tim's experiment

RTHK’s City Forum is a venerable local institution. When I lived in Causeway Bay (1984-6) and occasionally popped out on Sunday mornings to see it live the set already looked tatty. No doubt they have replaced it since then. The show consists of a row of talking heads discussing some topic of the day. It is assiduously reported by the local media because nothing else of a newsworthy character happens on Sunday mornings.

And so we were treated on Monday to words of wisdom from one Stanley Lau Chin-ho, who sits on the Labour Advisory Board on behalf of the Federation of Hong Kong Industries. Why he sits on the LAB in this capacity is an interesting question. Hong Kong does not actually have industry any more. The Federation’s own study found years ago that “many Hong Kong manufacturers have moved their production facilities to the PRD to take advantage of abundant land and labour supply.” Consequently  “it has transformed Hong Kong from a manufacturing-based economy into one engaged heavily in servicing Hong Kong manufacturers that have moved their operations across the border to the PRD.”

So the federation comprises a band of bigshots who have moved all their employing operations over the border except for a few offices. Why these people should be regarded as having a right to be consulted about employment in Hong Kong is an interesting mystery. No doubt it remains unexplored because it would lead to the even more interesting mystery of why our non-existent industrial sector still has two seats on Legco.

Anyway, there is Mr Lau, our local representative of “the fat man, the very fat man, that waters the workers’ beer”, as the old song has it. What has he to say for himself?

Well I’m afraid the word “bullshit” springs to mind at this point. Mr Lau thinks having a standard working week qualifies as “Hong Kong to unreservedly introduce Western systems.” Now, he went on “many Western governments want to change their systems. Just trying to raise the standard working hours from 35 to 37 hours has caused riots and unrest in some countries. So we are very worried that if we legislate towards standard working hours, Hong Kong could be heading towards Western models like Greece and Spain.”

Mr Lau curiously failed to mention the possibility that some of his members might be very worried that legislation on standard working hours would cost them money. Harping on “Western” is presumably an attempt to tickle local prejudices. Actually there is nothing particularly Western about standard working hours. Consider the following figures for 1995, lifted from an ILO study of the subject:

Countries with no statutory standard hours: Australia, Denmark, Germany, United Kingdom, Nigeria, Seychelles, India, Pakistan, Jamaica, Romania.

Countries with a 35-9 hour standard: France

Countries with a 40-hour standard: Austria, Belgium, Canada, Finland, Japan, Luxembourg, New Zealand, Norway, Spain, Sweden, United States, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Djibouti, Gabon, Madagascar, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal, Togo, China, Indonesia, Latvia, Russian Federation, Ecuador.

Countries with a 41-46 hour standard: Portugal, Switzerland (workers in industrial enterprises, offices, technical posts and sales staff in large commercial enterprises) Algeria, Angola, Burundi, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Namibia, Rwanda, South Africa, Tanzania, Republic of Korea, Mongolia, Singapore, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Slovenia, Belize, Brazil, El Salvador, Honduras, Uruguay (commerce), Venezuela

Countries with a 48-hour limit: Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Morocco, Mozambique, Tunisia, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand (industry), Viet Nam, Bahamas, Haiti, Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay (industry) Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon

Limit over 49 hours: Kenya, and those Thai and Swiss workers not already covered.

Clearly this is not a particularly Western idea. Some Western coutries had no limit. Many other countries had limits. It is also difficult to see any pattern suggesting that having a limit sets you on the slippery slope to national bankruptcy. Many countries seem to do very well with a 40-hour norm, including China, where most of Mr Lau’s happy band of brothers do their employing and manufacturing. Spain was in the 40-hour category, but so were ostentationsly successful countries like Norway and New Zealand. Comparing the figures ten years later the UK had developed a 48-hour over-all limit (including overtime) Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, lots of East European countries and Mongolia had moved to the 40-hour category. There were still only three countries – France, Belgium and Chad – in the 35-39 hour category, so the riots point seems rather dishonest. Many Western countries may be trying to increase standard working hours but those trying to increase them from under 40 cannot number more than two.

Where is Greece in all this? Not slacking, apparently. According to a report by the European Working Conditions Observatory published in 2009 “Based on available date, the picture of actual weekly working hours has not varied with the passage of time. On the contrary, Greece has kept actual working time at very high levels compared to the other EU member states. This has brought annual working time in Greece calculated on a yearly basis (including the number of days of annual leave and time off) to equally high levels (1800 hours).”

So there you have it. Saying that having standard working hours would make us like Greece and Spain makes no more sense than saying having more saunas would make us more like Finland. Mr Lau would do us all a service if he stopped spouting spurious international comparisons and told us frankly that his members are against anything which might cost them money.