Hong Kong’s retirement fund watchdog has warned a logistics company’s subsidiary to pay HK$1.6 million (US$205,179) in pension contributions for 400 employees or face legal action.
The warning to Hi-Speed Human Resources on Saturday was issued as the Labour Department confirmed that it had received complaints from some workers at the firm about pay arrears.
A former staff member earlier told the media that the company, owned by Hi-Speed Supply Chain, had not paid employees’ salaries for two months.
“The authority has requested the company to pay the arrears immediately,” the Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Authority said.
“Otherwise, the authority will pursue civil claims in court to recover the outstanding contributions and surcharges for the affected employees.”
Hi-Speed Supply Chain was founded in 2011 and its website says it has more than 2,000 employees with a storage capacity of more than 278,709 square metres (3 million sq ft).
The statutory body set up to supervise the city’s compulsory retirement scheme said Hi-Speed Human Resources had still to pay pension contributions and surcharges to cover May and June for 400 employees.
The authority added it had logged nine employee complaints since May.
Employers are also required by law to pay staff within seven days of the expiry of the wage period.
Those who fail to fulfil their obligations face a fine of up to HK$350,000 and three years in jail.
“We are actively following up on the incident and have reminded employers to comply with the Employment Ordinance and pay wages to their employees,” a Labour Department spokeswoman said.
She added staff who experienced payment delays should file complaints with the department and the government would offer help and inspect their workplaces.
