### Employment of Young Persons and Children at Sea Ordinance 《青年及兒童海上工作僱傭條例》

1. Short title
This Ordinance may be cited as the Employment of Young Persons and Children at Sea Ordinance.

2. Restriction on employment on vessels of children under 15
No child under 15 years of age shall be employed or be caused or permitted to work as a member of the crew of any vessel, other than a vessel upon which only members of the same family are so employed: (Amended 55 of 1979 s. 2)
Provided that nothing in this section shall be construed to affect the employment or work of any such child who is a pupil on any school ship or training ship if such employment or work is approved and, so far as may be, supervised by the Permanent Secretary for Education.(Replaced 9 of 1965 s. 2. Amended 3 of 2003 s. 41; L.N. 130 of 2007)

3. Registers of members or crews who are under 16
The master of every vessel registered or licensed in Hong Kong shall keep a register, in a form supplied or approved by the Director of Marine, of all persons under the age of 16 years employed by him on board his vessel, or a list of them in the articles of agreement, and the dates of their births.
(Amended 54 of 2000 s. 3)

4. Application
For the purposes of this Ordinance, the term vessel (船隻) includes all ships and boats of any nature whatsoever, engaged in maritime navigation whether publicly or privately owned, except ships of war.
(Amended E.R. 4 of 2019)

5. Offences and penalties
(1) Any person who contravenes any of the provisions of section 2 commits an offence and is liable to a fine at level 3.
(2) Any person who contravenes any of the provisions of section 3 commits an offence and is liable to a fine at level 1.
(Replaced 55 of 1979 s. 2. Amended E.R. 4 of 2019)

### Employment of Children Regulations 《僱用兒童規例》

1. Citation
These regulations may be cited as the Employment of Children Regulations.

2. Interpretation
In these regulations, unless the context otherwise requires—
day (天) means a period of 24 hours beginning and ending at midnight;
employer (僱主) or person (人) includes a proprietor; (L.N. 84 of 1980)
industrial undertaking (工業經營) has the meaning assigned to it in the Factories and Industrial Undertakings Ordinance (Cap. 59); (L.N. 84 of 1980)
parent (父母), in relation to a child, includes a guardian and the person having actual custody of the child;
proprietor (東主) has the meaning assigned to it in the Factories and Industrial Undertakings Ordinance (Cap. 59); (L.N. 84 of 1980)
school (學校), in relation to a child, means a primary or secondary school within the meaning of the Education Ordinance (Cap. 279) and at which the child is a pupil at the relevant time;
school attendance certificate (在學證明書) means a certificate, in a form specified by the Permanent Secretary for Education, issued by the principal of a school, certifying that the child to whom it relates is attending at the school; (3 of 2003 s. 41; L.N. 130 of 2007)
secondary education (中學敎育) has the meaning assigned to it in the Education Ordinance (Cap. 279);
week (星期) means the period between midnight on Saturday night and midnight on the succeeding Saturday night.

3. Application
(1) The provisions of sections 18(5), 19(2) and (3) and 20 of the Ordinance do not apply in relation to children employed under these regulations.
(2) These regulations do not apply in relation to children who are registered apprentices under the Apprenticeship Ordinance (Cap. 47).
(3) A child who works in an industrial undertaking or other place of employment, whether for wages or not, either in a process, trade or business or in cleaning any part of the industrial undertaking or other place of employment used for any process, trade or business or in any other kind of work whatsoever incidental to or connected with the process, trade or business shall be deemed to be employed therein for the purposes of these regulations or of any proceedings thereunder. (L.N. 84 of 1980)
(4) For the avoidance of doubt it is hereby declared that these regulations are not in derogation of any other enactment which relates to the prohibition or control of the employment of children. (L.N. 84 of 1980)

### Employment of Children Regulations 《僱用兒童規例》

4. General prohibition of employment of children
(1) No person shall employ a child, or cause or permit a child to be employed—
(a) who is under the age of 13 years; or
(b) subject to paragraph (3), in any industrial undertaking. (L.N. 390 of 1990)
(2) The prohibition in paragraph (1)(b) extends to an industrial undertaking (other than a registered school under the Education Ordinance (Cap. 279)) which is not carried on by way of trade or for the purposes of gain.
(3) The prohibition in paragraph (1)(b) shall not extend to the industrial undertaking of preparation of food for consumption and sale on the premises where it is prepared. (L.N. 390 of 1990)

5. Children who have attained 13 years and completed Form III of secondary education
(1) Subject to regulation 4(1)(b) and (3) and to paragraph (2), a child who has completed Form III of secondary education shall not be employed unless— (L.N. 390 of 1990)
(a) he has attained the age of 13 years; and
(b) his parent—
(i) can produce, to the satisfaction of the person intending to employ the child, evidence that he has completed Form III of secondary education; and
(ii) has consented in writing to the employment.
(2) No child referred to in paragraph (1) shall be employed—
(a) before 7 a.m. or after 7 p.m. on any day;
(b) for more than 8 hours on any day;
(c) at work continuously for a spell of more than 5 hours without thereafter an interval of not less than 1 hour for a meal or rest; or
(d) to lift or carry any load exceeding 18 kg in the course of or in connexion with the employment.