The Minimum Wage Ordinance, Cap. 608

Keeping record of total number of hours worked

Q1 :

What is the monthly monetary cap on the requirement of employers recording the total number of hours worked by employees?

A1 :

The wage and employment records kept by an employer under the Employment Ordinance should include the total number of hours (including any part of an hour) worked by the employee in a wage period if:

SMW applies to the employee; and
wages payable in respect of that wage period are less than the monthly monetary cap specified in Schedule 9 of the Employment Ordinance (i.e. $16,300 with effect from 1 May 2023).

If wages payable to an employee in respect of a wage period are at the aforesaid monthly monetary cap or above, the wage and employment records kept by an employer according to the Employment Ordinance are not required to include the total number of hours worked by the employee in that wage period.

Q2 :

Must employees sign attendance record every day or use time cards to record hours worked?

A2 :

Neither the Employment Ordinance nor the Minimum Wage Ordinance specifies the ways of employers recording hours worked by employees. Employers and employees can draw up reasonable and practicable ways to record hours worked with regard to their trade characteristics, administrative measures and monitoring needs in individual establishments, nature of work of the employees, etc.

Employers and employees should keep proper records in relation to attendance, hours worked, wages, etc. to safeguard their respective rights and benefits and help avoid unnecessary disputes.

Q3 :

Is there any specified format for the record of the total number of hours worked? Does the Labour Department provide any sample form of the record to employers?

A3 :

Neither the Employment Ordinance nor the Minimum Wage Ordinance specifies the format for recording the total number of hours worked. Officers of the Labour Department may inspect the wage and employment records and require the total number of hours worked and the following particulars in the wage and employment records (which are set out in the Employment Ordinance) to be produced in a single document:

*name and identity card number of the employee

*wage period

*wages paid in respect of each wage period

*periods of annual leave, sick leave, maternity leave, paternity leave and holidays entitled and taken, together with details of payments made in respect of such periods

The Labour Department has published the booklet Proper Keeping of Wage and Employment Records for public reference.

Q4:

Can one assume that the minimum wage requirement would certainly be met if employees are paid at wage level equivalent to the monthly monetary cap (i.e. $16,300 with effect from 1 May 2023) on keeping record of the total number of hours worked?

A4:

Wages payable to an employee in respect of any wage period shall not be less than the amount of minimum wage calculated as follows:

Total number of hours worked in the wage period × SMW rate (i.e. $40 per hour with effect from 1 May 2023)

The monthly monetary cap (i.e. $16,300 with effect from 1 May 2023) is only the amount of wages payable for exempting employers from the requirement to keep record of the total number of hours worked by employees, irrespective of whether an employee’s wages have met the minimum wage requirement. Minimum wage of an employee is determined by his total number of hours worked in a wage period. An employer must pay his employee wages not less than the minimum wage, regardless of whether or not he is required to record the employee’s total number of hours worked.