Coronavirus: labour groups call for cash handouts to unemployed, say relief programme largely benefiting city’s business owners
- Calls come as new unemployment figures paint dire picture for Hong Kong’s retail, accommodation and food service workers
- Pro-democracy and pro-Beijing unions alike call for direct payouts to those put out of work amid coronavirus battle
Labour groups on Tuesday called on the Hong Kong government to deliver cash handouts to residents laid off or forced to take unpaid leave during the coronavirus outbreak, as new unemployment figures heralded more pain ahead for the city.
In an afternoon statement, the government announced the unemployment rate had increased by another 0.1 percentage points, to 3.4 per cent, from November 2019 to January 2020, the highest in more than three years.
Secretary for Labour and Welfare Law Chi-Kwong said the employment situation for the sectors encompassing the city’s retail, accommodation and food services industries remained particularly difficult, with their combined unemployment rate holding at 5.2 per cent, also a three-year high.
The situation was worse yet in construction, which saw unemployment rates hit 5.7 per cent, the sector’s highest mark in nearly six years.
“The labour market will be subject to even more pressure in the near term, as the threat of the novel coronavirus infection has already caused severe disruptions to a wide range of economic activities lately, particularly the consumption- and tourism-related sectors,” Law said, adding that new government relief measures were designed to “minimise any negative impact on the labour market”.