Mak Tak Chang is a full-time organiser for the Federation of Transportation Workers’ Organisations (FTO) in Hong Kong. The FTO is a federation of 13 unions with members in the transport sectors. It is an affiliate of the Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions (HKCTU). Mak explains why the ITF International Road Transport Action Day each year has been important in fighting for workers’ rights in Hong Kong.

We have joined in ITF activities on “Fatigue Kills” every October since they started. At first, the FTO simply sent announcements to the local press but made little contact with the mass membership, with the drivers. But in 1999 we became more active. We started leafleting drivers, we held a press conference, and we carried out a demonstration to put pressure on the Hong Kong government.

In Hong Kong there is no minimum wage, no limitation on working time, no collective bargaining rights, no right to strike, nothing. There are no labour laws as such and so employers pay the drivers very little. Some drivers are working 80 hours a week. We see a close relationship between wages and working time. If wages are low, then workers have to do long hours. So our union knows it has to do something, to fight.

The fact that it is an international Action Day means that the coverage in the Hong Kong mass media is quite good. If it was not an international action, maybe the mass media would not think it important. Also the information from the ITF is very useful. From this we learned that in other countries they have labour rights which Hong Kong workers do not have. It encourages us because we know we are joining in something with many other unions around the world.

Most drivers in Hong Kong don’t know what the ITF is, don’t know about unions around the world. But since 1999 more and more drivers know what the International Day is. They see the coverage in the mass media. They still don’t have any choice but to work long hours, though.

Also, some drivers challenged our action. They said that if we cut hours, they will earn too little to feed their families. By making the basic pay too low, the employers are able to make one worker do two workers’ jobs. Meanwhile some other drivers are on too short hours, with too little take-home pay. The labour situation is very extreme.

So in 2001 we linked the issues of working hours and salaries. In 2002, our slogan in Hong kong will be “Reasonable Working Time. Reasonable Pay”. It has been a very valuable experience for us to respond to their concerns like this.

We want to fight for a minimum wage, for limits on working time, and for collective bargaining rights in law. The Hong Kong government is not democratic and is very pro-business, so it will be difficult. So far the government and employers have ignored our activities on the Action Days. But even if there are no changes in the law, we hope to win improvements through bargaining.

So far, it is not possible to make any impact in mainland China. We say it is “one country, two systems”. The government there is still a dictatorship by the Communist Party. But we hope to reach out to drivers there in the future.