Allegations of wrongdoing in the workplace place employers and employees in a position of conflict. They can destroy the trust and confidence necessary for the employment relationship to work and can lead to disciplinary action that can, ultimately, result in the end of that relationship. For regulated employees, such as licensed representatives or responsible officers of SFC licensed or registered firms, the mere investigation of wrongdoing can, if coupled with the end of the employment relationship, prejudice the employee's career.

Due Process

The Hong Kong Employment Ordinance (“EO”) establishes a statutory framework which governs the relationship between employers and employees. However, it does not provide any guidance on what procedures employers must follow in employee discipline matters. In particular, it does not require that an employer provide a fair hearing to the employee before terminating an employee's employment or taking other disciplinary action.

Contractual Rights

The employment contract will sometimes govern what due process will apply. It is not uncommon for staff handbooks to set out a disciplinary process including how investigations will take place and what procedures are to be followed before disciplinary sanctions are imposed.

Regulatory Duties

In the context of regulated industries, the employer may owe regulatory obligations to conduct an impartial investigation. For example, in the context of a licensed technical representative of an insurance...

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