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  1. EOC announced findings of questionnaire survey on sexual harassment prevention efforts in the social service sector

Photo from the EOC

Over the past few years, the EOC has been running a sector- and profession-specific anti-sexual harassment campaign to raise awareness among certain groups susceptible to sexual harassment, including practitioners and service users in the sports and education sectors, as well as goods and service providers and foreign domestic workers. The latest target of the campaign is the social service sector, which interacts frequently with the public, particularly the vulnerable groups such as people with disabilities, women, the elderly and children.
 
In 2016, the EOC organised two seminars on sexual harassment prevention for the social service sector, and conducted a questionnaire survey among the participants to find out their effort in this regard. On 11 July, the EOC announced the findings at a press conference. Some key figures and findings are listed below:

- 51% of the surveyed NGOs had in place written anti-sexual harassment policy;
- 49% of the responding NGOs had provided sexual harassment awareness training to their employees;
- Only 25% of the surveyed NGOs had provided anti-sexual harassment training to their members/service users/volunteers;
- 18% of those surveyed had not taken any preventive measures against sexual harassment at all;
- The main reasons for NGOs not to formulate a written policy include “staff members were not trained to do so” and “there is no urgency to do so”; and
- 100% of the respondents said they would let their colleagues participate in anti-sexual harassment training courses should the EOC organise them.

The EOC believes that there is still a general lack of understanding of sexual harassment within the social service sector. Many of the NGOs rely on the Service Quality Standards (SQSs) and Implementation Handbook published by the Social Welfare Department (SWD) for subvented NGOs, which does not include any specific information on sexual harassment. In addition, many of the small and medium-sized NGOs lack resources and manpower for developing related policy and training. In view of these, the EOC has made several recommendations and taken follow-up actions, as summarised below:

- To guide NGOs to formulate their own anti-sexual harassment policy, the EOC developed the "Framework for Sexual Harassment Policy in Social Service Agencies", which is available on the EOC website;
- The EOC will work with the Hong Kong Council of Social Service to organise three workshops on sexual harassment complaint-handling in August and September 2017;
- NGOs are encouraged to provide training for their staff and service users;
- The SWD is recommended to review the SQSs, the Implementation Handbook and other guidelines set for subvented NGOs; and
- The Government is recommended to step up effort in encouraging NGOs to enhance their anti-sexual harassment work.
 
Photo from the gender mainstreaming seminar organised by the EOC and the Women's Commission
Separately, the EOC and the Women’s Commission jointly organised a seminar titled “Awareness of Gender Mainstreaming and Sexual Harassment” on 4 July. The event attracted nearly 100 participants, including Gender Focal Points from District Councils, the social welfare sector and listed companies, as well as EO Club members, who shared their work in gender mainstreaming, with a focus on sexual harassment-related issues.
The participants were also invited to take part in a post-seminar feedback survey. Almost 95% of those who responded rated the seminar as satisfactory/very satisfactory. In addition, over 97% of them agreed that the seminar helped enhance their understanding of gender mainstreaming, while all of them (100%) agreed that it deepened their understanding of preventing sexual harassment in the workplace. The EOC will follow up with the Women’s Commission and roll out further programmes if deemed necessary.

Read the press release on the EOC’s questionnaire survey
Read the full findings of the questionnaire survey
Download the Framework for Sexual Harassment Policy in Social Service Agencies
What are Gender Focal Points?
More information on sexual harassment

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  1. The EOC welcomes the Government’s announcement on new education proposals including increased resources for students with special educational needs

A photo of a typical classroom in Hong KongThe new Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Mrs Carrie LAM said in her election manifesto that she aimed to increase recurrent expenditure on education by HK$5 billion a year. On 5 July, a few days after she assumed office, the Government announced various new proposals for improving the quality of education for students in Hong Kong.

The EOC is pleased to see that these new measures include specific plans to strengthen support for students with special educational needs (SEN) in public sector primary and secondary schools. They include additional teaching staff and allied health staff, recurrent cash grant to increase IT support, and better teacher-to-class ratio. 
 
The EOC advocates equal access to education for all, including SEN and ethnic minority students. In addition to providing recommendations to the Government in this regard, the EOC has been providing relevant training for teachers and helping to facilitate good practice exchange among educational establishments.
 
The EOC is also eager to work closely with the Government on reviewing and identifying the needs of ethnic minority students, such as additional resources for helping them learn Chinese, such that our younger generation can get the support they need, and access to quality education.

Read the Government’s press release
Read the EOC’s Disability & Education Series
Read the Disability Discrimination Ordinance Code of Practice on Education
Read the EOC’s Study on Equal Learning Opportunities for Students with Disabilities under the Integrated Education System report

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  1. Finding common ground to resolve conflicts

An image of two people expressing their views, with part of their speech bubbles overlapping
One major work area of the EOC is to act as an impartial third party to facilitate conciliation between complainants of discrimination and those at whom the complaints are directed. Conciliation, which is completely voluntary, is a common alternative to courtroom litigation as a conflict-resolution approach. It helps the disputing parties find a solution they feel comfortable with so that they can move forward from the dispute. Recently, EOC Chairperson Professor Alfred CHAN Cheung-ming has written an article in his am730 column to give the readers an idea on how conciliation works at the EOC, including the conciliation mechanism and the benefits of this approach. Those who want to learn more about this topic can visit the EOC website.

Read Prof. Chan’s new am730 article (Chinese only)
Learn more about conciliation

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  1. Support World Breastfeeding Week and breastfeeding mothers

Poster of the Hong Kong Breastfeeding Mothers’ Association

The first seven days of August is World Breastfeeding Week. This year, the celebration is preceded by some good news: the Government announced on 27 June that it is making the provision of baby care facilities and lactation rooms a mandatory requirement in the sale conditions of Government land for new commercial developments such as office premises, as well as retail and food and beverage outlets.
 
The EOC gladly welcomes this decision, which shows the Government’s goodwill in fostering a friendlier breastfeeding culture in Hong Kong. We hope the Government will also consider our related recommendation in the Discrimination Law Review on including an express provision in the anti-discrimination legislation, making discrimination on the ground of breastfeeding and expressing milk unlawful.
 
Do you also want to play a part in promoting the culture of breastfeeding? Join the Hong Kong Breastfeeding Mothers’ Association event on 30 July. The two-hour event will include a catwalk show of breastfeeding fashion from a design competition organised by the association, guest sharing, and a bazaar. The event is free and open to public. Registration is required and a special dress code applies.   
 
Event details
When: 2-4 pm, 30 July 2017 (Sunday)
Where: Level 7, The Wave, Kwun Tong
Dress code: Yellow/gold/orange/accessories with a bow in gold or similar patterns

Read the Government press release
View details and register for the Hong Kong Breastfeeding Mothers’ Association event
More about World Breastfeeding Week

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  1. Support Programme for Employees with Disabilities (SPED) will close for applications on 21 July 2017

Cover of the "Easy Read Guide to the Code of Practice on Employment under the Disability Discrimination Ordinance (2011)"
The new batch of the Support Programme for Employees with Disabilities (SPED) is accepting applications until 21 July. Interested employers are encouraged to get nomination from one of the designated referring organisations and submit their applications before the deadline.
 
Run by the Social Welfare Department (SWD), the SPED aims to subsidise employers of people with disabilities to buy assistive devices and/or make workplace modifications for employees in need of special accommodations. Successful applicants will receive a one-off subsidy capped at $20,000 for each disabled employee ($40,000 in special cases at the discretion of the SWD). Eligible devices include computer accessories, adaptive equipment, and handrails.
 
For enquiries or further information, please contact the scheme Administrator, Po Leung Kuk, or visit the scheme website (see attached link).

View details of the SPED and download the application forms
EOC-developed code of practice on recruiting and employing people with disabilities

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Visit our website or download the EOC mobile app (Apple App Store / Google Play) to stay updated on the EOC’s work and positions, and to review our press releases and calendar training. Also, stay tuned on other equal opportunities issues and community initiatives by visiting our community resources and community events pages for information from our community partners, including publications, survey reports, publicity campaigns, and upcoming conferences.