Editorial | Those responsible for workplace fatalities in Hong Kong must not be spared

Work safety became an abiding concern in recent years as more fatal industrial accidents made headlines. This is also why the passage of harsher sanctions against serious breaches of safety rules has also received prominent media coverage. Of course we hope there will be no more casualties now that there is a stronger deterrent. But should tragedies happen again, those responsible must not be spared.

The maximum penalty for serious breaches of work safety by employers will now be HK$10 million and two years behind bars, up from the previous HK$500,000 fine and six months in jail. It is a shame that some pro-business lawmakers and industry leaders still resisted the amendments, saying stiffer penalties could not stop accidents from happening.

While it is true that legislation alone cannot prevent accidents from happening, the liability under the previous statute was so low that it made a mockery of justice. According to the government, a total of 25 deadly industrial accidents were recorded in 2021, with 23 cases related to the construction industry. The average fines in relation to fatal cases in 2020 only ranged from HK$24,000 to HK$62,000.

With no amendments over the past two decades, the tightened law is just catching up with those in some overseas jurisdictions. For instance, the relevant fines in Singapore, Canada’s Ontario province and Australia are HK$3 million, HK$9 million and HK$22 million respectively, while the jail terms range from two to five years.

The Hong Kong government has also rightly introduced specific provisions for the courts to take into account the turnover of the convicted entities when determining the level of fines. Hopefully, this will help the court hand down punishments commensurate with the gravity of the offence.