Hong Kong Ordinances

FACTORIES AND INDUSTRIAL UNDERTAKINGS ORDINANCE - SECT 7

Power of Commissioner to make regulations, etc.

(Past version on 01/07/2002).
(Past version on 23/07/1999).
(Past version on 01/07/1997).
(Past version on 30/06/1997).

For the saving and transitional provisions relating to the amendments made by
the Resolution of the Legislative Council (L.N. 130 of 2007), see paragraph
(12) of that Resolution.

(1) The Commissioner may in respect of industrial undertakings by regulation
prescribe or provide for-

   (a)  prohibiting or controlling the employment of all persons or any class
        of persons in dangerous trades or scheduled trades;

   (b)  prohibiting or controlling the employment of women, young  persons and
        children in industrial undertakings, and requiring registers to be
        kept of women, young persons and children employed in industrial 
        undertakings;

   (c)  imposing obligations for securing compliance with the provisions of
        this Ordinance upon persons who employ women, young persons or
        children in industrial undertakings and upon the agents and servants
        of such persons;

   (d)  defining the duties and powers of all officers appointed under
        section 3; (Amended 10 of 1965 s. 5)

   (e)  exempting any industrial undertaking from the operation of this
        Ordinance or any part thereof;

   (f)  the forms to be used for the purposes of this Ordinance and the manner
        of publishing such forms; (Replaced 50 of 1985 s. 3)

   (g)  means of securing hygienic conditions;

   (h)  means of ensuring the safety of persons in industrial  undertakings
        and of relieving persons suffering from the effects of accidents in
        industrial undertakings; (Replaced 4 of 1969 s. 6)

   (i)  means of securing the removal of any danger or defect;

   (j)  requiring notifications to be made in relation to accidents and such
        dangerous occurrences as may be specified in the regulations;

   (k)  precautions to be taken against fire and providing for means of escape
        from fire;

   (l)  the taking for purposes of analysis of samples of materials or
        substances used or handled;

   (m)  requiring notifications to be made in relation to the occurrence
        amongst person who have been or are employed in industrial 
        undertakings of such diseases as may be specified in such regulations;

   (n)  requiring the medical inspection by a Health Officer or by a medical
        practitioner employed by the proprietor of the industrial  undertaking
        concerned of any person or of any class of person employed or intended
        to be employed in any industrial undertaking, and the keeping of
        records of any such inspections; (Amended 4 of 1969 s. 6)

   (o)  imposing duties on proprietors, contractors and persons employed;
        (Amended 52 of 1973 s. 3)

   (oa) without prejudice to the generality of paragraph (o), requiring
        proprietors and contractors (including any class of proprietors and
        contractors)-

        (i)    to develop, implement and maintain any management system that
               relate to the safety of personnel in their
               industrial undertakings;

        (ii)   to prepare and revise safety policy statements in relation to
               the general safety policy of their industrial undertakings and
               make such statements available to persons employed;

        (iii)  to establish safety committees to identify, recommend and
               review measures to improve the safety and health of persons
               employed;

        (iv)   to employ, or otherwise use the services of, persons specified
               in regulations made under this section to assess the
               effectiveness of any management system referred to in
               subparagraph (i) as implemented; (Added 53 of 1999 s. 5)

   (ob) in relation to any registration of persons referred to in paragraph
        (oa)(iv) or who operate schemes to train those persons

(including any class of those persons)-

        (i)    the keeping of a register;

        (ii)   the specification of conditions (including requirements) for
               registration;

        (iii)  the recognition by the Commissioner of any scheme having regard
               to the scheme operator;

        (iv)   the better and more effectual carrying out of the scheme of
               registration; (Added 53 of 1999 s. 5)

   (oc) means of assessing by the Commissioner the performance of persons
        referred to in paragraph (ob); (Added 53 of 1999 s. 5)

   (od) the appointment of a disciplinary board panel and a disciplinary board
        by the Secretary for Labour and Welfare with- (Amended L.N. 106 of
        2002; L.N. 130 of 2007)

        (i)    all such powers that are necessary for the purposes of
               conducting any hearing before the board;

        (ii)   power to exonerate or discipline the person concerned

(including the power of cancellation of registration, suspension of
registration, the imposition of a fine not exceeding $10000 or reprimanding
the person concerned);

        (iii)  power to make any order with respect to costs; (Added 53 of
               1999 s. 5)

   (oe) decisions in relation to which appeals may be made to the
        Administrative Appeals Board (including consequentially amending the
        Schedule to the Administrative Appeals Board Ordinance ( Cap 442));
        (Added 53 of 1999 s. 5)

   (p)  generally, carrying into effect the provisions of this Ordinance.

(2) (a) Where the Commissioner is satisfied that any manufacture, machinery,
plant, process or description of manual labour, used in
industrial undertakings is of such a nature as to cause risk of bodily injury
to persons employed in connection therewith, or any class of those persons, he
may, without prejudice to the generality of the power to make regulations
under subsection (1), make such special regulations as appear to him to be
reasonably practicable and to meet the necessity of the case and is particular
such special regulations may-

        (i)    prohibit or control the employment of all persons or any class
               of persons in connection with any manufacture, machinery,
               plant, process, or description of manual labour; or

        (ii)   prohibit or control the use of any material or process; and may
               impose duties on proprietors, contractors, employed persons and
               other persons. (Amended 52 of 1973 s. 3)

   (b)  Special regulations so made may apply to all industrial  undertakings
        in which the manufacture, machinery, plant, process, or description of
        manual labour is used or to any specified class or description of such
        undertaking, and may provide for the exemption of any specified class
        or description of undertaking either absolutely or subject to
        conditions.

(3) All regulations made by the Commissioner shall be submitted to the Chief
Executive, and shall be subject to the approval of the Legislative Council.
(Amended 54 of 2000 s. 3)

(4) The Commissioner in such cases as he shall think fit may, for such period
and subject to such conditions as he may specify, exempt any
industrial undertaking from any regulation made under this Ordinance and the
Commissioner, or any officer authorized in writing by him, may order the
adoption of special precautions in addition to any precautions required by any
regulation made under this Ordinance. (Amended 7 of 1959 s. 2; 4 of 1969 s. 6;
6 of 1994 s. 36)

(4A) Any person aggrieved by an exemption or order made under subsection (4)
may, within 28 days of being notified of such exemption or order, appeal to
the Administrative Appeals Board. (Added 6 of 1994 s. 36)

(5) Regulations made under this section may provide that contravention of
specified provisions of such regulations shall be an offence and may provide
penalties therefor: Provided that no penalty so provided shall exceed a fine
of $200000 and imprisonment for 12 months. (Amended 52 of 1973 s. 3; 57 of
1980 s. 2; 71 of 1989 s. 6; 81 of 1993 s. 5) (Amended 39 of 1997 s. 48)