Chapter 4 Safety and Health at Work

The Programme of Safety and Health at Work

www.labour.gov.hk/eng/osh/content.htm

4.1The Occupational Safety and Health Branch is responsible for the promotion and regulation of safety and health at work. The objective of the Programme of Safety and Health at Work is to ensure that risks to people’s safety and health at work are properly managed and reduced to the minimum through the three-pronged strategy of inspection and enforcement, education and training, as well as publicity and promotion. More specifically, we achieve the objective by:

• providing a legislative framework to safeguard safety and health at work;
• enforcing compliance with the Occupational Safety and Health Ordinance (OSHO), the Factories and Industrial Undertakings Ordinance (FIUO), the Boilers and Pressure Vessels Ordinance (BPVO) and their subsidiary regulations through inspection of workplaces to ensure that the requirements are complied with;
• investigating accidents and occupational health problems at workplaces and giving advice to employers and employees on how to reduce existing workplace hazards;
• offering advice to owners in the design and layout of workplaces, and in the implementation of safety programmes in workplaces;
• providing to employers, employees and the general public appropriate information and advice to promote knowledge and understanding of OSH; and
• organising promotional programmes and training courses to enhance safety awareness of the workforce.

4.2The OSHO protects employees’ safety and health at work generally in all branches of economic activities. It is a piece of enabling legislation that empowers the Commissioner for Labour to make regulations prescribing standards for general working environment as well as specific safety and health aspects at work.

4.3The FIUO regulates safety and health at work in industrial undertakings, which include factories, construction sites, cargo and container handling areas, as well as catering establishments.

4.4The BPVO aims at regulating the standards and operation of boilers and pressure vessels, including steam boilers, steam receivers and air receivers.

Our Work and Achievements in 2024

Work Safety Performance

4.5Through the concerted efforts of all parties concerned, including employers, employees, contractors, safety practitioners, and the Government and public sector organisations, Hong Kong’s work safety performance has been improving.

4.6The number of occupational injuries in all workplaces in 2024 stood at 28 612, whereas the number in 2015 was 35 852. The injury rate per thousand employees was 9.8 in 2024, and the rate in 2015 was 12.1. The number of industrial accidents for all sectors was 7 371, and the number in 2015 was 11 497. The accident rate per thousand workers for all sectors was 12.3, and the rate in 2015 was 18.4.

4.7In 2024, there were 3 037 industrial accidents in the construction industry, and the number in 2015 was 3 723. The accident rate per thousand workers in 2024 was 24.8, and the rate in 2015 was 39.1.

Occupational Diseases

4.8In 2024, there were 289 confirmed occupational disease and gas poisoning cases. The most common occupational diseases were occupational deafness, silicosis, tenosynovitis of the hand or forearm and mesothelioma.

4.9For more statistics on the OSH, please visit the webpage: www.labour.gov.hk/eng/osh/content10.htm.

Key Indicators of Work

4.10Some key indicators of work of this programme area are shown in Appendix 4.1.

Raising Penalties for OSH Legislation

4.11The Occupational Safety and Occupational Health Legislation (Miscellaneous Amendments) Ordinance 2023 took effect on 28 April 2023 to raise the overall penalties for OSH offences, so as to enhance deterrent effect of legislation, prompting relevant duty holder to pay more attention to the precautionary measures for protection of employees’ OSH. The LD has been paying attention to whether the court’s sentences can achieve the expected deterrent effect. We will proactively seek advice from the Department of Justice on the application for review or appeal in respect of sentencing if necessary.

Inspection and Enforcement

4.12To ensure safety and health at work, we inspect workplaces, monitor health hazards, investigate work accidents and occupational diseases, register and inspect boilers and pressure equipment and advise on measures to control hazards and prevent accidents.

4.13We conduct promotional visits to give advice to employers on the prevention of accidents and encourage them to proactively adopt a self-regulatory approach in managing risks at the workplace. We also conduct enforcement inspections to various workplaces to ensure that duty holders have observed relevant statutory requirements stipulated in safety legislation. We adopt a risk-based approach to adjust the intensity of inspection and enforcement efforts from time to time to effectively combat violations.

4.14In 2024, we continued to place workplaces with poor safety performance under close surveillance. Improvement notices or suspension notices were issued when necessary to secure speedy rectification of irregularities, or to remove imminent risks to lives. In 2024, we also conducted 14 special enforcement operations targeting specific workplace hazards or workplaces with higher risk work processes, including new works; RMAA works; lifting operations; electrical works; bamboo scaffolding; sea-based construction works; the catering industry; waste management work; the logistic, cargo and container-handling industries as well as fire and chemical safety. In these 14 operations, a total of 18 014 workplaces were inspected, with 1 282 improvement notices and 28 suspension notices issued to duty holders, and 652 prosecutions initiated. Besides, we launched 43 in-depth surprise inspections to work sites with higher risk processes or poor safety performance. A total of 1 467 suspension/improvement notices were issued and 367 prosecutions were initiated. In order to enhance safety performance of public work projects, representatives of the LD participated in 474 site safety management committee meetings of public work projects and provided safety advice, particularly on work processes with relatively high risk, to the contractors and relevant duty holders.

4.15We conduct investigations into complaints concerning unsafe conditions or malpractices in workplaces. In 2024, we handled 262 complaints lodged by workers and initiated 11 prosecutions arising from investigation of these cases. Through the intelligence reporting system on unsafe RMAA works developed with various strategic partners, a total of 10 734 complaint/referral cases were received. As a result of the follow-up inspections on these referral cases, we issued 237 suspension/improvement notices and took out 121 prosecutions.

4.16To enable the conduct of inspections in a more targeted manner, the LD’s online OSH complaint platform facilitates employees and members of the public to report unsafe working conditions using mobile electronic devices, so that the LD can conduct prompt follow-up actions. In 2024, the LD received a total of 1 232 OSH complaints through the platform. A total of three suspension notices and 166 improvement notices were issued, and 57 prosecutions were/will be taken out by the LD upon discovery of breaches of OSH legislation from the above complaints.

4.17In 2024, the LD continued to collaborate with the property management sector to implement the referral mechanism for RMAA works carried out in individual units of estates. Responsible property management personnel would notify the LD prior to the commencement of some high risk works (e.g. truss-out scaffolding works at external wall), thus enabling the LD to conduct targeted safety inspections in a timely manner.

4.18To further enhance the OSH level in confined space works, the LD revised the “Code of Practice for Safety and Health at Work in Confined Spaces” (“CoP for Confined Spaces”). The revised CoP for Confined Spaces was published in the Gazette on 31 May 2024 and took effect on 30 November, allowing the industry to make necessary preparation during the six-month grace period. The major revisions in the CoP included requiring proprietors or contractors to adopt technology to record videos at the entrance and exit of the confined space throughout the entire work period to step up the monitoring of relevant personnel’s compliance with the safety precautions. In 2024, the LD also gazetted three different sets of breathing apparatus that were approved for use in confined spaces, thus providing more choices of breathing apparatus for use by the industry in different operational settings.

4.19In 2024, the LD continued to carry out enforcement operations and publicity campaigns targeting workplaces with a higher risk of heat stroke. These workplaces include construction sites, outdoor cleansing workplaces, horticulture workplaces and container yards. In the special enforcement operation from May to October, we conducted a total of about 23 600 surprise inspections and issued about 1 030 warnings.

4.20The Commissioner for Labour, as the Boilers and Pressure Vessels Authority, recognises competent inspection bodies to assess and inspect new pressure equipment during manufacturing. In addition, the LD conducts examinations, monitors courses for training of competent persons and issues certificates of competency to qualified candidates as competent persons for various types of boilers and steam receivers. In 2024, 547 applications for certificates of competency were processed, with 546 certificates issued/endorsed. We also advised the Fire Services Department on matters related to the approval and preliminary inspections of pressurised cylinders and storage installations for compressed gas.

4.21As at end-2024, the LD recorded a total of 248 598 workplaces, including 35 971 construction sites. In the year, 145 800 inspections were conducted under the OSHO, the FIUO and their subsidiary regulations. As a result, 32 714 warnings and 5 731 suspension or improvement notices were issued. Besides, 4 651 inspections were made under the BPVO. 3 082 warnings were given and 18 prohibition orders on the use and operation of boilers and pressure vessels were issued. We also carried out 20 017 and 2 906 investigations on work accidents and suspected occupational diseases/occupational health problems respectively. We also conducted 5 560 occupational hygiene surveys on workplace health hazards.

Education and Training

4.22We provide training-related services to employers, employees and relevant parties to foster an OSH culture among the working population. They include provision of training courses, recognition of Mandatory Safety Training (MST) courses and registration of safety officers and safety auditors.

4.23In 2024, we organised 562 safety and health training courses related to relevant legislation for 3 034 persons and 247 tailor-made talks to individual industries or organisations for another 49 327 persons. We also recognised 16 mandatory basic safety training courses (commonly known as “green card” courses) for construction and container-handling work, nine MST courses for confined spaces operation, five MST courses for operators of crane nine MST courses for operators of loadshifting machine, and one MST course for gas welding. We also continued to refine the MST courses, and revised the MST courses for confined spaces operation. The revisions included revamping the course content, extending the course duration and shortening the validity period of the relevant training certificates, with a view to further enhancing the quality of the courses. In addition, the LD revised the “Approval Conditions for Operating MST Courses” to require that the approved trainers teaching MST courses must complete the relevant further studies courses within four years before teaching, to enhance their professional ethics and conduct. We have a system in place to monitor these MST courses. We conducted different modes of monitoring inspections, including surprise inspections and covert inspections which involved inspecting officers in the guise of a course participant, to ensure that the courses were delivered in accordance with the course contents.

4.24In 2024, we registered 280 persons as safety officers and 81 as safety auditors. As at the end of the year, there were 4 409 safety officers with valid registration and 1 731 registered safety auditors. Furthermore, a total of 1 067 applications for renewal or revalidation of registration as safety officers were approved in 2024.

4.25Occupational health education raises employers’ and employees’ awareness of the prevention of occupational health hazards and occupational diseases. In 2024, we organised a total of 1 235 health talks for over 72 281 participants. Apart from public talks, we also conducted outreaching health talks at the workplaces of individual organisations. These health talks covered various occupations with more than 40 different topics such as Prevention of Heat Stroke at Work, Safety and Health for Confined Space Works, Occupational Health for Office Workers, Manual Handling Operations and Prevention of Back Injuries, Occupational Health for Cleansing Workers, Prevention of Lower Limb Disorders and Occupational Health in Catering Industry.

4.26The LD uploaded Work Safety Alerts and Systemic Safety Alerts on the LD’s website respectively to help raise the safety awareness of employers, contractors and workers and to urge Registered Safety Officers and Registered Safety Auditors to apply safety management principles in exercising their statutory functions to advise their employers/clients to fulfill their safety responsibilities and render the necessary assistance. Work Safety Alerts summarised recent fatal and serious work accidents, and highlighted general safety precautionary measures whereas Systemic Safety Alerts provided accident prevention measures arising from the major systemic problems. In 2024, the LD produced the Systemic Safety Alert “Gate Work” and revised the Systemic Safety Alert “Truss-out Bamboo Scaffold Safety”. In 2024, we continued to produce Work Safety Alerts in the form of animation videos to enable the industry to better comprehend how accidents happened and the necessary precautionary measures to be taken for preventing recurrence of similar accidents. Four animation videos on various topics, including safe dismantling metal I-beam, safe operation of elevating work platform, truss-out bamboo scaffolding safety and lifting safety, were uploaded to the LD’s website and widely disseminated through different channels. Furthermore, the LD continued to translate sub-titles of the Work Safety Alerts animation videos into different languages (including Hindi, Nepali, Tagalog and Urdu) to facilitate construction workers of diverse races to comprehend the OSH information. The LD also launched a new thematic webpage on “Occupational Safety and Health for Confined Space Works” to provide a one-stop platform for the industry and stakeholders to access relevant information on working in confined spaces e.g. legislation, code of practice, guidelines, safety training courses, approved breathing apparatuses, etc. more conveniently.

Publicity and Promotion

4.27We held a series of promotional campaigns in 2024 to heighten safety awareness among employers and employees and to cultivate a positive safety culture at the workplaces, with some jointly organised with relevant stakeholders such as the OSHC, trade associations, workers’ unions and other government departments.

4.28Since the Occupational Safety and Occupational Health Legislation (Miscellaneous Amendments) Ordinance 2023 came into operation on 28 April 2023, the LD rolled out comprehensive publicity campaigns including launching a set of television and radio Announcements in the Public Interest (APIs) and a poster to strengthen promotion of the new penalties. We also publicised the regulations through the LD’s website, the “Work Safety Alert” mobile application and emails etc., as well as collaborated with the industries to jointly organise talks to alert the industries and members of the public on the new penalties for OSH offences.

4.29In 2024, the LD launched a “Catering Industry Safety Promotional Campaign” which included “Catering Industry Safety Photo cum Slogan Competition”, “Catering Industry Safety Quiz Competition” and catering safety animations. The campaign widely disseminated catering safety messages through competitions, roving exhibitions, broadcasting safety animations at mobile media, TV panels installed at catering establishments and public transportation. With regard to the construction industry, the LD, in collaboration with the OSHC and related organisations in the construction industry organised the “Construction Industry Safety Award Scheme 2024/2025” to raise the safety and health awareness of contractors, personnel and workers of construction sites; foster a positive safety culture; and encourage the adoption of safe work practices. The LD also organised an open competition to recognise contractors, construction site personnel and workers for their good OSH performances, with a view to enhancing public understanding on construction safety.

4.30In 2024, the LD, in collaboration with the OSHC, launched a two-year publicity campaign from 2024 to 2026 for heightening the publicity and promotion targeting new works and RMAA works. Through a wide range of initiatives, for examples, lunchtime on-site safety talks, seminars, sponsorship schemes, roving exhibitions, etc., we seek to reach different stakeholders of new works and RMAA works, including contractors and workers, in particular the new comers, workers of diverse races and property owners, to raise their work safety and health awareness.

4.31Accidents in RMAA works have become a source of concern in recent years. With a view to reminding contractors and workers to pay extra attention to safety while carrying out truss-out scaffolding work and working at height, the LD, in collaboration with the OSHC and other relevant organisations, launched 17 safety seminars on RMAA works, truss-out scaffolding, accident analyses in relation to electrical and mechanical works, and power-operated elevating work platform, causes of fatal accidents at construction sites/briefs of relevant legislations and work-at-height safety in 2024. Other major publicity activities included broadcasting APIs on television/radio/mobile media, staging roving exhibitions, publishing feature articles in newspapers and on the LD’s website, publishing leaflets and disseminating safety messages to contractors, employers and employees through various means.

4.32Moreover, the LD published the revised Code of Practice for Bamboo Scaffolding Safety in April 2024. Major revisions included enhancing technical requirements for the bracings, putlogs and access and egress of bamboo scaffolds; prohibiting unauthorised alteration of bamboo scaffolding including putlogs; further specifying the requirements of supervising work of competent persons to the bamboo scaffolders who perform erection, addition, alteration or dismantling of bamboo scaffolds and inspection prior to inclement weather; and requiring all workers who perform erection, addition, alteration or dismantling of truss-out bamboo scaffolds to hold a valid certificate of “Advanced Level Truss-out Scaffolder Safety Training” or “Intermediate Level Truss-out Scaffolder Safety Training” issued by the Construction Industry Council before performing specified work.

4.33Since the remaining four elements of safety management system of the Factories and Industrial Undertakings (Safety Management) Regulation came into operation on 29 April 2024, the LD published revised Code of Practice on Safety Management. Major amendments included enhancing the requirements for conducting safety audit and review, adding the requirements for notification of safety audit and submission of safety audit report, adding the assessment form on safety management system, to provide more practical guidance for duty holders in complying with the requirements of the Factories and Industrial Undertakings (Safety Management) Regulation.

4.34In December 2024, the LD, in collaboration with the OSHC, produced a series of five promotional videos with the themes of “Material Hoist”, “Power-operated Elevating Work Platforms”, “Truss-out Bamboo Scaffolds (1)/(2)” and “Application of Innovative Technologies for Construction Safety”. To enhance publicity effect, the LD launched a new round of publicity work, which included showing promotional videos in public transport and screens on the external walls of shopping malls, broadcasting radio programme and displaying promotional banners at main road tunnel portals and on bus bodies, etc., to strengthen the publicity of OSH messages.

4.35In respect of occupational health, the LD also collaborated with OSHC and other relevant organisations, including the Occupational Deafness Compensation Board, the Pneumoconiosis Compensation Fund Board, employers’ associations, trade unions and community groups, in promoting occupational health as well as prevention of occupational diseases (e.g. occupational deafness and pneumoconiosis) and work-related diseases (e.g. musculoskeletal disorders which are common among workers of service industry, clerical personnel and manual workers). This was achieved through a variety of activities such as organising occupational health award, holding health talks and distributing promotional materials, etc. In addition, we continued to run the “Heart Caring Campaign” jointly with the OSHC. Through health risk assessment, dissemination of healthy lifestyle information and various promotional activities, the Campaign encouraged employees in the property management and construction industries to develop habits of healthy living with a view to preventing cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. We also continued to co-organise the “Joyful@Healthy Workplace” programme and the “Mental Health Workplace Charter” with the Department of Health and the OSHC, and encouraged employers to participate in the programmes, in order to promote a health-friendly working environment and foster physical and mental well-being of employees.

4.36In addition, the LD and OSHC held the National Day Celebration and Occupational Health Carnival in September to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China by setting a new world record of organising the “Largest resistance band demonstration/class”. At the same time, the carnival also promoted occupational health to employers, employees and the public, and encouraged them to do more physical exercise through various carnival activities, including talks, performances, electronic virtual sports and booth games, etc.

4.37The LD published the revised “Guidance Notes on Prevention of Heat Stroke at Work” (GN) and introduced the optimised “Heat Stress at Work Warning” system in May 2024, and collaborated with the OSHC to launch a series of relevant publicity activities. These included producing a brand-new TV promotional video, organising over 100 seminars with the OSHC and other organisations to help the industries apply the recommendations in the GN to formulate appropriate heat stroke preventive measures. In addition, from May to October 2024, we co-organised a large-scale promotion campaign on heat stroke prevention with the OSHC again. Through distribution of heat stroke prevention items and extensive publicity, the campaign reminded employers and employees to prevent heat stroke at work. The sponsorship scheme for portable fans was also relaunched, with new subsidy items including solar power fans and cooling vests added, giving employers and employees more options in the preventive measures against heat stress.

4.38In 2024, the LD published 53 revised/new OSH publications and posters, including “A Guide to the Factories and Industrial Undertakings (Safety Management) Regulation”, “A Guide to the Provisions for Excavations and Miscellaneous Safety under the Construction Sites (Safety) Regulations”, “A Guide to the Provisions for Safe Places of Work under Part VA of the Construction Sites (Safety) Regulations”, “Code of Practice on Safety Management”, “Code of Practice for Bamboo Scaffolding Safety”, “Code of Practice for Safety and Health at Work in Confined Spaces”, “Safe Systems of Work”, “Occupational Safety for Repair, Maintenance, Alteration and Addition Works - Safety Hints for Owners and Tenants of Commercial and Residential Units”, “Occupational Safety for Repair, Maintenance, Alteration and Addition Works - Safety Hints for Owners' Corporations”, “Occupational Safety for Repair, Maintenance, Alteration and Addition Works - Safety Hints for Property Management Companies”, “Occupational Safety for Repair, Maintenance, Alteration and Addition Works - Safety Hints for Contractors and Workers”, “Strategies for the Prevention of Occupational Diseases”, “Occupational Safety and Health Centre & Occupational Health Clinic”, “Guidance Notes on Prevention of Heat Stroke at Work”, “Hints on First Aid”, “More Exercise Smart Work”, “Neck and Back Pain at Work”, “Dangerous Parts of Machinery or Plant” poster, “Always Fully Extend Outriggers Use Suitable Mats for Support” poster, “Double Row Scaffolding with Platform Ensure Safety Prevent Accident” poster, “Always Use Bracing and Lacing for Falsework Stability” poster, “Secure Fork-heads and Wooden Wedges Properly for Even Support” poster, “Secure Prop Baseplates to the Ground for a Stable Falsework” poster, “Code of Practice for Bamboo Scaffolding Safety (Fifth Edition)” poster, “3 Steps to Electrical Work Safety” poster and “Download Occupational Safety Mobile Application Enhance Work Safety Awareness” poster for promoting work safety and health.

4.39Besides, we published three OSH publications in six languages (Indonesian, Hindi, Nepali, Tagalog, Thai and Urdu), namely “Neck and Back Pain at Work”, “Dangerous Parts of Machinery or Plant” poster and “Always Fully Extend Outriggers Use Suitable Mats for Support” poster and four OSH publications in three languages (Hindi, Nepali and Urdu), namely “Double Row Scaffolding with Platform Ensure Safety Prevent Accident” poster, “Always Use Bracing and Lacing for Falsework Stability” poster, “Secure Fork-heads and Wooden Wedges Properly for Even Support” poster and “Secure Prop Baseplates to the Ground for a Stable Falsework” poster, with a view to enhancing the safety awareness of workers of diverse races.

4.40In 2024, the Occupational Safety and Health Branch handled 11 600 enquiries, advising on various safety and health matters. Furthermore, the Occupational Safety and Health Centre provides information and advisory services to employers and workers.

4.41The LD collaborated with the property management sector to promote RMAA work safety and to step up the promotion of work-at-height safety to stakeholders, including contractors and workers, on the use of suitable working platforms instead of ladders for working above ground and the use of safety helmets with chin straps. We collaborated with the OSHC as well as the property management and construction industries to launch the “Promoting the Use of Light-duty Working Platforms Scheme Phase II”. Through the property management companies, step platforms and hop-up platforms (light-duty working platforms) would be lent to the contractors and workers conducting RMAA works in the estates or residential buildings free of charge to encourage them to use light-duty working platforms for above-ground works instead of ladders. More than 600 eligible applications were received with about 1 600 light-duty working platforms provided.

4.42Using straight ladders or A-ladders for work-at-height carries a lot of risk. In the past, there were several fatal accidents which involved workers falling from these ladders. In order to enhance the safety awareness of employers and workers in work-at-height, the LD collaborated with the OSHC to continue with the Enhanced Light-duty Working Platform Sponsorship Scheme for SMEs by subsidising small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to purchase enhanced step platforms and hop-up platforms for above-ground work. As at end of December 2024, 2 110 applications were received with 1 839 approved, benefiting over 29 585 workers. To further enhance work-above-ground safety, a brand new Telescopic Scaffold Tower Sponsorship Scheme for SMEs was launched in January 2024. As at end of December 2024, 590 applications were received with 349 approved, benefiting over 6 578 workers.

4.43The LD collaborated with the OSHC to ride on the Home Affairs Department’s community platforms to promote RMAA work safety particularly work-at-height safety, to owners’ corporations, property owners and tenants, etc.

4.44To promote safety awareness of the industry in operating boilers and pressure vessels, we distributed around 1 910 publications and leaflets regarding registration and safe operation of pressure equipment.

Clinical Occupational Health Services

4.45The LD runs occupational health clinics in Kwun Tong and Fanling, providing clinical consultations, medical treatment as well as occupational health education and counselling services for workers suffering from work-related and occupational diseases. Workplaces of the patients are inspected if necessary to identify and evaluate occupational health hazards in the work environment.

4.46In 2024, 13 551 clinical consultations were rendered. Moreover, patient support groups were organised to help patients achieve more desirable rehabilitation progress through health talks, experience sharing and peer support.