Travel guides 'forced to visit affected areas'
The Hong Kong Travel Industry (Outbound) Tour Escort and Tour Guide Union wants a revamp of tour guides' pay, saying they are forced to travel to swine flu-affected areas because they need the tips the trips generate. Union chairman Dicky Tong Kim-sang said if a tour guide refused to travel to the United States because of swine flu, he would probably only earn HK$1,800 to HK$2,000 for the month - the base salary. Most of the income the guides earned was derived from tips, which ranged from HK$10,000 to HK$20,000 per month. The union wanted travel agencies to set a minimum salary, including tips and base salary - of about HK$8,000 per month for guides. Travel agencies should top up the pay if their base salary and tips fell below a benchmark.
Sales of Chinese herb surge on swine flu fears
Sales of ban lan gen (Radix isatidis), which many Hong Kong people believe will help guard against flu, have surged with the news about the flu outbreak, the president of the Hong Kong Chinese Herbalists Association said. Kwan Chi-yee said 15 people visited his Wan Chai clinic yesterday seeking to buy the herb, compared with the two or three people he usually sees. He warned that the herb was not suitable for people who were weak or had digestive problems and advised people to see a doctor if they had flu-like symptoms.
Cleaning contract warning
The government should not contract out cleaning services because the work of untrained cleaners might endanger public health in the event of a flu epidemic, the Confederation of Trade Unions said. Contract staff lacked the training and experience that government workers possessed and companies that took such contracts only had their eyes on profit, not public health.
