Lai See | Former RMJM employees owed HK$3m in unpaid wages

The long-running saga involving architecture firm RMJM took a new twist over the weekend when a group of 25 former employers approached Legislative Councillor Lee Cheuk-yan to help them in their pursuit of HK$3 million in unpaid wages.

Trouble at the Hong Kong arm of what was once one of the world's largest architecture practices began to surface in 2010 with reports of unpaid wages and bills to suppliers and contractors. There were similar reports from its offices elsewhere in Asia, Europe, the United States and the Middle East.

Controlled by millionaire Scotsman Fraser Morrison, RMJM had previously enjoyed an excellent reputation for its work on buildings such as the new Scottish Parliament Building and the Beijing Olympic Green Convention Centre.

It had more than 1,200 employees worldwide at its peak. But its reputation has been tainted by poor management and financial distress, and today the firm has been reduced to about 60 staff worldwide, with about 10 in Hong Kong.

The Hong Kong group of 25, according to its spokesman, former marketing director Liliana Silva, approached Lee because it was concerned that although nearly all members of the group had won a Labour Tribunal hearing, they had yet to receive the money owed by RMJM.

The Labour Department appears to have done little to pursue the company even though, according to the Employment Ordinance, failure to pay wages and failure to comply with a tribunal order constitute a criminal offence. Pursuant to section 43P of the ordinance (Cap. 57), the firm may be liable on conviction to a fine of up to HK$350,000 and imprisonment for up to three years. Individual managers who knew or ought to have known about the tribunal's orders are also liable to prosecution.