Number of workers falling to death in Hong Kong hits 10-year high

The number of people falling to their deaths at work has hit its highest level since 2003, prompting calls for tougher supervision and penalties.

The Sunday Morning Post analysed Labour Department figures on workplace deaths after the latest incident, in which two workers - a man and a woman - fell to their death from a block of flats on The Peak on March 25.

They had been carrying out maintenance work from an 11-metre metal cradle at the 66-storey Tregunter Tower 3 when the platform snapped in two. Two other workers managed to cling on as it broke apart. The two men left the scene before the emergency crew arrived and are still being sought by police.

An investigation is under way into whether illegal labour was involved, a police source said. No one has been arrested. An Electrical and Mechanical Services Department spokesman said it was assessing a report on the incident from the platform provider.

Workers' rights groups say a law under which contractors must provide safety equipment for anyone working at a height is often flouted." That's because it's expensive to provide enough safety gear but penalties imposed by the courts are always light," said Chan Kam-hong, chairman of the Association for the Rights of Industrial Accident Victims.

Labour Department figures for 2013, the most recent year for which figures are available, show that 33 people died after falling from a height in industries such as construction and transport. That is the highest death toll since 2003, the year the department began providing figures on workplace accidents on its website. Twelve workers died that year.