### Employment Ordinance 《僱傭條例》

4B. Chief Executive may give directions

(1) The Chief Executive may give such directions as he thinks fit, either generally or in any particular case, with respect to the exercise or performance by any public officer of any powers, functions or duties under this Ordinance.
(2) A public officer shall, in the exercise or performance of his powers, functions or duties under this Ordinance, comply with any directions given by the Chief Executive under subsection (1).
(Added 10 of 1980 s. 2. Amended 56 of 2000 s. 3)

5. Duration of contracts of employment
(1) Every contract of employment, which is a continuous contract, shall, in the absence of any express agreement to the contrary, be deemed to be a contract for 1 month renewable from month to month.
(2) Notwithstanding that it is proved that a contract of employment is for a period in excess of 1 month such contract shall be deemed to be a contract for 1 month renewable from month to month unless the contract is evidenced in writing signed by each of the parties thereto.
(3) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, a contract of employment entered into by a manual worker for a period of 6 months or more or for a number of working days equivalent to 6 months or more shall be deemed to be a contract for 1 month renewable from month to month.
(4) Where any contract of employment for a period in excess of 1 month is deemed by virtue of the provisions of subsection (2) or (3) to be a contract from month to month the wages per month shall be such proportion of the total wages agreed under the contract as 1 month bears to the agreed duration of the contract.

### Employment Ordinance 《僱傭條例》

7. Termination of contract by payment in lieu of notice
(1) For the purposes of subsections (1A), (1B) and (1C), wages (工資) includes any sum paid by an employer in respect of—
(a) a day of maternity leave, a day of paternity leave, a rest day, a sickness day, a holiday or a day of annual leave taken by the employee; (Amended 21 of 2014 s. 4)
(b) a day of leave taken by the employee with the agreement of his employer;
(c) a normal working day on which the employee is not provided with work;
(d) a day of absence from work of the employee due to temporary incapacity for which compensation is payable under section 10 of the Employees’ Compensation Ordinance (Cap. 282). (Replaced 7 of 2007 s. 3)

(1A) Subject to sections 15 and 33, either party to a contract of employment may at any time terminate the contract without notice by agreeing to pay to the other party—
(a) where the length of notice required to terminate the contract under section 6 is a period expressed in days or weeks, a sum calculated by multiplying the number of days in the period for which wages would normally be payable to the employee by the daily average of the wages earned by the employee during—
(i) the period of 12 months immediately before the date on which the party terminating the contract gives notice of the termination to the other party (date of notification

8. Saving of rights
Nothing in section 6 or 7 shall be taken—
(a) to prevent either party to a contract of employment from waiving, at the time notice is required to be given for the purposes of section 6(2), (3) or (3A), his right to notice or to payment in lieu of notice; (Amended 48 of 1984 s. 5)
(b) to affect the right of a party to a contract of employment to terminate the contract without notice or payment in lieu under section 9, 10 or 11(2).

### Employment Ordinance 《僱傭條例》

8A. Damages for wrongful termination of contract
(1) Without prejudice to section 9, 10 or 11(2), where a contract of employment is terminated otherwise than in accordance with section 6 or 7, a sum equal to the amount of wages that would have been payable had the contract been terminated in accordance with section 7 shall be payable by the party terminating the contract to the other party.
(2) Without prejudice to section 9, 10 or 11(2), where a party to a contract of employment, having given proper notice in accordance with section 6 thereafter terminates the contract before the expiry of the period of notice otherwise than in accordance with section 7, such proportion of the sum referred to in subsection (1) as is proportionate to the period between the termination of the contract and the time when the notice given would have expired shall be payable by the party terminating the contract to the other party.
(3) For the purpose of calculating the sum referred to in subsection (1), where the party terminating the contract has not given notice of the termination to the other party, in calculating the daily average or monthly average of the wages earned by the employee in accordance with section 7, the reference in that section to the date on which the party terminating the contract gives notice of the termination to the other party or to the date of notification is to be construed as a reference to the date of termination of the contract. (Added 7 of 2007 s. 4)
(Added 14 of 1975 s. 2. Amended 7 of 2007 s. 4)

9. Termination of contract without notice by employer
(1) An employer may terminate a contract of employment without notice or payment in lieu— (Amended 51 of 2000 s. 2)
(a) if an employee, in relation to his employment—
(i) wilfully disobeys a lawful and reasonable order;
(ii) misconducts himself, such conduct being inconsistent with the due and faithful discharge of his duties;
(iii) is guilty of fraud or dishonesty; or
(iv) is habitually neglectful in his duties; or
(b) on any other ground on which he would be entitled to terminate the contract without notice at common law.
(2) The fact that an employee takes part in a strike does not entitle his employer to terminate under subsection (1) the employee’s contract of employment. (Added 51 of 2000 s. 2)

### Employment Ordinance 《僱傭條例》

10. Termination of contract without notice by employee
An employee may terminate his contract of employment without notice or payment in lieu—
(a) if he reasonably fears physical danger by violence or disease such as was not contemplated by his contract of employment expressly or by necessary implication;
(aa) if—
(i) he has been employed under the contract for not less than 5 years; and (Amended 41 of 1990 s. 4; 62 of 1992 s. 3)
(ii) by a certificate in the form specified by the Commissioner under section 49 and issued by a registered medical practitioner or registered Chinese medicine practitioner, he is certified as being permanently unfit for a particular type of work specified in the certificate for a reason or reasons stated therein; and (Amended 68 of 1990 s. 24; 61 of 1993 s. 3; 16 of 2006 s. 3)
(iii) he is engaged in that type of work under the contract; (Added 52 of 1988 s. 4)
(b) if he is subjected to ill-treatment by the employer; or
(c) on any other ground on which he would be entitled to terminate the contract without notice at common law.

10A. Deemed termination of contract under section 7
(1) Without prejudice to the rights of an employee under common law, an employee may terminate his contract of employment without notice or payment in lieu of notice if any wages are not paid within one month from the day on which they become due to him under section 23.
(2) Where a contract of employment is terminated under subsection (1), the contract shall be deemed to be terminated by the employer in accordance with section 7 and the employer shall be deemed to have agreed to pay to the employee the sum specified in section 7.
(Added 74 of 1997 s. 5)