Lee Ting Sang v Chung Chi-Keung

Last updated
Lee Ting Sang v Chung Chi-Keung
Royal Arms of the United Kingdom (Privy Council).svg
Court Judicial Committee of the Privy Council
Decided22 January 1990
Citation(s)[1990] UKPC 9, [1990] ICR 409
Court membership
Judges sitting Lord Bridge of Harwich, Lord Templeman, Lord Griffiths, Lord Goff of Chieveley, Lord Lowry
Keywords
Contract of employment

Lee Ting Sang v Chung Chi-Keung [1990] UKPC 9 is a Hong Kong and UK labour law case concerning the scope of protection for people to employment rights. It took the view that an employment contract requires that regard be had to the economic reality of the relationship, looking at factors such as whether uses one's own tools or takes on business risk.

Contents

The case was heard on appeal from the Court of Appeal of Hong Kong.

Facts

A skilled stonemason wanted to claim he was within the health and safety regulations. To do so, he would have to be regarded in law as an employee.

Advice

Mr Lee Ting Sang was regarded as an employee. Therefore, he could claim that he was within the health and safety regulations. This was in spite of the fact that he was not, due to the skills he possessed, instructed how to do the job. The court took into account that he (1) worked mainly for a subcontractor on short-term basis, (2) was paid a piece-work rate or a daily rate, (3) did not possess any equipment, (4) did not hire any helpers, and (5) was not required to exercise management of the job,

Significance

The Privy Council took into account a number of factors to determine if there was a legal relationship of employment. They held that this was indeed the case, despite the fact that the worker here was skilled. Traditionally, skill was a factor which negated the existence of a legal relationship of employment.

See also

Notes

    Related Research Articles

    Labour laws are those that mediate the relationship between workers, employing entities, trade unions and the government. Collective labour law relates to the tripartite relationship between employee, employer and union. Individual labour law concerns employees' rights at work also through the contract for work. Employment standards are social norms for the minimum socially acceptable conditions under which employees or contractors are allowed to work. Government agencies enforce labour law.

    Human resources is the set of people who make up the workforce of an organization, business sector, industry, or economy. A narrower concept is human capital, the knowledge and skills which the individuals command. Similar terms include manpower, labor, personnel, associates or simply: people.

    An Employment is a relationship between two parties, usually based on a contract where work is paid for, where one party, which may be a corporation, for profit, not-for-profit organization, co-operative or other entity is the employer and the other is the employee. Employees work in return for payment, which may be in the form of an hourly wage, by piecework or an annual salary, depending on the type of work an employee does or which sector they are working in. Employees in some fields or sectors may receive gratuities, bonus payment or stock options. In some types of employment, employees may receive benefits in addition to payment. Benefits can include health insurance, housing, disability insurance or use of a gym. Employment is typically governed by employment laws, organisation or legal contracts.

    United Kingdom labour law Law in the United Kingdom

    United Kingdom labour law regulates the relations between workers, employers and trade unions. People at work in the UK benefit from a minimum charter of employment rights, which are found in various Acts, Regulations, common law and equity. This includes the right to a minimum wage of £8.91 for over-25-year-olds under the National Minimum Wage Act 1998. The Working Time Regulations 1998 give the right to 28 days paid holidays, breaks from work, and attempts to limit excessively long working hours. The Employment Rights Act 1996 gives the right to leave for child care, and the right to request flexible working patterns. The Pensions Act 2008 gives the right to be automatically enrolled in a basic occupational pension, whose funds must be protected according to the Pensions Act 1995.

    Temporary work Type of employment

    Temporary work or temporary employment refers to an employment situation where the working arrangement is limited to a certain period of time based on the needs of the employing organization. Temporary employees are sometimes called "contractual", "seasonal", "interim", "casual staff", "outsourcing", "freelance"; or the words may be shortened to "temps". In some instances, temporary, highly skilled professionals refer to themselves as consultants. Increasingly, executive-level positions are also filled with Interim Executives or Fractional Executives.

    Working time Period of time that an individual spends at paid occupational labor

    Working time is the period of time that a person spends at paid labor. Unpaid labor such as personal housework or caring for children or pets is not considered part of the working week.

    This article gives detailed information on the employment situation in Hong Kong.

    Permatemp is a U.S. term for a temporary employee who works for an extended period for a single staffing client. The word is a portmanteau of the words permanent and temporary.

    A severance package is pay and benefits that employees may be entitled to receive when they leave employment at a company unwillfully. In addition to their remaining regular pay, it may include some of the following:

    Foreign domestic helpers in Hong Kong Domestic helpers in Hong Kong from other countries

    Foreign domestic helpers in Hong Kong are domestic workers employed by Hongkongers, typically families. Comprising five percent of Hong Kong's population, about 98.5% of them are women. In 2019, there were 400,000 foreign domestic helpers in the territory; of these, 48 percent were from the Philippines, 49.4 percent from Indonesia and 1.3 percent from Thailand. Required by law to live in their employer's residence, they perform household tasks such as cooking, serving, cleaning, dishwashing and child care.

    United Kingdom agency worker law refers to the law which regulates people's work through employment agencies in the United Kingdom. Though statistics are disputed, there are currently between half a million and one and a half million agency workers in the UK, and probably over 17,000 agencies. As a result of judge made law and absence of statutory protection, agency workers have more flexible pay and working conditions than permanent staff covered under the Employment Rights Act 1996.

    Indian labour law refers to law regulating labour in India. Traditionally, Indian government at federal and state level have sought to ensure a high degree of protection for workers, but in practice, this differs due to form of government and because labour is a subject in the concurrent list of the Indian Constitution.

    European labour law regulates basic transnational standards of employment and partnership at work in the European Union and countries adhering to the European Convention on Human Rights. In setting regulatory floors to competition to for job-creating investment within the Union, and in promoting a degree of employee consultation in the workplace, European labour law is viewed as a pillar of the "European social model". Despite wide variation in employment protection and related welfare provision between member states, a contrast is typically drawn with conditions in the United States.

    The Labor policy in the Philippines is specified mainly by the country's Labor Code of the Philippines and through other labor laws. They cover 38 million Filipinos who belong to the labor force and to some extent, as well as overseas workers. They aim to address Filipino workers’ legal rights and their limitations with regard to the hiring process, working conditions, benefits, policymaking on labor within the company, activities, and relations with employees.

    Ministry of Human Resources (Malaysia) Government ministry

    The Ministry of Human Resources, abbreviated MOHR, is a ministry of the Government of Malaysia that is responsible for skills development, labour, occupational safety and health, trade unions, industrial relations, industrial court, labour market information and analysis, social security.

    South African labour law regulates the relationship between employers, employees and trade unions in the Republic of South Africa.

    <i>Serco Ltd v Lawson</i>

    Lawson v Serco Ltd [2006] UKHL 3 is a UK labour law case, concerning the test for when workers are covered by employment rights when they work abroad.

    Labour law regulates the legal relationship in Bulgaria between individual workers and employees as well as between coalitions and representative bodies.

    Gig workers are independent contractors, online platform workers, contract firm workers, on-call workers and temporary workers. Gig workers enter into formal agreements with on-demand companies to provide services to the company's clients.

    <i>Hollis v Vabu</i>

    Hollis v Vabu Pty Ltd is a decision of the High Court of Australia. It is a notable decision in Australian employment law.