Prominent Hong Kong contractor Fung Cheung Kee owed HK$150 million when it collapsed, trade union leader says
- Trade union leader Ryan Ng says Fung Cheung Kee owes HK$30 million to employees, HK$120 million to subcontractors and suppliers
- ‘Most unfortunate case we have heard of is a site manager … who paid more than HK$200,000 upfront from his pocket for urgent construction materials,’ he adds
A decades-old Hong Kong construction company closed down owing HK$150 million (US$19 million) to subcontractors, suppliers and employees, a trade union leader has said.
Ryan Ng Wai-leung, rights and complaints officer at the Hong Kong Construction Industry Employees General Union, on Thursday said he had received inquiries from 40 subcontractors and suppliers after prominent contractor Fung Cheung Kee entered liquidation last week.
More than 20 employees of the firm and 80 subcontractor-affiliated workers had sought guidance on how to collect their unpaid wages amounting to about HK$30 million, he added. The company was estimated to have owed HK$120 million to subcontractors and suppliers.
“The most unfortunate case we have heard of is a site manager, hired by Fung Cheung Kee. He paid more than HK$200,000 upfront from his pocket for urgent construction materials,” Ng told a radio programme.
“But the money cannot be compensated by the Protection of Wages on Insolvency Fund and it may also be challenging to claim it through the Small Claims Tribunal.”
The union leader said it would be best if the financially stable subcontractors paid the owed wages.