Hong Kong

Disability Definition

Disability means— (a)total or partial loss of the person’s bodily or mental functions;
(b)total or partial loss of a part of the person’s body;
(c)the presence in the body of organisms causing disease or illness;
(d)the presence in the body of organisms capable of causing disease or illness;
(e)the malfunction, malformation or disfigurement of a part of the person’s body;
(f)a disorder or malfunction that results in the person learning differently from a person without the disorder or malfunction; or
(g)a disorder, illness or disease that affects a person’s thought processes, perception of reality, emotions or judgment or that results in disturbed behaviour, and includes a disability that—
(h)presently exists; (ii)previously existed but no longer exists; (iii)may exist in the future; or (iv)is imputed to a person.

Employer Legal Requirements

There is no quota system in place.

The employer may inquire about disabilty status during Application stage, After offer and After employment commences:

Yes, assuming all relevant PDPO requirements are complied with (includes giving the individual concerned a personal information collection statement).

Personal data concerning the health condition of an applicant may be collected by means of a pre-employment medical examination if the data directly relates to the inherent requirements of the job, and employment is conditional upon the fulfilment of the medical examination. However, only collect such data after a conditional offer of employment has been made.

The collected information is potentially “personal data” for the purposes of Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance (“”PDPO””). Therefore, the company must comply with all PDPO requirements related to the collection, use, retention and handling etc of personal data. Some broad data privacy principles are as follows:

The personal data must be collected in a lawful and fair way for a purpose directly related to a function /activity of the company, and should be necessary but not excessive.

Cultural Norms

Society expects the social security system to act as a safety net for people with disabilities with nearly 80 percent of people with disabilities in the system.

In Hong Kong, the government has yet to show its determination in hiring people with disabilities. For years, for example, the number in the civil service has remained at a low 2 per cent.

Insights

7.4 per cent (499,400) of the overall population has a disability.
With approximately 39.1% of individuals with disabilities working, there is a significant employment gap with non-disabled individuals.

Talent Sourcing Resources

Established in 1970, the Hong Kong Disabled Youth Association (HKCA) is a government-registered charity that is managed and decided by people with disabilities. The Employment Service Centre is one of the main services of the Association. The Centre provides comprehensive services through a wide range of services including employment counselling, competency assessment, skills training, job matching, production line work, order referral, work teams and self-employment support services. THere is also an EMPLOYER match service.

The Selective Placement Division of the Labour Dept. The Selective Placement Division of the Labour Department was established in July 1980 to provide free recruitment service to employers and free service for open employment to job seekers with disabilities.

References

Hong Kong Free Press