Update | Hong Kong regulator calls for rethink of MPF offset
Authority stops short of saying mechanism should be scrapped but backs studies looking at increasing contributions to retirement fund
The regulator of Hong Kong’s MPF pension system has for the first time called for a rethink of the notorious mechanism that allows employers to use the money they put into workers’ retirement funds to cover their severance and long-service payments.
Instead, it angered both business and labour groups by suggesting it was time to explore whether the amount both parties contribute to pension funds should be raised.
“We are not a policy-making body. It is not our mandate to try to come up with policy changes to address the issue of offsetting,” authority chairman Dr David Wong Yau-kar said. “We notice that this problem exists and we are very concerned.”
“We notice that this problem exists and we are very concerned,”
In Hong Kong, companies and employees are both required by law to contribute an amount equal to 5 per cent of an employee’s monthly wages to his or her MPF account. The contribution is capped at HK$1,500 per month. The system is a source of constant friction between companies and labour unions.