HK urged not to impose taxes on RI workers
HK urged not to impose taxes on RI workers
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Indonesia has called on Hong Kong authorities not to impose the
proposed income tax on Indonesian workers employed in the
territory because the practice is against the ILO Convention.
"The government considers Hong Kong's labor policy
inappropriate because according to the ILO convention, income tax
cannot be imposed on those who earn the minimum wage," manpower
and transmigration minister Jacob Nuwa Wea said after receiving
his Hong Kong counterpart Stephen I.P. here on Monday.
He, however, added that Indonesia could not pressure Hong Kong
authorities to cancel the proposed labor policy because it was an
internal matter.
The Philippine government has also lodged a similar objection
because it has some 70,000 citizens employed as domestic helpers
in the territory.
Because of a possible deficit in its 2003 budget, Hong Kong
parliament, labor unions, and non-governmental organizations have
proposed that the authorities impose between HK$400 and $500 as
income tax on all foreign workers employed in China's special
territory. Hong Kong employs around 80,000 Indonesians as
domestic helpers earning a minimum wage of $3,670 per month.
The proposed income tax has sparked protest from foreign
workers who say the new policy is not fair and against the ILO
Convention.
Meanwhile, Stephen pledged to bring his Indonesian
counterpart's concerns to the relevant Hong Kong officials.
"I myself cannot make a decision on this matter. But I will
bring this matter to be discussed with other relevant officials,"
he said.
Asked to comment on reports that some Indonesian workers were
paid salaries below the minimum wage, Stephen said the Hong Kong
authorities had legislation that imposed a one-year prison
sentence and a fine of $20,000 against employers found guilty of
underpaying workers.
"The problem is that Hong Kong authorities and Indonesian
representatives have difficulty obtaining evidence in cases of
underpayment," he said.
Jacob Nuwa Wea has ordered the director general of labor
placement, I Gusti Made Arke, to set up an independent team to
examine the competence of all workers sent overseas because many
workers have been underpaid because they are unskilled.
"The team should not allow workers to work overseas unless
they have some skills, including a mastery of the language of the
country where they will be employed," he said.
He said all recruitment agencies were required to have
training centers to train workers in languages and skills
according to the field in which they would be employed.
"Recruitment agencies that do not have a training center are
not allowed to send workers overseas," he said.