of the two workers.
Initial investigations found that only one screw, instead of the three recommended by the guidelines, was installed on the metal frames supporting the scaffolding.
Mr Cheung admitted difficulty in monitoring minor projects because they did not require prior notification with the department. But he promised to find ways to ensure workers received all the protection they were entitled to.
'We will do our best to collaborate with unions, urging them to give wider information of the contractors and inform us of the constructions in advance so that we can patrol [the site] to ensure its safety,' he said.
Both Lee and Pang had worked in the construction trade for about five years. Lee lived with his parents, brother and sister in a public housing estate and provided a large proportion of the family income, while Pang lived with his girlfriend in Kwun Tong.
