Posted by
marie5
18 yrs ago
Could somebody please advise me in plain english the actual circumstances by which severance pay has to be made? (On the government website it seems a bit ambiguous). Basically, we pay our helper way above minimum, have just renewed her contract after 2 years & suddenly she is behaving totally differently! Despite various chats etc, it's all now becoming a complete pain & I can't see myself putting up with her moods/slopping around doing nothing much etc for much longer. If I go down the route of getting rid, I'll pay her one months salary rather than have her "working" her months notice, but do I have to pay her severance pay as well or does this depend on whether or not I replace her with another full time helper?
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I'm just not clear about it at all! (Under Proxy Maid Service website it says "In case of FDH it is generally considered redundancy or layoff when the employer does not immediately replace with another helper after termination". In any case, is my helper entitled to severance pay if I decide to terminate her contract (with one months salary in lieu) and if I decide to stick with it & keep her till the end of this 2 year contract (ie she will have worked with us for 4 yrs by then) is she entitled to severance pay then? BTW I didn't employ her through an agency, I was just looking for some clarification. Your input is much appreciated TC
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cd
18 yrs ago
If you terminate her contract you only need to give her 1 months notice, or 1 months pay in lieu of notice. You don't need to give her severance pay. If you keep her until the end of the 2nd contract you still don't need to give severance pay, you just don't renew the contract (the situation we are in at the moment), however if you sign a 3rd conract and she works over the 4 years you have to pay long service pay.
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cd that was exactly my understanding of the situation. However, when I looked again today on the government website, severance pay seems to be payable if she has worked for 2 years, not 4 years. Have you actually spoken to an official at the Labour Dept or somewhere?
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tgm
18 yrs ago
I believe CD is correct - no severence is required for helpers unless they have completed 2 contracts with you.
I guess this is why a lot of helpers looking for work have 4 years experience with their last employer.
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I looked at Immigrations website under Practical Guide to Employers of FDH - Chapter 8. Q8.1
Am I misinterpreting it? (I do hope so!)
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marie5,
Severance pay is only payable to those employee with a minimum years of service of 5 years. Redudancy payment is payable to employees with at least 2 years of service AND only when his post is permanenetly deleted.
In any event it will be up to HER to prove that you will no longer hire a maid (i.e. she has been redundant) - and frankly, I don't think she can prove it UNLESS YOU AGREE WITH WHAT SHE SAID, but you DON'T HAVE TO AGREE with what she said!
If you fire her now, you will owe her:
1. Balance of the wages.
2. 1 month wages in lieu of notice
3. 1 single journey air ticket
4. HK$100 travelling allowances
No more, no less. Make sure you pay her by cheques and have the air ticket photocopied, then ask her sign on it to acknoweldge receipt. Better still, get a friend of yours to witness the process. You need to play it safe - she may be nasty to you when she learns of the news. Good luck.
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Thank you so much for that. I really appreciate your help.
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