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Employer did not pay MPF for 1.5 year

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  1. #1

    Join Date
    Aug 2014
    Posts
    3

    Question Employer did not pay MPF for 1.5 year

    Hello all,

    I was always under the impression, and also told by my employer, that MPF does not have to be paid until after 13 months. I started working in my current company on August 20, 2015. Hence, by now they should be paying MPF. Since this was not the case I thought I'd inquire with the MPFA to check exactly on which date I should have started MPF before I went to HR. It turned out that since I'm here on an "Immigration arrangement for non-local graduates" visa the company should have treated me like a local since the day I've started and hence should have paid MPF since then.

    After finding out about this I went to HR to ask about it, they then told me that if that was true that they would then deduct my part of the contribution for the past ~1.5year from my next salary. This strikes me as absolutely insane! Isn't it the employers responsibility to enroll me for MPF?

    I called the MPFA again after this and they told me that how the back-payments are handled is between employer and employee.

    It's a SUBSTANTIAL amount of money to simply deduct from my next salary. Not only that, if I would have been enrolled in a scheme 1.5 years ago I would have (possibly) earned on the interest rate. So how can they just get away with that and simply say "we will deduct it from your salary".

    Any help would be appreciated!


  2. #2

    Just checked my MPF. You didn't miss much in terms of interest.


  3. #3

    Join Date
    Dec 2009
    Posts
    7,471

    Yeah MPF is basically the mandatory piss-it-down-the-drain fund


  4. #4

    Join Date
    Dec 2013
    Location
    Hong Kong
    Posts
    12,323

    If you are under the threshold it's 5percent of salary per month. For 18 months that's 5 x 18 percent ... or almost a full months salary. It's pretty unreasonable to withhold a whole months salary from a (probably) low paid member of staff. As an employer we would probably have just gifted that money if it was our mistake . But there are no rules. Your employer acted illegally by withholding the money and not enrolling you. There are stiff penalties. You may be able to make a claim against them in the employment tribunal for such negligence. Possibly. Have you tried calling the employment office of the government? They might be able to help. Withholding your salary is also illegal so you may be able to make the case to your employer that they are not allowed to solve their problem this way. They clearly have no clue of the rules or penalties. Get informed. Read the employment ordinance. Go with a plan. Tell them what's illegal and suggest a solution. Start by suggesting they pay your contribution in lieu of you not reporting them to the government. And probably be willing to accept some deal whereby they lend you the out and you pay back over some months. Oh and find a new employer as these guys are shit.

    TheBrit and MischaM like this.

  5. #5

    Join Date
    Feb 2005
    Location
    Manchester, UK
    Posts
    7,790

    MPF is shite, work with your employer and say, just forget it and start from scratch. You said think you lost out on 1.5 yrs of interest, LOL you probably saved money being deducted and lost .


  6. #6

    Join Date
    Dec 2013
    Location
    Hong Kong
    Posts
    12,323

    Colluding with a shit employer to break the law is not a good long term strategy. He will have no rights if he ever has another problem with them as they could hold this over him.


  7. #7

    Join Date
    Aug 2014
    Posts
    3

    Thanks a lot for the response Katherine! I have a meeting later today with my boss and HR.


  8. #8

    Join Date
    Jan 2017
    Location
    Bangladesh
    Posts
    6

    How can the employee can survive without paying 1.5 years? I am confused.


  9. #9

    Join Date
    Oct 2005
    Posts
    14,414
    Quote Originally Posted by Sandremike:
    How can the employee can survive without paying 1.5 years? I am confused.
    Mpf not Salary
    Sandremike likes this.

  10. #10

    Join Date
    Jan 2017
    Location
    Bangladesh
    Posts
    6
    Quote Originally Posted by jimbo:
    Mpf not Salary
    Oh, may be I missed that line.

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