Hundreds of construction workers left unpaid: union

The Hong Kong Construction Industry Employees General Union on Thursday said it has received requests for help from over 500 workers on more than 10 projects, involving some HK$30 million in unpaid wages. The union called on the Labour Department to establish a working group to settle the disputes as soon as possible. It also warned there could be more disputes over pay in the construction industry as the economy slows and there are fewer private projects. The union said there is a long-standing problem with contractors not paying on time, which causes delays and cash flow problems for subcontractors. "The biggest problem is what leads to the workers' wages being owed, which is subcontractors not receiving payment. There are many reasons behind subcontractors not receiving payment. It could be about the construction progress; or there are some challenging contracts, which defer payment for two months; or even worse to deliberately be picky on their work, then delaying the subcontractors’ fund for business and wages," said the union's chairman Chau Sze-kit. The union also urged the Legislative Council to quickly pass the Construction Industry Security of Payment Bill to protect workers.