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Labour Tribunal (Amendment) Bill 1999
Amend the Labour Tribunal Ordinance.
Enacted by the Legislative Council.
1. Short title and commencement
(1) This Ordinance may be cited as the Labour Tribunal (Amendment) Ordinance 1999.
(2) This Ordinance shall come into operation on a day to be appointed by the Director of Administration by notice in the Gazette.
2. Interpretation
Section 2 of the Labour Tribunal Ordinance (Cap. 25) is amended---
(a) in the definition of "claim", by repealing "means" and substituting "includes";
(b) by adding---
" "Small Claims Tribunal" (小額錢債審裁處) means the Small Claims Tribunal established by section 3 of the Small Claims Tribunal Ordinance (Cap. 338);".
3. Limitation
Section 9 is repealed.
4. Declining jurisdiction
Section 10(2) is amended by repealing "or the District Court" and substituting ", the District Court or the Small Claims Tribunal".
5. Service of claim and notice of hearing
Section 13(2)(b) is amended---
(a) in subparagraph (ii), by repealing "or" at the end;
(b) by adding---
"(iia) by sending them by post addressed to him at his last known place of residence or at his place of business; or".
6. Keeping of summary of evidence, etc.
Section 19 is amended by repealing "a summary" and substituting "or cause to be kept a summary, whether by means of shorthand notes or mechanical, electronic or optical means or otherwise,".
7. Decision to be announced at conclusion of
hearing if possible
Section 22(5) is amended---
(a) in paragraph (b), by repealing "or" at the end;
(b) by adding---
"(ba) by sending it by post addressed to him at his last known place of residence or at his place of business; or".
8. Right of audience
Section 23(2) is repealed and the following substituted---
"(2) A barrister or solicitor shall have a right of audience before the tribunal only if he is---
(a) acting on his own behalf as a claimant or a defendant; or
(b) appearing before the tribunal on behalf of an offender for the purpose of section 42.".
9. Representative claims
Section 25(3)(g) is repealed.
10. Section added
The following is added---
"29A. Adjournment
(1) The tribunal may at any time, either of its own motion or on the application of any party, adjourn the hearing of a claim on such terms as it thinks fit.
(2) If any party fails to comply with the requirements of any term that may have been imposed on him under subsection (1), the tribunal may dismiss the claim, stay the proceedings or enter judgment against him as the tribunal may think appropriate.".
11. Giving security upon adjournment
Section 30 is amended by repealing "The" and substituting "Without prejudice to the generality of section 29A, the".
12. Review of awards and orders
Section 31(1) is amended by repealing "其作出裁斷或命令的日期起計" and substituting "自其作出裁斷或命令的日期起計的".
13. Interference with witness and perjury
Section 41(2) is amended by repealing "of $5,000" and substituting "at level 2".
14. Insulting behaviour
Section 42 is amended---
(a) by renumbering it as section 42(1);
(b) in subsection (1), by repealing "of $500 and to imprisonment for 2 months" and substituting "at level 3 and to imprisonment for 6 months";
(c) by adding---
"(2) It is declared that section 50 of the High Court Ordinance (Cap. 4) applies in the case of any exercise by the presiding officer of his power under subsection (1).".
15. Punishment of witness for non-attendance and
of person for non-production of document
Section 43 is amended by repealing "of $1,000" and substituting "at level 2".
16. Punishment for refusal to comply with request by tribunal officer to produce document and for obstruction of tribunal officer
Section 44 is amended by repealing "of $5,000" and substituting "at level 4".
17. Chief Justice may make rules
Section 45(b) is amended by repealing "District Court or" and substituting "Small Claims Tribunal, the District Court or the".
18. Section added
The following is added---
"47. Immunity
(1) A presiding officer has, in the performance of his powers or duties under this Ordinance, the same privileges and immunities as a judge of the Court of First Instance in civil proceedings in that court.
(2) A witness before the tribunal shall be entitled to the same privileges and immunities as if he were a witness in civil proceedings in the Court of First Instance.".
19. Consequential amendments
The enactments specified in the Schedule are amended as set out in the Schedule.
SCHEDULE [s. 19]
Consequential Amendments
Labour Tribunal (General) Rules
1. Rule added
The Labour Tribunal (General) Rules (Cap. 25 sub. leg.) is amended by adding---
"4A. Keeping of Register of Claims, etc.
The Register of Claims maintained under rule 4 and the summary of evidence, submissions or statements and of any point of law and of the presiding officer's decision thereon kept under section 19 of the Ordinance may be kept---
(a) in the form of a book;
(b) in the form of a disc, card, tape, microchips, sound track or other device on or in which information or data is recorded or stored by mechanical, electronic, optical or other means; or
(c) partly in the form referred to in paragraph (a) and partly in the form referred to in paragraph (b).".
2. Transfer of claim to Court of First Instance,
District Court or Small Claims Tribunal
Rule 7 is amended---
(a) in paragraph (1)---
(i) by repealing "or the District Court" and substituting ", the District Court or the Small Claims Tribunal";
(ii) by adding "or of the Small Claims Tribunal" after "registrar of the court";
(b) in paragraph (2), by adding "or of the Small Claims Tribunal" after "registrar of the court".
Labour Tribunal (Forms) Rules
3. Schedule amended
The Schedule to the Labour Tribunal (Forms) Rules (Cap. 25 sub. leg.) is amended, in Form 5---
(a) by adding "/TRIBUNAL" after "COURT";
(b) by adding "/Small Claims Tribunal" after "Court of First Instance/District Court";
(c) by repealing "this Court" and substituting "*this Court/this Tribunal";
(d) by adding "/Small Claims Tribunal" after "High Court/District Court".
Small Claims Tribunal Ordinance
4. Jurisdiction of Tribunal
The Schedule to the Small Claims Tribunal Ordinance (Cap. 338) is amended by adding---
"1A. Notwithstanding subparagraph (d) of the proviso to paragraph 1, the tribunal shall have jurisdiction to hear and determine a claim transferred to the tribunal under section 10(2) of the Labour Tribunal Ordinance (Cap. 25).".
Explanatory Memorandum
The principal purpose of this Bill is to amend the Labour Tribunal Ordinance (Cap. 25) to---
(a) remove the limitation period governing the filing of claims in the Labour Tribunal ("the tribunal") (clause 3);
(b) empower the tribunal to transfer claims to the Small Claims Tribunal (clause 4);
(c) provide that service of claim, notice of hearing and decision can also be effected by post (clauses 5 and 7);
(d) require the presiding officer to keep a summary of evidence, etc. by mechanical or other means (clause 6);
(e) allow a barrister or solicitor to have right of audience before the tribunal in proceedings relating to insulting behaviour (clause 8);
(f) empower the tribunal to adjourn the hearing of a claim on such terms as it thinks fit (clause 10);
(g) increase the punishment for offences relating to insulting behaviour, non-attendance, non-production of document, refusal to comply with request to produce document and obstruction of tribunal officer (clauses 14, 15 and 16);
(h) give immunity to the presiding officer and the witness before the tribunal (clause 18).
2. The Bill also makes consequential amendments to rules made under the Labour Tribunal Ordinance (Cap. 25) and to the Small Claims Tribunal Ordinance (Cap. 338).
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