Dozens of workers from the Hong Kong construction company, Eternity Hong Kong Engineering Limited, staged a protest this morning at Yee Lok Gardens in Tuen Mun, Hong Kong, hanging a banner that read “Sweat but no pay” on the exterior wall of the building. They claimed that 80 workers have not been paid for four months.
The workers were visibly upset, some banging on objects to make loud noises, and even threatening to climb the building to make their grievances known. Police were called to the scene to maintain order, with district councillors and labor department officials present to assist in resolving the situation.
Yee Lok Gardens is currently undergoing major renovation works, contracted to Grand Dynasty Construction Limited, the same company responsible for the Level 5 fire at Grand Pui Court in Tai Po. The scaffolding on three building blocks in the estate has not been completely dismantled yet.
Following the fire at Grand Pui Court, Far East Consulting Engineering Company, responsible for the project, stated on November 27 that they would inspect the safety conditions at the estate and requested Grand Dynasty to halt the works until a report on the fire-resistant properties of the scaffolding is submitted.
One of the workers, Mr. Wong, mentioned that they were subcontracted by Eternity Hong Kong Engineering Limited to carry out rendering and painting works on the exterior walls with a team of 80 workers. Despite working as usual before the fire incident, they had already faced unpaid wages prior to the incident.
Mr. Chan, the person in charge of Eternity Hong Kong Engineering Limited, claimed that the owners’ corporation of the estate had issued a check of HK$4.5 million payable to Grand Dynasty, which needed to be processed before the wages could be dispersed to Eternity.
Mr. Wong stated that the person-in-charge surnamed Ho from Grand Dynasty was unreachable, preventing Eternity from accessing the check. He tried visiting their office but was denied entry. District councillor Kwong Ming-lai intervened and attempted to contact Ho, but Ho’s son responded that his father was busy with legal matters.
Records show that three directors and consultants, surnamed Ho (52 years old), Koo (54 years old), and Wong (68 years old) from Grand Dynasty, are suspected of manslaughter. They were arrested by the police on November 27 and were released on bail pending further investigation, with a requirement to report in early this month. Far East Consulting Engineering Company revealed that they had paid the 10th installment in September but halted the payment for the 11th installment the day after the fire. Workers had already protested for unpaid wages in Yee Lok Gardens as early as October 13.
The renovation work at Yee Lok Gardens began on June 24 last year with a budget of over HK$70 million and was originally planned to be completed by the end of this year. The owners’ corporation started collecting fees from residents in five installments since February last year and had collected four installments before the commencement of the renovation work. In the early hours of Monday (1st), smoke was seen emanating from one of the units in Block 1 without the fire alarm sounding, while an alarm went off in Block 3. The scaffolding had been partially removed from both sides of Block 2, while Blocks 1 and 3 still had scaffolding intact.
The government has ordered the removal of all renovation scaffolding in the city within three days, with property owners bearing the dismantling costs, causing concern among retired residents about the expenses.